Sunol Valley: Getting Prepared – Seismic Upgrade Work Continues

Much has already been done as mentioned in our last post, but more important work lies ahead in Sunol Valley.  Our teams continue critical work to seismically upgrade our infrastructure. As we remember the Loma Prieta earthquake this week, here are some highlights on our ongoing projects:

New Irvington Tunnel Project
The new tunnel will provide a seismically upgraded connection between water supplies from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Alameda Watershed to Bay Area customers. It will extend 3.5 miles and have an internal diameter of approximately 8.5 feet. Final completion is expected in mid-2015.

Calaveras Dam Replacement Project
Work continues to build a replacement dam that will be seismically safe and restore the Calaveras reservoir to its historic capacity. The reservoir provides half of the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System’s local Bay Area water storage. To date, over 5 million cubic yards of materials have been excavated and major work is being done on the new spillway. Final completion is expected end of 2018. 

San Antonio Backup Pipeline Project

The San Antonio Backup Pipeline (SABPL) project will include several new facilities and improvements in the Sunol Valley to help provide for the reliable movement of Hetch Hetchy water for planned and emergency discharges under future conditions. Completion is expected in March 2015.

We are extremely proud of our hard working teams in Sunol Valley, helping all of us become better prepared for the next earthquake. For more info, please contact us at our 24 hour answer line 866-973-1476.

Sunol Valley: Getting Prepared

This week we acknowledge the 25^th Anniversary of the Loma Prieta Earthquake. On October 17, 1989 at 5:04 p.m, the magnitude 6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake, also known as the “World Series Quake,” lasted 15 seconds causing an estimated $6-10 billion in property loss in the Bay Area. The anniversary is a reminder to all of us to make efforts to be prepared for the next major earthquake.

Here’s a quick snapshot of what’s been done in the Sunol Valley to better prepare us:

San Antonio Pump Station – Completed

The San Antonio Pump Station is one of the key facilities in the Sunol Valley which pumps Hetch Hetchy water through a transmission pipeline to the San Antonio Reservoir to the Sunol Valley Water Treatment Plant. It serves as a critical seismic upgrade project which provides a reliable water supply to our Bay Area customers after a major earthquake.

Sunol Valley Water Treatment Plant – Completed
If the Hetch Hetchy water supplies become unavailable for any reason, this plant enables us to supply the minimum demand of water to our customers, especially those in the East Bay and South Bay. The plant can now provide 160 million gallons of water per day for up to two months in case of an emergency. Previously, that level of service would run out after only a matter of days.

Alameda Siphon No. 4 – Completed
This project will ensure the water system performs properly, and water can be delivered to customers after an earthquake. The Alameda Siphon No. 4 Project extends approximately 3,000 feet from the Alameda East Portal across both the Calaveras Fault and Alameda Creek to the Alameda West Portal. It consists of a seismically-designed thicker-walled pipe in the fault rupture zone, and a tunnel crossing under Alameda Creek. 

Water Conservation Top of Mind at Sunol Glen Walk-a-Thon

For many years the Sunol Glen School Walk-a-Thon has been a source of wet, outdoor fun for hundreds of students during the school’s annual fundraising event.  The staff at Sunol Glen School have already performed water efficiency audits at school to reduce their water use.  But during one of the driest years on record, school staff and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) kept water conservation top of mind at last week’s walk-a-thon.

The SFPUC provided water coolers to hydrate the students ranging from pre-school to eighth grade as they circled the track to raise money for the school.  Sunol Glen staff, volunteers, and even the students were well aware of the drought and were mindful to take only as much water as needed to fuel their efforts, even as temperatures soared above 90 degrees that day.

The school even held off on watering their field, so they could water the grass while spraying the sweaty students with a well-earned shower of water from the hose. This is one innovative way that the school is conserving water while preserving the school tradition that kids look forward to!!

It was a fun-filled day in Sunol as the students supported their school!  Go Eagles!

To help us beat the drought, please visit www.sfwater.org/conservation for resources and information about how you can conserve.

Sunol Glen Spirit Squad kicked off the walk-a-thon festivities.

Town of Sunol Fire Suppression System Project

Construction Update

Railroad Crossings:
On Monday, October 6, 2014 crews will start the jack and bore work to cross under the Alameda County Rail Road at the intersection of Main Street, Kilkare Road, and West Foothill Road. If work proceeds as planned, the contractor will begin the jack and bore work underneath the Union Pacific Railroad on Main Street the week of October 20, 2014. This means construction at both railroad crossings will occur at the same time.

What to Expect:
* Crews will insert a steel casing from the driving pit at the intersection of West Foothill and Kilkare Road to a receiving pit (next to the Depot Parking lot).

* Kilkare Road will be reduced to one-lane traffic during daytime at the railroad crossing. We appreciate your patience with the expected traffic delays in the area.

* Access through the area will be allowed at all times, but please prepare for delays.

* Crews might need to hand drill under the railroads to remove rocks. The equipment will generate some noise.

Bridge Crossings:
Next week, crews will complete all work related to the bridge crossings at Sinbad Creek on Bond Street as well as on Foothill Road.

Hydrant Installation:
The majority of the hydrants will have been installed at their marked locations by the end of October. There is one hydrant on Main Street that will not be installed until after the jack and bore work is completed. The hydrants should be available for use in November.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, comments, or concerns. The 24-hour Answering Line: (866) 973-1476 or epowell@sfwater.org or blauppe@sfwater.org.

