ENGINEERING UPDATE

Progress and status of engineering department work is described in this report for the period ending

August 31, 2020.

FACILITY PLANNING AND DESIGN EFFORTS

Engineering staff completed in-house planning and design work, and managed work by consultants.

A few highlights in ongoing work are as follows:

• Coto de Caza Lift Station Emergency Storage, C-1322C:

The Board accepted the MND and Mitigation, Monitoring

and Reporting plan following the completion of the study

and CEQA required outreach. The project is in the 100

percent design phase, and the District is completing

easement, traffic control plans and permit applications

required for the project.

• CWRP Influent Lift Station and Screening Project, C-1241T.004:

HDR continued in the preliminary design phase of the Screening and Electrical Modifications

project. The District has scheduled workshops for early September to review progress and

provide feedback.

• Oso WRP Upgrades and Expansion, C-1035N:

Aqua-Aerobics with the assistance of District staff

have been operating the Nereda pilot system since

mid-July. The nutrient (phosphorus, ammonia,

nitrate, total inorganic nitrogen) removal has met

design goals. Aqua-Aerobics continues to make

process adjustments to improve on solids removal,

which is not yet stabilized to meet goals.

• South Ranch Lift Station Pump Replacement, C-1656A: Lee and Ro is working on the 100

percent design submittal, incorporating District comments on the 75 percent submittal.

• Sendero and Esencia Cathodic Protection, C-1650G/H: MBI design is underway to design

cathodic protection facilities for pipelines in Sendero and Esencia.

• CWRP Secondary Treatment Expansion, C-1241T.012E: Design of the new Aeration Basins

is progressing. Heerup Engineering is approximately 90 percent complete with the structural

drawings, and the District is completing the mechanic and civil design work.

• Rienda Lift Station Design, C-1787: The District provided comments to Psomas on the 50

percent design. RMV is in the process of finalizing design details of the force main and other

pipelines that connect at the boundary of the lift station and Planning Area 3. Psomas is

addressing comments and developing the design. The project is still on schedule to be

operational in time for the PA-3 (Rienda) opening in spring 2022.

• Rienda Pressure Reducing Facility Design, C-1791: The District and Consultant Lee and Ro

are finalizing the contract process. Project work will kick off in September.

• CWRP Digested Sludge Holding Tank Rehab, C-1241U.011:

The District issued an amendment to the Sludge Holding Tank bid documents to incorporate

coating repair in Primary Clarifier 3. Award of the contract is anticipated in September 2020,

such that the coating work can be completed before the rainy season.

Recycled water production and production from the Lake Mission Viejo Advanced Water

Treatment Facility data is presented in the following graph and tables.

The Lake Mission Viejo Advanced Treatment

Facility operated throughout August with both

reverse osmosis trains in operation. The

August 2020 production was the highest

monthly production to date. The District has

optimized the operation through using

different practices and by finding the most

effective products such as membrane cleaning

chemicals.

The Lake Mission Viejo Association

continues to express interest in treating lake

water at the plant and returning product water

with very low TDS to improve the overall

TDS levels in the lake.

2017 2018 2019 2020

Jan - 6.2 2.7 -

Feb - 0.0 - -

Mar - 43.8 - 38.8

Apr - 39.6 - 9.3

May 7.1 44.5 11.8 45.8

Jun 24.8 44.7 23.8 48.7

Jul 33.9 48.0 25.7 49.1

Aug 40.3 39.1 23.8 50.7

Sep 34.8 24.5 36.9 -

Oct 44.4 24.8 49.7 -

Nov 7.1 23.4 34.9 -

Dec 17.5 22.4 3.8 -

Total 210.0 361.2 213.2 242.4

Table 1 - LMV ATF Production, Acre-Ft

The Oso Creek Water Reclamation Plant (Oso Creek WRP) provides recycled water primarily to

the western portion of the SMWD service area. Recycled water produced at the Oso Creek WRP

that exceeds recycled water demands is conveyed to Upper Oso Reservoir for seasonal storage,

which is typical during November through May. Recycled water storage in Upper Oso Reservoir

dropped from 3,200 acre-ft on July 31 to 2,800 acre-ft on Aug 31 out of 4,000 acre-ft capacity. As

a seasonal storage reservoir, it is typical for the amount of stored water to reduce throughout the

summer. The reservoir remains at a healthy level to continue to supplement the recycled water

produced at the water reclamation plants to meet the higher irrigation demands associated with

warmer weather.

