Celebrating Sunol Valley History

This past weekend, the East Bay Regional Park District’s Sunol Pioneer Folk Festival hosted music, square dancing, horse rides, vintage arts and crafts, and us!

SFPUC staff really enjoyed sharing historic photos of the water system in the valley with attendees, many of whom already knew a great deal about our current efforts to upgrade this system for future generations.

We also tested attendees’ knowledge of local water system history. Here is a sampling of questions to your own knowledge!

1. In 1898, Spring Valley Water Company, the predecessor of the SFPUC, began drilling wells under what nearby East Bay Valley?

Answer: Livermore Valley. 100 wells, the first of which was drilled in 1898, drew water that was transmitted to Sunol via a pipe installed in 1909. The SFPUC stopped using the well field in 1949 to replenish the groundwater basin for the overlaying landowners. The water is still used by the City of Pleasanton and Zone 7.

2. We are busy constructing a replacement dam to the existing Calaveras Dam as we speak. True or False: the replacement dam is the THIRD dam to be constructed in this location.

Answer: True. The original dam, started in 1913, was constructed using a technology that had never been used on this sized dam before. The dam collapsed while the reservoir was being refilled in 1918. Spring Valley Water Company had to rebuild it using a different method. They left portions of the original foundation in the dam, however, which is why we have to rebuild it completely.

3. The existing Irvington Tunnel began construction 1928 and now provides water to 2.6 million Bay Area residents.  What yummy Bay Area tradition also began in 1928? 

Answer:  IT’S-IT ice cream treats.  Created by George Whitney it was sold exclusively at San Francisco’s Playland-at-the-Beach for over four decades!  So when the miners at the existing Irvington Tunnel needed a day at the beach they probably had an IT’S-IT.

Attendees check out historic artifacts excavated at the
Calaveras Dam Replacement Project this past year

Historic Photo of the Sunol Valley Pump Station located on Calaveras Road

November 3, 1966. Seismic retrofits of the pump station were recently completed.

For more project info, contact us at our 24 hour answer line at (866) 973-1476 or email mle@sfwater.org

 

What’s Underground?

Have you ever wondered what’s underground? Throughout construction of the New Irvington Tunnel (NIT) project, we’ve had the rare opportunity to encounter some of the most fascinating and diverse geological features in the world. From faults capable of generating huge earthquakes to ancient rock formations dating back to before man first walked the Earth, the unique geographic setting of the new tunnel leaves plenty to be discovered.

The Bay Area’s San Andreas Fault system featuring the Hayward Fault (middle to bottom right) and Calaveras Fault (bottom right)

The new tunnel is located in a seismically active part of California between the Calaveras and Hayward faults. Between these two major faults are several small faults that cross the path of the tunnel. These faults consist of very short sections of intensely fractured sandstone and fault gouge (fault rock rich in clay, characterized by a mixture of fine grain-like rock fragments). Due to their incohesive nature, these formations are extremely weak, a stark contrast to other materials encountered while digging through this section.

A sample cross section view of the new tunnel alignment. The red markings indicate fault zones that intersect the tunnel.

Briones formation contains fossilized shell fragments (circled in yellow)

During excavation, a majority of the ground encountered is part of the Briones Formation, which includes massive sandstone characterized by coarse, grain-like quartz sandstone and shell fragments. These rocks are extremely old, dating back to the Late Miocene Epoch nearly 12 million years ago! These rocks aren't just old, but they are so strong that drill and blast methods were utilized to mine through the tough ground.

This is only a glimpse of the geology hidden beneath Sunol Valley. So the next time you look down and ask, “What’s underground?”, keep in mind that that there are ancient rocks, ever-shifting faults, and whole lot more going on just underneath your feet. 

Calaveras Road: Increased Truck Traffic 11/6-11/9

The Calaveras Dam Replacement Project will be expecting additional truck traffic from November 6th through November 9th on Calaveras Road just south of Interstate 680 to the project site approximately 4 miles past Geary Road

• Road remains OPEN to the public
• Haul trucks are expected between hours of 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Approximately 2 haul trucks per hour
• Please drive safely on the narrow portions of Calaveras Road and please share the road
• Speed limit is 25 mph in construction zones

For more information:

24 hour Answer Line 866-973-1476

Email us at: mle@sfwater.org or blauppe@sfwater.org

Come Join Us at the Sunol Pioneer Festival on November 3rd

Happy Halloween! Hope everyone has a fun and safe holiday! To keep the fun rolling into the weekend, you’re invited to join us at the East Bay Regional Park District’s Sunol Pioneer Festival this Saturday, November 3 from 1-6:30 p.m. The festival will celebrate Sunol’s pioneer and ranching heritage, and the SFPUC is excited to be participating in this event. We will have a booth with historical artifacts and photos as well as a prize wheel where everyone will have a chance to win a prize! We will also have project team members available to answer your questions and provide you with information about all our projects in Sunol. The festival is open to the public, and it will be held at the Sunol-Ohlone Regional Wilderness located at 1895 Geary Road (south end of Geary Road off Calaveras Rd). Be sure to stop by and say hi!

For more details about the festival, please visit the East Bay Regional Park District website.

 View of the Sunol Water Temple from 1922. Come visit our booth at the Sunol Pioneer Festival to see more historical  photos of the Sunol Valleyand our projects!

