Local Group Sues to Stop EID Water Quality and Conservation Project
A Pollock Pines-based group has filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent EID from piping a section of its vital raw water conveyance system. The unlined Upper Main Ditch conveys raw water approximately three miles from Forebay Reservoir in Pollock Pines to EID’s Reservoir 1 Water Treatment Plant.
Contact: Jesse Saich, (530) 642-4127, jsaich@eid.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Placerville, Calif. — A Pollock Pines-based group has recently filed a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) lawsuit seeking to prevent El Dorado Irrigation District from piping a section of its vital raw water conveyance system.
The unlined Upper Main Ditch conveys raw water approximately three miles from Forebay Reservoir in Pollock Pines to EID’s Reservoir 1 Water Treatment Plant.
The water that travels through the Main Ditch is used to serve a significant portion of EID’s more than 41,000 water service accounts (representing more than 100,000 people) from Pollock Pines all the way to Cameron Park and El Dorado Hills. Water sold to the City of Placerville also travels through the ditch.
The project’s primary goal is to safeguard the health and safety of the EID customers who rely on the water. Piping this section of the ditch system will reduce levels of coliform bacteria (including E. coli) and greatly reduce turbidity (suspended particulates) in the raw water before treatment.
“The drinking water that is produced at the water treatment plant is completely safe to drink. However, it is EID’s obligation to continue to meet increasingly stringent regulatory standards and avoid costly treatment upgrades whenever possible by protecting the quality of the source water prior to treatment,” said EID Operations Director Dan Corcoran. “It is an industry best management practice to prevent source water contamination and we can help accomplish that by installing a piped conveyance and preventing contaminants in the ditch from septic tanks or storm water from impacting our treatment plant.”
In addition, the pipe will avoid an average water loss of 1,800 acre-feet (more than 500 million gallons) of usable water supply each year that would otherwise be lost to seepage and evapotranspiration. Instead, this water would be available to offset the costs of the project by generating clean hydropower and provide additional non-rate revenue for the District or be available for the consumptive needs of customers.
“The District is sympathetic to the adjacent landowners who have enjoyed the aesthetic qualities of an open water conveyance,” said EID General Manager Jim Abercrombie. “In fact, EID personnel met with and heard from the landowners a number of times and worked with them to make changes to the proposed project to address some of their concerns—even though such changes have increased the cost of the project.”
“Unfortunately, the District could not meet its project objectives while continuing to leave water in the ditch at the expense of the District’s other customers. EID’s Board of Directors directed staff to defend the lawsuit. EID is confident that the environmental impact report is fully compliant with CEQA. After the lawsuit is resolved, EID hopes to move forward with the project for the benefit of all our customers.”
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