Construction Complete at Damaged Flume Site
Water is once again flowing through the Highland Canal

(posted August 11, 2008) Construction is complete, and water flow restored, on a portion of Truckee Meadows Water Authority's (TMWA) Highland flume, damaged in the April 25 earthquake. The flume and canal system is the primary source of supply to the Chalk Bluff Water Treatment Plant, TMWA's largest water treatment facility.

The section was repaired with an above-ground pipe that bypasses the area where the flume was destroyed. Contractor for the project, Q&D Construction, was on time and on budget. This temporary repair has eliminated the need for rented diesel pumps that were installed immediately after the earthquake and have been pumping water to the treatment plant from the Orr Ditch on the Truckee River.

"We are very pleased with the success of this project," Pat Nielson, TMWA's Manager of Distribution Maintenance and Generation said. "Everything ran smoothly and Q&D did a great job staying on schedule. The results have exceeded our expectations."

The pipe is currently flowing about 30 million gallons a day (mgd) of water to Chalk Bluff; the original design was for 20 to 25 mgd capacity.

TMWA's engineering, operations and financial staff considered numerous options to restore water supply from the damaged Highland flume to the plant in northwest Reno. The cost of this project to restore gravity water supply to Chalk Bluff was $780,235, which is offset by the energy and operational savings associated with operating the pumps at the Orr Ditch. In addition, the pipe used for this temporary bypass will be reused in a future project.

TMWA's Board of Directors also authorized TMWA to fast track another longer-term project, the Mogul Bypass, which was in the works and is currently in the design stage. Once complete, the $14 million project will bypass all of the Highland canal/flume system in the Mogul area and put the delivery system in an underground pipe. This project is currently scheduled for completion in mid-2009.

Project Archive:

June 27, 2008 - Construction Begins at Damaged Flume Site
Temporary solution will save money and resources
View Full report here

June 5, 2008 —TMWA Board approves funding in emergency meeting
View full board report here

April 26, 2008—Status Report: Chalk Bluff Flume (PDF)
View full report here

Photos of Construction:
Click thumbnails to view larger images