Teamwork pays off

It’s not quite like a Giants baseball game out here, but our crews at the Calaveras Dam Replacement Project sure know a thing or two about the importance of teamwork.  Just like base coach Tim Flannery uses hand signals to communicate on the field, our Calaveras Dam workers use the same method to communicate to each other at the site.

Since Friday, we started filling concrete in the new shaft which is an important function for the new Calaveras Dam.  The shaft is part of the new intake tower which moves water from the Calaveras Reservoir through the adit tunnels eventually treated to become our drinking water. The level of noise and limited visibility in the shaft can be challenging, so our workers rely on hand signals and radio communication to mobilize.  Our workers signal the crane to lower a bucket full of concrete into the shaft, and then workers below fill the wall forms with concrete.

The shaft is 152 feet deep and over 720 cubic yards of concrete will be placed once it is completed. It takes approximately a week for the concrete to reach a specified strength before continuing, therefore the concrete work will be completed in 16 foot lifts at a time through March 2013.

Worker signals crane to move concrete bucket into shaft

Top of the Shaft 

 

Workers in Shaft below with Concrete Bucket

For the San Francisco Giants, teamwork wins championships.  As for our workers, teamwork builds progress for the Calaveras Dam Replacement Project.  Congrats to both teams!  For more project info, contact us at our 24 hour answer line at (866) 973-1476 or email mle@sfwater.org

 

Photo Courtesy Fox News

Building Tunnels and Building Lives

Robert Shumate put in the work to go underground

In the fall of 2011, Robert Shumate, a recent graduate of Alameda County’s Cypress Mandela Training Center, attended the Miner Tender Preparedness Program. Shortly thereafter, he put his training to the ultimate test at the New Irvington Tunnel project.  Robert quickly excelled and gained the trust of his peers, learning all aspects of working in extremely challenging and potentially dangerous conditions. Robert came to work each day with a positive attitude and a great work ethic, and within a short period of time, he was not only working on a tunneling project, but IN a tunnel. A feat which surpassed the expectations of his training. In addition to providing a stable income for himself and his family, Robert gained unique work skills specific to mining, making him  a “hot” commodity in the industry and open to a wide range of work opportunities across the nation.

Robert’s success is a testament to his hard work.  His opportunity to shine was made possible by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SPFUC) and Southland Tutor Perini’s (STP) commitment to hire locally for the $4.6B Water System Improvement Program (WSIP).   In addition to Robert, half of the New Irvington Tunnel project’s workforce is made up of local residents meeting the goals of the SFPUC’s local hire program.  This means a portion of the ratepayers investment into improving the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System is also putting people to work in communities where our projects are located.

Whether it is local workers or local small business the 

SFPUC and STP are committed to the San Francsico Bay Area

© San Francisco Public Utilities Commission R. Scheswohl

“Southland is enthusiastic about tapping into the Bay Area’s talented and diverse workforce”, said Michael Cash, Regional Manager for Southland Contracting, Inc. “In addition to exceptional people like Robert, we've also provided nearly $10 million in construction contracts to local small businesses.”

The SFPUC is committed to training future members of the Bay Area’s workforce.  The WSIP goal is to have one apprentice worker for every four journeyman workers on each capital improvement   project.  Tunneling is not an apprenticable trade so this contractor made sure to place junior workers in above ground roles and has exceeded this goal with  32 percent of workers in apprentice positions. 

The Job Training Opportunity Program (JTOP) where  Robert gained his training  is a great example of how the SFPUC, contractors, unions, and community-based organizations partner to create opportunities for local residents to receive the skills, training, and support necessary to help them attain successful and sustainable careers in construction.

Robert Shumate (R) stands tall with Tunnel Superintendent Jack Bowling (L)

Photo by S. Bednarz, ©2012 Jacobs Associates, All Rights Reserved

Robert recently reached another major milestone by completing  all apprentice hours required for Journey-level status! He is now one of the elite mining workers in his union and shares a proud heritage with the many other miners before him.  Congratulations to Robert and all of the other JTOP trainees!

For more information visit the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s local hire program page.

Weekend Work at Goldfish Pond Project Site in Santa Clara County

Weekend Work at Goldfish Pond Project Site in Santa Clara County

What: Crews will be working this weekend at the Goldfish Pond Habitat Restoration site in order to complete critical grading work for the project.

When: Saturday, October 27 through Sunday, October 28, 2012 from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

What you need to know: 

• A small crew of workers will be moving material and regrading areas of the project site. 
• All construction work will be contained on the project site. 
• No materials will be hauled off-site during this work. 
• No traffic impacts are anticipated for this work.

For More Info: Please call the toll-free number at (866) 973-1476. For more updates, subscribe your email to our blog feed and visit www.sfwater.org/sunolvalley.

Why:
The SFPUC has begun construction on several habitat restoration projects throughout the Alameda Watershed in Alameda and Santa Clara Counties.The Goldfish Pond Restoration, located near the intersection of Felter and Calaveras Roads in Milpitas, will enhance and grade the existing Goldfish Pond, rebuild the embankments, plant over 10 acres for the various wetlands and five acres of riparian habitat creation.The Bioregional Habitat Restoration is a unique approach to mitigation that combines the impacts of several different Water System Improvement Program projects into one suite of projects. This pooling of resources maximizes our ability to make significant improvements to habitat for rare and endangered species.