REPAIRS TO THE El DORADO Irrigation District’s (EID) diversion dam, located in Kyburz, California, US, have been completed. The rehabilitation included a new concrete dam, gates and and software to automatically operate the by- pass gates.

The diversion dam, along with the power house, canal and other EID infrastructure was severely damaged by a flood in 1997. Pacific Gas and Electric owned the project at the time but sold it to EID after the flood. The diversion dam is part of Project 184, the federally licensed hydroelectric system made up of four manmade lakes, 36.2km of canal and the El Dorado power house.

The system provides one-third, (18.6Mm3) of EID’s water supply. The Kyburz diversion dam redirects the water from the South Fork of the American river into the El Dorado Canal, which carries the water to Forebay Reservoir in Pollock Pines. The water is then used by area communities, such as Camino and Pollock Pines. In 2002, the water will also be used to power the El Dorado Powerhouse, as it did prior to the 1997 flood. The powerhouse is located at river level, north of Pollock Pines, 580m below the reservoir.

Ford Construction, the general contractor that built the new dam, began work in November 2000.

The new concrete dam cost US$370,000 for construction management and design engineering and a futher US$3.6M for the construction itself.