Construction Update: Lane Closure on Colma Boulevard Begins March 18

The SFPUC’s Regional Groundwater Storage & Recovery Project is making great progress in the Peninsula! This week the project team began installing an eight-inch diameter pipeline along Colma Boulevard in the Town of Colma. Once the Project is complete, this pipeline will connect our regional water customers with a water supply that can be used during a drought or other emergency.

During pipeline construction, one lane on Colma Boulevard will be closed (just west of El Camino Real) from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. One lane of traffic will be maintained in each direction at all times.

• Pipeline construction will begin as early as Friday, March 18 and will last approximately two weeks. 
• Two construction message boards are posted on Colma Boulevard to notify traffic about upcoming lane closures.
• The Project is sensitive to traffic during services along Colma Boulevard and will adjust operations, if needed

Above is an example of what pipeline installation work looks like on Colma Boulevard.

Time to Spring Forward!

It is starting to look a lot like spring on the Peninsula. One of our team members snapped this picture of some Golden Poppies from the Peninsula Pipeline Seismic Upgrade project site in South San Francisco. In addition, it is time to spring forward with Daylight savings time starting this Sunday, March 13, 2016. Don’t forget to turn your clocks forward one hour for more light in the evening and a later sunrise! Hello Spring!

Capturing Construction in Photos

To our construction teams, Robin is a familiar face who frequently visits the active construction sites to shoot some candid photos of construction and our hard workers. Little did we  know that Robin not only works to document the construction progress but she gains much deserved national recognition while she is at it. For the Water System Improvement Program (WSIP), Robin’s photo of the New Irvington Tunnel Project made the Top Ten for the Engineering News Record (ENR) 2015 Year in Construction Photo Contest. This is a prestigious international construction photography competition, and we are extremely proud that Robin’s photo of our own tunnel was a winner!

About Robin

Robin Scheswohl moved to the Bay Area in 2003 from Philadelphia, PA where she studied photography and later worked with corporate and wedding photographers. She’s been with the SFPUC since 2007, working in the Construction Management Bureau and the Engineering Archives. She is responsible for cataloging and preserving thousands of historic images dating back to the 19th century, as well as documenting the Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) construction projects. SFPUC Engineering Archives Photography has curated public exhibits at City Hall, at the San Francisco International Airport, and the SF American Institute of Architects (AIA) Headquarters. The images are used extensively by the SFPUC and appear in books, periodicals, environmental and engineering studies.

Here is Robin filming at the Bay Tunnel, which is the first tunnel constructed under San Francisco Bay.  Congratulations, Robin!

Construction Activities Resume

 

Construction activities for the Regional Groundwater Storage & Recovery (GSR) and Peninsula Pipeline Seismic Upgrade (PPSU) projects will resume today, February 16, after observing the President's Day Holiday.

Giants of the Watershed

The Peninsula Watershed is home to more than 3000 acres of Coastal Redwood and Douglas Fir. The tall native conifers are particularly important as nesting habitat for certain birds, such as the federally endangered Marbled Murrelet, a stocky black and white seabird that requires large areas of coastal forest canopy in order reproduce in the spring.  We’ll have updates in April and May on this year’s Marbled Murrelet pairs and other watershed wildlife.   

The pristine 23,000-acre Peninsula Watershed also has nearly 4000 acres of native oak and other hardwood forests, plus large expanses of grassland, chaparral, and other habitats, including marsh, riparian, cultivated and lakes. Together, they foster a diversity of ecosystems with their own webs of native plant and animal life. The watershed is also a State Fish and Wildlife Refuge. 

Exploring the Watershed: Endless Opportunities for Volunteer Trail Leaders

Any day is a good day to walk, cycle or ride your horse along the Peninsula Watershed’s Fifield-Cahill Ridge Trail—a 10-mile stretch through old-growth conifer forest, fragrant coastal scrub, and grassy meadows. Ridge Trail events are available by reservation on Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays. A wide variety of Ridge trail event itineraries are scheduled year round and are led Ridge Trail Leader Volunteers.

There are openings now to join our diverse corps of approximately 150 trail leaders, whose interests range from fitness to art, gardening, nature interpretation, and more. “The opportunities are endless, and the experience is unique,” said Watershed Natural Resources Manager Joe Naras. “The place gives you the impression that no one else is there.”

For an application to become a trail leader, go here, and scroll to the bottom of the page. For more information, contact our Coordinator John Fournet at jfournet@sfwater.org.

What’s On Tap in the Peninsula for 2016?

Our SFPUC teams in the Peninsula are looking forward to a busy 2016! The $4.8 billion Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) might be more than 90 percent complete, but there’s still a lot of work left to complete. We look forward to continuing to share information about our current projects and starting new ones in the New Year. Here are a few highlights of what to expect in 2016.

Regional Groundwater Construction Continues to Charge Forward
The Regional Groundwater Storage & Recovery project charges forward to complete well drilling this year, and then the focus will shift to building well facilities at 13 separate sites in 2016. .


Project team directing concrete pour in South San Francisco

The Regional Groundwater and Storage Recovery project is constructing up to 16 new groundwater wells and associated pipelines and equipment to allow us to store groundwater in wet years for use in times of drought. Learn more about the project here: www.sfwater.org/gsr. Construction started in April 2015 and is estimated to be complete in March 2018?


Seismic Upgrade Success in the Peninsula
The Peninsula Pipeline Seismic Upgrade Project (PPSU) project is wrapping up restoration activities. We anticipate the project to be complete in winter 2016. The construction team is working to ensure that the project’s sites are returned to the same condition before our pipeline replacement work started in summer 2014.

The PPSU project consisted of seismic upgrades to three Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System delivery pipelines located in Millbrae, San Bruno, South San Francisco and Colma. These upgrades make the water system more reliable after an earthquake.

Clearing the Way for New Native Habitat on Watershed Lands
Coming up on the Peninsula Watershed this spring, watershed crews will begin hand-removing pampas grass, periwinkle and other non-native, invasive vegetation from several acres along and near the east side of Lower Crystal Springs Reservoir. Over the years the invasive species have gradually but consistently overcome and displaced the area’s original native grasses and other plants.

This initial brush clearing will be the first step in a long-term comprehensive Bioregional Habitat Program to restore about 150 acres of native grasses and oak woodlands within the 26,000-acre watershed. The program is designed to compensate for impacts to habitat resulting from seismic reconstruction of major drinking water facilities within the watershed.


Crews hand-remove non-native, invasive vegetation to make way for the restoration of our historic native habitats.

Hike, Bike, or Ride the Fifield Cahill Ridge Trail
In case you were not aware, members of the public can hike, mountain bike, or ride their horses through the Peninsula Watershed on the Fifield-Cahill Ridge Trail. Access to the trail is by guided groups by reservation only. Those wanting to experience pristine old-growth forests, grassy meadows and ridgetop vistas should make a reservation on line: here.

Make a reservation to hike, bike, or ride on the Fifield Cahill Ridge Trail.