Spring Valley

History

County Service Area Number 2 (CSA#2), is comprised of the customer base in the Spring Valley Lakes subdivision. The Spring Valley Water Treatment facility and distribution system serve customers in the Spring Valley. In 1982 the Lake County Environmental Health Department issued an operating permit, and in 1984 the customer base reached 200 connections. The regulatory jurisdiction was transferred to the State Department of Health Services (now the Division of Drinking Water). Since then, the system has received a series of upgrades and improvements. The treatment facility consists of a raw water pump station that takes water from an infiltration gallery located in the North Fork of Cache Creek and pumps it and water from Wolf Creek to the treatment plant. Once at the plant, the water is treated to drinking water standards through slow sand filtration, chlorine injection, and chlorine contact before entering the distribution system. After treatment, the water is stored in a large clear well (370,000) and pumped to the 241,000-gallon distribution storage tank and water mains, through a high lift service pump station.

Customer Statistics & Infrastructure

CSA Number 2/Spring Valley Water currently includes:

  • 495 Connections (493 Single Family Dwelling (SFD) equivalents), serving a population of nearly 1021 residents.
  • Over 66,600 feet of distribution pipeline.
  • 1 Storage tank (241,000 gallons)
  • 1 High-Lift Service pumping station
  • Clear Well (370,000 gallons)

Status

Improvements to the water treatment plant include the replacement of clear well number 2, installation of continuous flow meters In each of the four sand filter units, stationary, backup generator, variable frequency drive at the raw water pump station, connection piping, and ancillary facilities to support these improvements.

The water distribution system has been leak-checked, and repairs made. Several leaks traced to the customer's side were detected and customers were notified. The water treatment and distribution system is currently operating as efficiently as possible and providing water to customers in compliance with all applicable water quality standards. The 12-month average increase in Spring Valley Water's customer base was less than 1%. The original water system was constructed for a much smaller community than presently exists, with less than ideal materials and design, during a time well before District staff had any role or oversight of the system. Maintenance continues to be a challenge.

Outlook

Treatment plant improvements were completed in 2014. The district has received grant funds to replace portions of the distribution system piping. The work will begin in 2015 Plans are underway to recover Spring Valley Lake reservoir. When completed this will provide up to 280 acre-feet of water storage from Wolf Creek to assist in meeting demand, wildland fire suppression, and protection in drought conditions. Plans are underway to replace two bridges in the near future.