Getting Ready for Fire Season

  

A passerby would have assumed that a huge emergency must have been unfolding at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s (SFPUC) new Sunol Yard on May 30^th.  No less than five separate fire department units were on scene, sharing space with Alameda and Santa Clara County Sheriff’s vehicles, California Highway Patrol, and even the East Bay Regional Park District’s Police helicopter. 

Thankfully, this was merely the East Bay First Responder Liaison Lunch hosted by the SFPUC’s Natural Resources and Lands Management Division each year. More than 70 representatives from all swaths of local law enforcement kindly set aside two hours of their time for coordination and planning for fire season.

 CalFire’s Mike Marcucci (Deputy Chief – State Operations), discusses fire department resource planning.

The SFPUC owns 35,000 acres of watershed lands in Alameda and Santa Clara Counties. Managed by Natural Resources and Lands Management staff, these lands house water infrastructure that is crucial to the drinking water supply of our 2.7 million customers, including two drinking water reservoirs, pump stations, pipelines, and tunnels. These lands have been protected from development as drinking water sources, which also makes them vulnerable to trespass, criminal activity, and fire.

Alameda County Sheriff Ahern, Cal Fire’s Mike Marcucci, and SFPUC's Neal Fujita discuss the specific roles played by first responders and SFPUC during a fire.

It is important that our staff meet these first responding agencies before an emergency. Thus, the Liaison Lunches were born. Over home-made tri-tip and salad, first responders meet SFPUC staff and become familiar with the watershed and the location of entry roads and gates. The goal: to plan for the inevitable eventuality of a fire on or near our watershed.

“Whatever the scale, we will have emergencies again this year on the watersheds – but we’re better prepared because of the hard work to prepare for these gatherings.” said Tim Ramirez, Director of the Natural Resources and Lands Management Division.

We would like to thank our First Responders for being such tremendous partners in keeping our watershed lands and our communities safe. Thank you for your service!

Alameda County Fire Department

Alameda County Sherriff’s Office

Cal Fire

California Department of Fish and Game

California Highway Patrol

East Bay Regional Park District

Fremont Fire Department

Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department

Santa Clara County Fire Department

Santa Clara County Sherriff’s office

Spring Valley Fire Department

Be Safe Out there! See you around the Valley!

Building Dams in Earthquake Regions Part I

The First Two Calaveras Dams

As Californians, we live with the possibility of earthquakes.  Here at the Calaveras Dam Replacement Project, we are constructing a new earth and rock-fill dam that will be strengthened to resist the seismic forces and withstand a 7.25 magnitude earthquake. 

Dam technology has evolved since we completed the original dam in 1925. In a two-part series, we’re going to take a look at how our predecessors built the previous Calaveras Dam, which has served us well for 90 years, and what new technologies and construction methods we are using for the new dam to be ready for the next big quake.

The original Calaveras Dam (construction spanned 1913 to 1918) was constructed using the so-called hydraulic fill method.  Basically, to create the impermeable 'puddle core', fine soils were washed off the surrounding slopes with high pressure water cannons, and this slurry was collected between two 'training' dikes on both sides of the dam’s core.

During gold mining in the Sierra foothills, this method was used to build much smaller dams to impound water for hydraulic mining. But scaling this method up to this size had some serious problems. 

The first Calaveras Dam, nearly complete in 1918. It was the largest earthen dam in the world at the time.

The process did not allow excess water in the puddle core to dissipate, and this extra weight exceeded the ability of the upstream shell to retain it, and it failed as it neared completion.

The second (current) dam was completed in 1925 and was built on the remains of the first dam. For the current dam, soil was compacted in the core, primarily by running heavily-loaded wagons over it (pulled by mules). In this photo you can see the mule trains compacting the core.

The second Calaveras Dam, shown in 1926.

However, one problem that wasn't addressed during the construction of the current dam was the fact that alluvial soils (creek sediments including silt, sand, and gravel) were not removed before the first dam was constructed. Such saturated, loose sediments, which are removed during the construction of a modern dam, have the potential to 'liquefy' as they are shaken during an earthquake. 

It was for this reason that we at the SFPUC elected to build a completely new dam next to the existing dam.  And this time, things were different. 

Stay tuned to learn more!

Bald Eagle Photo Friday at San Antonio Reservoir

Happy Photo Friday!

This week’s pick comes courtesy of Kevin and Pat from our Natural Resources and Lands Management staff.

We have spent a lot of time writing about the nesting pairs of bald eagles who reside at Calaveras Reservoir and the pair near our restoration sites near San Antonio Reservoir in the SFPUC-owned Alameda Creek Watershed. But we’d like to introduce you to a more recent arrival to the San Antonio Reservoir area.   

This pair has made its home closer to our Turner Dam at San Antonio Reservoir.  Since it is the time of year when our pairs are on their nests taking care of chicks, our staff spotted two eaglets in their nest.

Once bald eagles find a nesting location they like, they tend to stay in the area. Which is why these bald eagles and our Natural Resources and Lands Management staff have gotten to know one another.  Our staff monitors the well being of these birds on a weekly basis. They all have been trained on bald eagle monitoring and behavior. Knowing these particular birds and bald eagle behavior enables our Natural Resources staff to know quickly if the birds seem ‘off’ because they have been disturbed by something.  

These little ones will fledge (develop the ability to fly) anywhere from 8 to 14 weeks of age. For now, they’re being fed a consistent diet of fish found in the reservoirs and creeks within the Alameda Watershed.

