DATE: October 30, 2019
TO: Council Sustainability Committee
FROM: Director of Public Works
SUBJECT
Title
Bay Area Water Supply & Conservation Agency (BAWSCA) Pilot Water Transfer
End
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
That the Committee reviews and comments on this report.
End
SUMMARY
The Bay Area Water Supply & Conservation Agency (BAWSCA) has proposed a one-time pilot water transfer under which BAWSCA would purchase up to 1,000 acre-feet of water from the Amador Water Agency (AWA) for delivery and use within the BAWSCA service area. Under the proposed project, the transfer water would be conveyed through the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) water system and delivered to the City of Hayward, a BAWSCA member agency, through the Hayward Intertie, which connects the EBMUD water system to the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) Regional Water System through Hayward. During the pilot water transfer, Hayward would switch its water supply and receive water from EBMUD, instead of SFPUC, which requires Hayward to modify water system operations and pump water in the reverse direction for delivery to customers. Transfer water that is not used by Hayward would be pumped into the SFPUC Regional Water System.
The pilot water transfer was scheduled to occur during a planned critical maintenance shutdown of the SFPUC Hetch Hetchy system in January 2020, which is consistent with the allowable uses of the Hayward Intertie during emergencies or planned critical work on EBMUD, SFPUC, or Hayward facilities. Over the last year, staff has been working closely with BAWSCA and other parties to prepare agreements under which the proposed water transfer could be implemented. However, staff was recently informed that EBMUD needs additional time to address unresolved water rights issues associated with the transfer water, and therefore the pilot transfer will need to be postponed. Staff has prepared this report to...
Click here for full text