Amador County – After discussing the cost of replacing a pump station on the 30-year-old Central Amador Water Project pipeline, the Amador Water Agency board of directors on Thursday heard an update and information about a Gravity Supply Pipeline. Engineering and Planning Manager Gene Mancebo compared the cost of rebuilding the pump station and then the cost of operating the line, versus the costs associated with a gravity-powered pipeline. General Manager Jim Abercrombie said there is a cost to be paid to PG&E for “power foregone,” that is, the power lost from water diverted before it goes through PG&E’s 2 dams. That amount in 2009 is $70,000 dollars. Annual costs to rebuild the pump station and operate it this year are $600,000 dollars, and it would rise by $200,000 dollars every 10 years, Mancebo said. In contrast, with a 4-year fixed loan, building a Gravity Supply Line with a 30 percent grant would cost $600,000 dollars annually, but increase in cost by $100,000 dollars a year. Building the gravity line with a 45 percent grant would cost $500,000 annually and increase by about $100,000 dollars every 10 years, or $10,000 a year. Mancebo said the line would use existing logging roads, and Upper Tiger Creek Road, with minimal environmental effect. He said the $13.3 million estimate to build it includes all environmental work, all construction, easements and acquisition. Director Bill Condrashoff suggested putting a generator at the site of the pump station, for outages. Abercrombie said it could be worked into the estimate costs for revamping the pumping pipeline, if they do the pump rebuild. Director Don Cooper said they would need a 2,500 kba generator at both locations. Each is about 5 times bigger than a used generator they looked at, at 60 kba, for $4,000 dollars. Mancebo said the Gravity Supply Line was originally studied by Kennedy Jinx Engineering in 1989, when its $4 million dollar estimated price tag was deemed too expensive by the AWA. But it was seen as needed to create a reliable water capacity that is unaffected by power outages and wildfires. It would also increase capacity to meet future demands and improve the quality. Mancebo said the pump stations are at the end of their useful life and operating beyond reliable capacity. The project would replace the pump stations with about 33,000 lineal feet of 20-inch pipe, connecting the Tiger Creek Regulating Reservoir to the Buckhorn Water Treatment Plant. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Amador County – After discussing the cost of replacing a pump station on the 30-year-old Central Amador Water Project pipeline, the Amador Water Agency board of directors on Thursday heard an update and information about a Gravity Supply Pipeline. Engineering and Planning Manager Gene Mancebo compared the cost of rebuilding the pump station and then the cost of operating the line, versus the costs associated with a gravity-powered pipeline. General Manager Jim Abercrombie said there is a cost to be paid to PG&E for “power foregone,” that is, the power lost from water diverted before it goes through PG&E’s 2 dams. That amount in 2009 is $70,000 dollars. Annual costs to rebuild the pump station and operate it this year are $600,000 dollars, and it would rise by $200,000 dollars every 10 years, Mancebo said. In contrast, with a 4-year fixed loan, building a Gravity Supply Line with a 30 percent grant would cost $600,000 dollars annually, but increase in cost by $100,000 dollars a year. Building the gravity line with a 45 percent grant would cost $500,000 annually and increase by about $100,000 dollars every 10 years, or $10,000 a year. Mancebo said the line would use existing logging roads, and Upper Tiger Creek Road, with minimal environmental effect. He said the $13.3 million estimate to build it includes all environmental work, all construction, easements and acquisition. Director Bill Condrashoff suggested putting a generator at the site of the pump station, for outages. Abercrombie said it could be worked into the estimate costs for revamping the pumping pipeline, if they do the pump rebuild. Director Don Cooper said they would need a 2,500 kba generator at both locations. Each is about 5 times bigger than a used generator they looked at, at 60 kba, for $4,000 dollars. Mancebo said the Gravity Supply Line was originally studied by Kennedy Jinx Engineering in 1989, when its $4 million dollar estimated price tag was deemed too expensive by the AWA. But it was seen as needed to create a reliable water capacity that is unaffected by power outages and wildfires. It would also increase capacity to meet future demands and improve the quality. Mancebo said the pump stations are at the end of their useful life and operating beyond reliable capacity. The project would replace the pump stations with about 33,000 lineal feet of 20-inch pipe, connecting the Tiger Creek Regulating Reservoir to the Buckhorn Water Treatment Plant. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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