“I do like to say that when things are going well, we’re just a glorified janitor. When things aren’t going well, we’re the guys who have to clean up the mess before it hits the fan.” – James Ferguson, a 10-year veteran operator at the Saco Water Resource Recovery Division.

In this video, the first of our day-in-the-life series focusing on the team that handles Saco’s wastewater, we present you with an in-depth feel of what it’s like to keep a treatment plant running smoothly. You’ll learn why they enjoy their work, too.

“I’ve heard stories and telltale of when the tannery was still [upriver], and you could tell what color they were dyeing the leather that day,” James said. “There were no fish, there were no paddleboarders, you didn’t have people going and swimming in the river, because that was unheard of.”

“To be able to kind of give back and make sure that we can use the river for fishing and swimming, and people can come up and enjoy the Saco Bay area, that’s just a feather in the cap for what we do.”

You can learn more about Saco’s WRRD team by visiting sacomaine.org/WRRDworkforce