.

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Recycled

Water

Recycled

Water

Recycled

Water

Recycled

Water

Recycled

Water

Jan 159 152 148 103 151

Feb 108 141 132 142 138

Mar 139 150 146 152 159

Apr 143 137 138 140 82

May 141 143 147 139 152

Jun 132 144 141 123 147

Jul 151 153 147 127 154

Aug 147 142 138 147 154

Sep 144 134 134 140 -

Oct 142 147 131 142 -

Nov 139 143 138 138 -

Dec 141 144 128 153 -

Total 1,684 1,729 1,667 1,645 1,138

Mo Ave 140 144 139 137 142

Table 2 - Oso Recycled Water Production, Acre-Ft

Oso Creek Water Reclamation Plant

In August, recycled water was consistently produced to meet demands and maintain storage.

Chiquita Water Reclamation Plant (CWRP) produces recycled water to meet the recycled water

demands primarily in the eastern portion of the SMWD service area, including Coto de Caza (CdC).

Pumps at CWRP and the Los Patrones Pump at Gobernadora convey recycled water to (CdC) where

it meets recycled water demands. Portola Reservoir storage dropped from 335 acre-ft on July 31 to

250 acre-ft on August 31 out of 500 acre-ft capacity. In August, the CdC used a total of

approximately 170 acre-ft of recycled water, 85 AF from Portola Reservoir/Gobernadora

Multipurpose Basins and 85 AF pumped from CWRP via the Los Patrones Recycled Water Pump

Station. The production for CdC is part of the production shown in Table 3 as the “Ladera” System,

which also serves Esencia.

CWRP responded to the SDGE FlexAlert notification on August 17, 18 and 19th by operating the

standby generator to power the influent lift station as allowed by the Governor’s proclamation in

response to extreme heat. A similar operation was implemented at Oso WRP. AQMD allowed the

District to operate the standby generators without counting toward the District’s allotment of

operating time for this incident. The District operated approximately three to four hours each day

during peak power demands to conserve electricity on the grid, as requested.

The District also replaced nine tons of coconut shell activated carbon in the Thickened Sludge Odor

Scrubber at the plant.

Ladera Talega Total Ladera Talega Total Ladera Talega Total Ladera+ Talega Total Year Mo. Ave Total

Jan 178 19 197 266 65 331 151 29 180 25 40 65 2014 330 3,959

Feb 79 16 95 343 79 422 26 19 45 219 74 293 2015 328 3941

Mar 123 83 206 272 47 318 38 17 55 136 45 181 2016 378 4,538

Apr 245 177 421 355 116 472 134 101 235 73 59 132 2017 363 4,355

May 212 140 352 358 129 487 89 86 174 253 132 385 2018 424 5,087

Jun 249 155 404 334 144 478 243 122 365 303 129 432 2019 283 3,399

Jul 273 182 454 312 178 491 300 155 455 337 172 510 2020 314

Aug 292 192 485 328 161 489 310 155 465 333 183 516

Sep 312 152 463 330 133 463 296 129 425 - - -

Oct 305 144 449 361 108 469 312 121 433 - - -

Nov 324 81 405 281 101 382 328 68 396 - - -

Dec 328 96 424 252 32 284 163 8 170 - - -

Total 2,918 1,437 4,355 3,793 1,294 5,087 2,388 1,011 3,399 1,679 834 2,514

Mo Ave 363 424 283 314

+ In 2020, the District began operating additional recycled water piping constructed in 2019 that

improved the hydraulic capability of conveyance from Chiquita to Upper Oso Reservoir. The Ladera flows

shown in the Table include recycled water conveyed to Upper Oso starting in 2020.

Annual RW Prod (AF)

Table 3 - CWRP Recycled Water Production, Acre-Ft

2017 2018 2019 2020

Chiquita Water Reclamation Plant

Operation of the 3A WRP transitioned from SMWD to MNWD in March 2019. The 3A production

for August 2020 was reported by MNWD. The reporting data shows the recycled water production

(1.638 mgd) exceeding the influent flow (1.437 mgd), indicating an error in the data. The report

notes MNWD is in the process of replacing the influent flowmeter.

CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY

In the last two weeks of August, Contractors working on SMWD projects informed the District of

an industry/area-wide shortage on cement. Concrete batch plants stopped taking new orders,

impacting construction projects, especially projects involving construction of large concrete

structures such as the CWRP secondary clarifier and Trampas. Contractors began working on other

elements of the work as much as possible. At the time of this report, concrete availability was about

50 percent of normal, and projections that the availability would normalize in the near future. Some

information has associated the shortage with rolling blackouts caused by heavy power demands

during unusually high temperatures in August.

Trampas Reservoir, C-1773

Trampas construction is reported under separate cover in the Trampas monthly report.

Trampas Recycled Water Pump Station

Kingmen Construction is xx (July 59) percent

complete with the work on the Trampas

Recycled Water Pump Station construction. In

August, staff participated in a “remote” factory

witness test of the five Trampas Pumps at the

Flowserve factory. Participants had a view of

the pump in operation, factory staff monitoring

parameters such as vibration, and the real time

development of the flow vs pressure pump test

curve which they compared to the theoretical

pump curve. All five pumps passed the test and

have been delivered to SMWD.

MN SM Total MN SM Total MN SM Total MN SM Total Year Mo. Ave Total

Jan - - - 2 - 2 - - - 41 - 41 2014 62 745

Feb - - - - - - 12 3 14 - - - 2015 103 1,233

Mar 70 - 70 - 108 108 - 68 68 - - - 2016 111 1,331

Apr 123 - 123 - 210 210 - 177 177 - - - 2017 124 1,491

May 153 21 174 141 77 219 - - - 38 38 2018 153 1,836

Jun 140 36 176 135 75 210 - - - 136 136 2019 70 835

Jul 159 36 195 139 79 218 92 - 92 118 118 2020 61

Aug 146 34 180 139 87 226 115 - 115 156 156

Sep 140 41 181 134 84 218 128 - 128 - -

Oct 139 58 197 137 87 224 133 - 133 - -

Nov 139 49 188 123 78 201 90 - 90 - -

Dec 6 1 7 - - - 19 - 19 - -

Total 1,216 275 1,491 950 886 1,836 588 247 835 489 - 489

Mo Ave 124 153 70 61

Annual RW Prod (AF)

Table 4 - 3A WRP Recycled Water Production, Acre-Ft

201920182017 2020

Trampas Pump Factory-Witnessed Test

Chiquita WRP Secondary Clarifier, 1241.012E

Kingmen Construction Inc. (KCI) has continued to progress on the clarifier construction. The

current scheduled work is to begin to form and pour the structural elements. The crews are focused

on forming and setting rebar such that concrete can be poured as soon as it becomes available. The

construction contract is 34 percent complete as of August 31, 2020.

The stairway from the secondary clarifier area to

the tertiary treatment area takes shape.

The Activated Sludge Effluent Pipeline will

convey flow into the Secondary Clarifier from the

bottom, and the sludge pipeline will draw sludge

off the bottom.

The heavily reinforced center of the

clarifier will support most of the weight

of the mechanical collector and drive

transferred from the center column.

Plano Lift Station Odor Control and Sewer Realignment, transitions to the Plano Lift Station

Sewer Tie-in Project, C-1257D:

Pascal and Ludwig (P&L) completed the odor control system and sewer realignment construction,

and the Board accepted the work at the September 2nd Board Meeting.

The District created a new project to bypass the sewer vault

discovered on the site for demolition and construction of a new,

permanent access manhole. Shoffeitt Pipeline was selected to

complete the work. Shoffeitt Pipeline developed a robust 11 step

outage and work plan utilizing bypass pumping, gravity bypass,

temporary sleeves and other methods to complete the work and to

provide several levels of backup and flow capture to accommodate

unforeseen developments that may occur. Shoffeitt is expediting the

procurement of materials and scheduling crews with the goal of

completing the work in October before the potential for rain events

increases which causes higher flows in the sewer system.

