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Utility Patent-Pipeline Inspection Tool-

Water Authority Nominated for Golden Watchdog Award

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The San Diego County Water Authority is a finalist for a Golden Watchdog Award at this year’s Golden Watchdog & Fleece Awards hosted by the San Diego County Taxpayers Association on Oct. 18. The Water Authority was recognized for its deployment of “Scanny,” a high-tech surveillance device designed to safely and efficiently monitor the agency’s large-diameter pipelines that provide water to the San Diego region.

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The inspection tool uses commercially available lightweight adventure cameras and lights that are arranged in a unique way on a chassis that moves through pipelines that are 4 to 9 feet in diameter. Photo: San Diego County Water Authority

Proactive maintenance and asset management practices allow water agencies to extend the lifespan of their pipeline assets by more than 50%. With 308 miles of transmission pipelines, 100 flow control facilities and more than 1,400 pipeline-related structures, the Water Authority is constantly assessing and inspecting critical infrastructure across the county. This not only ensures that the Water Authority can stay ahead of potential emergencies but also reduce the need for replacing infrastructure.

Inspections involve crews entering the drained pipelines and evaluating around 30 miles each year. The pipelines traverse the hilly terrain of San Diego County, and some sections are so steep that they require the use of specialized rope and rigging support teams. That’s where “Scanny” comes in. Using an array of cameras to provide high-definition video surveillance of the interior of the pipeline, invented by Water Authority staff, provides the ability to inspect these pipes without requiring specialists.

The benefit of this technology goes beyond proactive maintenance. When compared to the cost of hiring specialized rope and rigging teams, “Scanny” paid for itself in just two deployments. “Scanny” can also be deployed multiple times each year during the inspection season.

Asset management at the Water Authority is more than just using new technology, it’s a strategic investment. In round numbers, the cost to replace 1 mile of large-diameter pipeline can be around $10 million. The cost to assess and maintain the same mile of pipeline may be around $100,000 every 10 years.

Tijuana Water Deliveries, Explained

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Over the last few weeks, several stories have come out about water deliveries being made to the city of Tijuana. Here’s some of the basics behind this unique international agreement.  

Whose water is it? Mexico’s. Water delivered through the Emergency Deliveries Agreement is a portion of the Colorado River supplies allotted to Mexico under the 1944 Treaty.  

Where does it come from? Under normal conditions, Tijuana’s supply of Colorado River is diverted from the Morelos Dam, about 1 mile downstream of the California and Baja California boundary, south of Yuma, Ariz. Water is transported west through the Alamo Canal to Mexicali, and then through the Tijuana Aqueduct to Tijuana, for a total of about 150 miles.  

Under emergency conditions, Mexico’s Colorado River supply to Tijuana is diverted at Lake Havasu and transported through Metropolitan’s 242-mile Colorado River Aqueduct before being conveyed through MWD, Water Authority and Otay Water District distribution systems. 

Daytime papel picado framed view of the iconic landmark arch of downtown Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico.

When did deliveries start? The Agreement was signed in 1972, and several amendments (minutes) were signed since then that document the authorization of emergency deliveries to Mexico. Delivery volumes have varied from 0 to nearly 10,000 acre-feet per year; the maximum annual delivery volume, per the agreement, is 14,400 acre-feet.  

Emergency deliveries occurred throughout the 1970s and stopped from 1981-2002. Deliveries started up again from 2003-2012, with another hiatus from 2013- 2017. Most recently, Mexico has requested emergency deliveries every year from 2018 -2024, except for 2021. 

How many agencies are involved? A number of agencies from the federal, state, local and Mexico governments are involved. On the U.S. side, this includes the Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. International Boundary and Water Commission, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, San Diego County Water Authority and Otay Water District. South of the border, the National Water Commission, Mexico’s International Boundary and Water Commission, State Public Utility Commission of Tijuana (CESPT) and other agencies are involved. 

What does the current agreement include? The current agreement, which expires in 2027, includes procedures and schedules for annual emergency delivery requests, capacity determination by the California Agencies, base cost of deliveries calculation and fund balance requirements.   

With each annual request by Mexico, the California Agencies must agree to deliver the requested delivery volumes based on available capacity within their respective systems. Additionally, funds must be provided by Mexico in advance of water deliveries.  