Thank you for your patience!

Town of Sunol Fire Suppression System Project

Construction Update

Railroad Crossings:
Our crews have encountered difficult ground conditions at the railroad crossings that have affected our schedule.  We will likely have to use a larger drill rig to break through the rocky ground.

Starting this week, we hope to begin crossing under the Alameda County Rail Road at the intersection of Main Street, Kilkare Road, and West Foothill Road. The driving pit will be at the intersection of West Foothill Road and Kilkare.  If all proceeds well, the contractor will begin driving underneath the Union Pacific Railroad on Main Street in early to mid-October.

What to Expect:
* Crews will dig a deep pit on both sides of the railroad, and they will insert pipe from the driving pit at the intersection of West Foothill and Kilkare Road. The receiving pit will be near the Depot Parking lot.

* Kilkare Road will be reduced to one-lane traffic during daytime at the railroad crossing.  We appreciate your patience with the expected traffic delays in the area.

* Access through the area will be allowed at all times, but please prepare for delays.

* Crews might have to hand drill under the railroads to remove rocks - the equipment will generate some noise.

Bridge Crossings:
Crews will lay pipe across the bridges at Sinbad Creek on Bond Street towards the week of September 29th, and on Foothill Road the week of October 6, 2014.  Crews will bore through the abutments and hang pipe on the bridges.

Hydrant Installation:
The majority of the hydrants will have been installed at their marked locations by the end of September. There are a few hydrants on Main Street that will not be installed until after the jack and bore work is completed.  The hydrants should be available in November.

As always, please do not hesitate to contact us with any questions, comments, or concerns. The 24-hour Answering Line: (866) 973-1476 or epowell@sfwater.org or blauppe@sfwater.org.

Thank you for your patience!

Town of Sunol Fire Suppression System Project

Construction Update- Sept. 4, 2014
Pipe main installation has been completed on Main St., Bond St., Foothill, and Kilkare Roads.  Additional digging will take place when the fire hydrants are installed.  What is next for this project?

Railroad Crossings
*During the week of September 8, we anticipate starting the jack and bore work underneath the Union Pacific Railroad on Main Street.  This crossing should be complete in approximately three weeks.
* The crossing underneath the Alameda County Railway at the intersection of Foothill Road, Kilkare Road and Main Street should begin at the end of September or early October.

What to Expect during Jack and Bore Work
* Crews will dig a deep pit on both sides of the railroad, and they will insert pipe from the driving pit near the Antique Store to the receiving pit in front of the Post Office Driveway.
* Main Street will be reduced to one-lane traffic at the railroad crossing. We appreciate your patience with the expected traffic delays in the area.
* Access to the Sunol Post Office will be open at all times.

Pleasanton Sunol Road
* Work on Tank Hill will continue as crews construct the foundations for the new tanks and construct new pipe connections up the hill.
* We will lay pipe cross Pleasanton Sunol Road during the evening of Thursday, September 5, starting at approximately 8:00 p.m. through 5:00 a.m. on Friday, September 6.  Traffic will be one-lane through this area during this time.

Bridge Crossings
Crews will lay pipe across the bridges at Sinbad Creek on Bond Street towards the end of September followed by the bridge on Foothill Road and Kilkare Road.

Hydrant Installation
Hydrants will be installed at the marked locations as the contractor’s schedule allows.

Construction Advisory: New Irvington Tunnel Irvington Portal

We wanted to inform you of some very important construction activity affecting the neighborhood at the Irvington Portal site off Mission Boulevard. 

Irvington Portal work August 27 – September 15: 
As part of the process of preparing the tunnel to be brought into service, we will need to provide additional tunnel ventilation to our construction crews at the Irvington Portal site. The equipment will begin mobilizing in the area on August 27, 2014, and work should be complete by September 15, 2014. The ventilation equipment, which includes a fan and generator, will operate 24 hours a day. Cooling air is needed for crews who are lining the tunnel with a cement mortar to prepare it for being put into service. The sound barrier walls will keep the noise to a minimum and the contractor will install additional noise reduction measures.

Disinfection Process starting October 2014: 
Starting the first week of October, we will begin the disinfection process to bring the New Irvington Tunnel into service. In order to disinfect the tunnel, crews will need to stage generators and lights for the 24 hour a day filling/disinfection. The set up will occur during day light hours. The filling/disinfection process will take 2-4 days to complete once it begins. The expected night time activities should be limited to three nights.

What Happens Next?
The New Irvington Tunnel is anticipated to be in service delivering water sometime in November. The above ground work and restoration will continue into early 2015. These include final installations and burial of the new portal facilities, construction of a new security bunker at the existing tunnel portal (on top of the hill), and site restoration work, planting and fencing. The remaining sound walls will be removed after the entire site is restored.

Project Background
The New Irvington Tunnel Project is part of the $4.6 billion Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) to repair, replace, and upgrade our system’s aging pipelines, tunnels, and dams. The new 3.5 mile long tunnel will provide a seismically-designed connection between water supplies from the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the Alameda Watershed to Bay Area water distribution systems. Final construction is expected to be complete in 2015. 

Questions / Concerns?
We greatly appreciate your patience. Please call our 24-Hour Answer Line at 866-973-1476 or email mle@sfwater.org or blauppe@sfwater.org if you have any questions.
Follow us online at sfwater.org/sunolvalley

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