Talega Recycled Water PSV and Ave Pico

Pipeline Connections, C-1486B:

L&S Constructors encountered leaking fittings

and pipe condition deficiencies in the area

where new recycled water piping connects to

existing piping. The existing pipe was installed

decades ago. At the request of SMWD, L&S

repaired the existing piping in conjunction

with the new pipeline connection construction

on a time and material basis. District staff are

in the process of reviewing the submitted

charges. Authorization for the extra work is

within staff authority for approval. The project

is xx (July 37) percent complete.

New bypass manhole and

main gravity bypass flow

(shown above),

Stemar bypass sleeve

(image on left)

Recycled Water Pipe Repairs

In Talega

Talega Lift Station Modifications, C-1511K:

Kingmen Construction, Inc. (KCI) continued to bypass

pump around the Talega Lift Station allowing installation

of new “right sized” sewage pumps, piping, and

appurtenant equipment. The work has minimal concrete

work and the cement shortage is not anticipated to extend

the bypass pumping operation beyond the planned outage.

The construction is 56 percent complete.

Pico Recycled Water Pump Station:

Kingmen Construction, Inc. (KCI) have completed most

station work and are waiting for the pumps to become

available for installation. District staff have completed

building the new control cabinet and are finalizing the

programming for the system. The program is complex,

involving communication with the City of San Clemente

to confirm recycled water availability at the water

reclamation plant, monitoring of reservoirs in Talega and

San Clemente, and coordination with the Trampas

Recycled Water Pump Station operation. The KCI work

is 11 percent complete.

Pico RWPS, Control Board, Designed and Built by

Santa Margarita Water District,

Design (below), Product (photo at right)

Talega Lift Station Rebuild

Relocation of Aufdenkamp (ACTM) Sections 2 and 3 at I-5 Widening (Leatherwood):

The District dewatered the ACTM and

Contractor Leatherwood severed the pipeline

at points where relocation will begin and end.

They welded dished heads on the ends to

prevent debris from entering the pipeline

prior to being put back in service. MWDOC

coordinated a regional meeting with joint

owners of the AMP. In order to expedite the

ACTM work to allow the subsequent AMP

work to proceed in April 2021 rather than in

the summer or later, MNWD, TCWD,

SCWD, ETWD and the City of San Clemente

all agreed to pitch in with SMWD to split the

total expediting fee of $35,000 required for

West Coast Pipe to work weekends and

additional shifts to fabricate the ACTM pipe

earlier than the normal lead time.

Leatherwood is about xx (July 5) percent

complete with the project.

CWRP Digester Hot Water Piping Replacement,

C-1241U.010

At the May 22, 2020 meeting, the Board approved the

Hot Water and Plant Air Piping Replacement Project

with a budget of $500,000. The District engineers,

operators and maintenance personnel have collaborated

to implement this project, designing, procuring

materials, and fabricating the new piping system. Once

the piping, supports, valves and pumps are installed,

insulation is required. The May staff memo identified

Karcher Insulation, Inc., a contractor specializing in

industrial type pipe insulation, to provide and install the

insulation. District staff have had good experience with

this company prior to joining the District.

The District has procured piping materials and

fabricated about 75 percent of the pipe system in the

District mechanical shop. The remaining connections

must be made in place as the piping is mounted on the

digester building and along the outside of the digesters.

SMWD Dewaters ACTM so that the

Pipeline can be Severed and Rerouted

SMWD Mechanic Welding New Hot

Water Pipe (above),

Pipe Ready for Installation (lower left)

Upper Chiquita Reservoir Storm Repairs, C-1543A.12

(JES Contractors)

The District issued a contract to JES Contractors to complete

repairs from storm damage at Upper Chiquita from the

February 2019 storms. This project was deferred until

previous vegetation was complete and approved by regulatory

agencies.

Cristianitos Creek / South County Pipeline Vicinity Storm Damage Repairs, C-1486

During the Feb 2019 storms, heavy rainfall and runoff damaged the slope between Cristianitos Road

and the adjacent creek, along the alignment of the South County Pipeline. GMU conducted an

investigation and issued a recommendation shown in the illustration below to repair the damage.

Dudek is pursuing the required permits from the regulators. Permits are likely to be in hand in late

September. SMWD is otherwise ready to issue contracts to Sukut, GMU and Sandy Leatherman

and proceed with the work in October. The cost of the work will be reimbursed from the CalOES

funding available for Feb 2019 storm damages.

Bank Repair – Cristianitos Road

UCR Storm Damage