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Work is scheduled to begin next month on an $18.2 million project being undertaken by Dublin San Ramon Services District and partnering agencies to meet the growing demand for recycled water in the Tri-Valley.
DSRSD’s board of directors awarded C. Overaa & Co. a $13.4 million contract for improvements to its recycled water treatment plant and authorized construction change orders up to $900,000 at a meeting Tuesday. It also awarded a $1.1 million contract to The Covello Group, Inc. and one totaling $702,300 to Carollo Engineers, Inc. for construction management and engineering services for the same project.
A Richmond-based general contractor, C. Overaa & Co. was the lowest responsive, responsible bidder for work that’s expected to be completed by fall 2018. The project will add a new band screen, a ballasted flocculating clarifier, ultraviolet disinfection modules, and additional pumps to the water recycling plant, located on Johnson Drive in Pleasanton.
“Our investments in water recycling infrastructure continue to pay back huge dividends by reducing imports of drinking water from the State Water Project and exports of treated wastewater to the San Francisco Bay,” DSRSD board president Pat Howard said in a statement. “Recycled water is a sustainable water supply for irrigation.”
The water recycling plant was built over a decade ago as a joint venture between DSRSD and East Bay Municipal Utility District. It now also provides recycled water for irrigation in the city of Pleasanton as a result of agreements to share and expand the plant.
Demand for irrigation water has grown in recent years and will exceed the plant’s current available recycled water treatment capacity within two years, according to a DSRSD staff memo to the board. Officials said in June that DSRSD customers used 7,399 acre-feet of water in 2015, with recycled water accounting for 26% of use.
The improvements will increase the plant’s maximum production capacity by 70%, from 9.7 million gallons a day to 16.2. DSRSD officials anticipate that by 2020, peak demand for irrigation water will reach 16.1 million gallons per day.
The $18.2 million cost, which accounts for design work already completed, will be split between the agencies distributing the recycled water. DSRSD is expected to pay 46%, EDMUD 27% and the city of Pleasanton 27%, according to DSRSD staff.
To minimize impacts on customers, construction that reduces the plant’s production capacity will be done when demand for irrigation water is low. The agency has indicated it will notify large irrigation customers of unavoidable interruptions so they can adjust irrigation schedules.
DSRSD provides water service to Dublin and the Dougherty Valley area of San Ramon, wastewater service to Dublin, south San Ramon and Pleasanton (by contract), and recycled water for those communities. Visit their website for more information.