Healthy watersheds provide high quality water and also provide a safe haven for many amazing plants and animals. We consider it an honor and a privilege to look after these watershed lands, and all who live there, too.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Sunol Valley Fire Safety #1

It’s always fire season in California, although it officially begins in May. Our warm and dry climate coupled with climate change has made California more susceptible to frequent wildfires.  According to CAL FIRE, between January 1, 2017 and May 20, 2017 there have been a total of 921 fires in California.

Here at Calaveras dam want to prevent wildfires by our watersheds. During the summer months we will be dedicating a series of fire prevention blogs with tips on how you can help prevent forest fires.


Today we will focus on equipment safety.  Operating equipment like lawn mowers, chainsaws and tractors improperly could ignite a wildfire.  However, according to CALFIRE there are simple steps that you can take to prevent these types of fires.

(Image courtesy of http://pacificsun.com/home-garden-lawn-be-gone/)

Equipment Safety Tips:

·       Mow during the cool time of day before 10 a.m. while there is still dew on the ground, not during the day and especially not when the wind is blowing.

·      Remove rocks and metal from the year that could be hit by the mower and cause sparks. 

·       Use a weed eater with a plastic line when cutting dry grass not a lawn mower (use lawn mower on green grass only).

·       Don’t top off fuel tanks.

·       Make sure spark arrestors are in proper working order and there is no carbon build up.

·       When transporting tractors, mowers, and recreational vehicles make sure that chains on the trailers are not hitting the pavement as you are driving.

·       Take special care when using tractors in dry grass that can easily ignite. 

·       Last but not least, always have a least one of the following items with you: fire extinguisher, water supple or a shovel.

Wildfires have an effect on watersheds, reservoirs, and the quality of our drinking water. 

By protecting our watersheds we are protecting our environment. Remember metal

blades hitting rocks can spark a fire!

For more information on wildfires go to: http://www.preventwildfireca.org/Equipment-Use/

Photo Friday Fall Back

It is that wonderful weekend of the year when we gain an extra hour of sleep as daylight saving time ends. 


Thinking about those lighter mornings, here's a photo of dawn at San Antonio Reservoir in our Alameda Creek Watershed. 

See you around the Valley! And don't forget to set your clocks back one hour at 2:00 a.m. this Sunday!

Photo Friday in Sunol Valley

This week we wanted to share a snapshot of construction underway at the
Fish Passage Facilities in Sunol Valley. The photo below shows the new intake structure and conveyance tunnels under construction upstream of the Alameda Creek Diversion Dam. The Fish Passage Facilities Project is located on SFPUC property adjacent to the Sunol Regional Wilderness. Completion of the project will support the restoration of steelhead trout to the Alameda Creek watershed. Happy Friday!

Photo Friday in Sunol Valley: Fish Passage Facilities Underway

Construction on a project that helps fish in Alameda Creek is underway! The Fish Passage Facilities Project within the Alameda Creek Watershed is located on SFPUC property, but accessed through the Sunol Regional Wilderness Park.

Construction crews have been busy preparing the site and shown here constructing a retaining wall.

The project is part of the SFPUC’s $4.8 billion Water System Improvement Program to repair, replace, and seismically upgrade the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System.  This important work will support restoration of steelhead trout to the Alameda Creek watershed.

Heroes in a Half Shell at Calaveras Dam

We at the Calaveras Dam Replacement Project are constantly reminded that our construction area is someone else’s home. Case in point: the Western pond turtles (Actinemys marmorata). Our little heroes in the half shell are coming out of hibernation. A species of special concern in California, Western pond turtles prefer calm water with lots of things to bask on and plants to hide under.  They are opportunistic feeders and will eat pretty much anything they can reach and overpower, including aquatic plants, fishes, aquatic invertebrates and carrion if they can find it. They hibernate nearby in burrows or in upland areas until the temperature is nice, then they come out and head to the water to find food and mates.

Our construction workers spotted the first Western pond turtle of the season roaming on one of our haul roads. Given there are large vehicles (think trucks with wheels that are 9 feet tall), it was important to sweep this girl up and put her in a safe place away from the site. Our biological inspector Aaron Sunshine did just that at a pre-designated release site. On a daily basis, our environmental inspectors work closely with construction staff to identify any wildlife that enter the construction area. Our team works to protect the wildlife in the Watershed ensuring we keep these protected native species safe from harm while we build this important project.  

Maybe it was the luck of the Irish? Or just a good day for our Western pond turtle to be returned to a safe habitat. Aaron and his team will be keeping a sharp eye out! Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Peek-a-boo: Western pond turtle (measured at 16 cm carapace length) safely relocated at the Calaveras Dam Replacement Project by our project Environmental Monitor

Here is our Western pond turtle being released
safely back into the reservoir shoreline

Sunrise at Calaveras Reservoir

I hope this blog post finds you safe, warm, and dry during this storm!

We thought you might like to take your mind of the rains and wind outside. 

So, for your viewing pleasure, we are happy to present, Calaveras Reservoir at Sunrise, November 2014, courtesy of watershed keeper Pat Jones.

Our Watershed Keepers patrol the 36,000 acres of land the SFPUC owns in the Southern Alameda Creek Watershed in every kind of weather.

They also fight fires, respond to all sorts of calls, help maintain the watershed, and when we are lucky, share the photos they take while going about their duties. We will be posting more of Pat's photos, so keep an eye out!

See you around Sunol Valley!