OPINION: Forensic Report Confirms Oroville Dam Lapses

/in /by /The Mercury News‎ (San Jose)

The verdict is in and California stands convicted of gross negligence in the construction and maintenance of the nation’s highest dam, Oroville. The dam on the Feather River came very close to failing last year, forcing the evacuation of a quarter-million people living downstream. Heavy outflows revealed structural flaws in the dam’s concrete spillway and when dam operators switched to an auxiliary spillway that dumped water onto an “unarmored” earthen hillside, it quickly eroded, threatening the entire structure with collapse.

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VIDEO: In What Kind Of Condition Are San Diego’s Dams?

/in /by /CBS8 News Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

A comprehensive condition assessment of nine dams owned by the city of San Diego has been underway for the past year, according to the Public Utilities Department said. Asked about the condition of San Diego dams after Sunday’s mass evacuation in Oroville in Northern California, department officials told City News Service that they hired independent experts in dam design, construction and safety to perform detailed inspections of the dams in February of last year.

 

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Ag Department Seeks Israeli Input on Water Conservation

/in /by /Turlock Journalby Ryan McLaughlin

Hearing about the drought and its profound effects on agriculture here in California is nothing new to residents of the Golden State.

Despite some more recent figures showing increasing reservoir levels and amounts of precipitation in some parts of the state, the severity of the drought has remained relatively unchanged, leading to about 43 percent of California to be considered under severe-to-exceptional drought, according to the Pacific Institute in Oakland.  However, it is not the recurring story of the drought’s persistence Californians are interested in hearing about, it’s what’s being done to counter it.

 

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ENVIRONMENT: Worries Rising as Colorado River Water Runs Low

/in /by /The Press-Enterprise (Riverside)by By Aaron Orlowski

For the past five years, as the drought drained California’s water sources and depleted its reservoirs, Southern California water managers have relied increasingly on the region’s largest out-of-state water source: the Colorado River.

The river feeds the 242-mile Colorado River Aqueduct, which ends at Lake Mathews in Riverside County. The aqueduct is managed by the Metropolitan Water District of Los Angeles, a wholesaler that supplies 1.2 million acre-feet of Colorado River water to the Inland region and beyond.

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September 22, 2003

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The San Diego Business Journal

Awards & Recognitions

Nora Jaeschke has received the California Association of Community Managers Lifetime Achievement Award. Jaeschke has been president of N.N. Jaeschke Inc. since 1971 (and is a member for the Water Authority board of directors).

OPPINION: State Needs Drought Emergency Exit Plan

/in /by /Monterey Heraldby By Jack Hawks

Californians are doing an outstanding job conserving water, reducing urban water use by nearly 26 percent during the last seven months of 2015, compared with the same period in 2013, exceeding Gov. Jerry Brown’s 25 percent reduction mandate. California’s investor-owned water utilities, together serving approximately 6 million people, are partnering with their customers to achieve those savings. The State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) has recognized many of our members among the state’s water conservation standouts.

The severity of this historic drought has required extraordinary conservation measures to ensure adequate water supplies. As SWRCB Chair Felicia Marcus said last spring, “This is the drought of the century, with greater impact than anything our parents and grandparents experienced, and we have to act accordingly.” Given the uncertainties with the weather, the SWRCB made the prudent, responsible decision on Feb. 2 to extend the emergency conservation regulations (with appropriate adjustments for local climates, population growth and drought resilient supply investments) through October 2016.

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Judge Orders Release of Turf Removal Rebate Data

/in /by /Associated Press (As Published by Knoxville News Sentinel - Knoxville, Tenn.)

A judge has ordered the release of the names and addresses of Los Angeles residents who received turf removal rebates aimed at helping California conserve water during the drought.

Superior Court Judge James Chalfant said the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California must release the data but granted a temporary exemption to more than two dozen law enforcement officials, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.

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Fact Check: Desal Pro May Want to Acknowledge San Diego’s Weird Water Excess

/in /by /Voice of San Diegoby By Ry Rivard Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

At a Feb. 3 meeting of the Orange County Water District, members of the public questioned plans to build a new desalination plant along the coast. They noted San Diego County Water Authority officials were forced to dump treated water into a lake because of a contract they signed with Poseidon Resources to build a desalination plant in Carlsbad. In response, Scott Maloni, vice president of Poseidon, said, “Despite some comments you heard tonight about water not being used or not being needed, that is not the case.”

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