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AWA Looks at Reasons for CAWP Upgrades |
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Tuesday, 09 February 2010 |
 Amador County – The Amador Water Agency board of directors at a workshop last week heard from staff some reasons that made the Gravity Supply Line the agency’s primary approach. Interim General Manger Gene Mancebo said 2 primary approaches have been the Gravity Supply Line and fixing the pump system, which takes water from Tiger Creek to the Buckhorn treatment plant. The existing 12-inch line in the CAWP system has an unknown condition, said Acting Engineering Manager Erik Christeson, but it likely would need replacement by 2023. It could not be taken off-line during construction, he said, so a “parallel line” would have to be built. About 75 percent of the replacement line must be built within roads. He said the pumps are 30 years old and operate near capacity, so the pump system would require upgrades, even without a Gravity Supply Line. The pump stations were estimated to need replacing by 2014, assuming “1,500 days of successful operation,” Christeson said. The system experienced 18 hours of communications and electrical failures last Friday, causing 7 hours of overtime Saturday. Upgrade costs includes $1.3 million at the Silver Lake Pines pump station, and $1.8 million for the Tiger Creek pump. With generators, total upgrades would cost $3.7 million, for construction only. Mancebo said the Gravity Supply Line would improve water quality, noting that poor water quality was one of the reasons AWA upgraded its Buckhorn Water Treatment Plant. He said water quality often was so bad that the plant could not effectively treat it. Another issue was how to meet demands that increase with “growth or infill.” Christeson said a Gravity Supply Line would have a life expectancy of 50 to 75 years, depending on the quality of the pipeline. It would increase annual flow from 1,120 acre feet to 2,200 acre feet, and serve 2,800 additional parcels over the life of the project. Christeson said the pump system would be a reliable backup to the GSL, and less frequent use would prolong the lives of the pumps. Story by Jim Reece
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 16 February 2010 )
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