| Official name | San Diego Project |
|---|---|
| Begins | First Aqueduct Colorado River Aqueduct 33°49′19″N 116°58′03″W / 33.821870°N 116.967520°W Second Aqueduct Casa Loma Canal Aqueduct 33°47′27″N 117°01′50″W / 33.790740°N 117.030487°W |
| Ends | First Aqueduct San Vicente Reservoir 32°55′13″N 116°56′26″W / 32.920401°N 116.940687°W Second Aqueduct Lower Otay Reservoir 32°36′28″N 116°55′40″W / 32.607857°N 116.927769°W |
| Maintained by | San Diego County Water Authority |
| Length | 225.1 mi (362.3 km) |
| Capacity | First Aqueduct 196 cu ft (5.6 m3) per second Second Aqueduct canal: 500 cu ft (14 m3) pipeline 3: 250 cu ft (7.1 m3) pipeline 4: 380 cu ft (11 m3) |
| Construction began | First Aqueduct pipeline 1: 1945 pipeline 2: 1952 Second Aqueduct pipeline 3: 1957 pipeline 4: 1968 |
| Opening date | First Aqueduct pipeline 1: 1947 pipeline 2: 1954 Second Aqueduct pipeline 3: 1960 pipeline 4: 1971 |
The San Diego Project, more popularly referenced as the San Diego Aqueduct, is a system of two large and two smaller aqueducts in the U.S. state of California that supplies 90 percent of the water supply of the city of San Diego. The system comprises the First and Second San Diego Aqueducts, that carry water from the Colorado River west to reservoirs on the outskirts of San Diego. The 70 miles (110 km) First Aqueduct consists of the pipelines 1 and 2, which run from the Colorado River Aqueduct near San Jacinto, California, to the San Vicente Reservoir, a point approximately 15 miles (24 km) northeast of the city. Pipelines 3 and 4 make up the 94 miles (151 km) Second Aqueduct. Together, the four pipelines have a capacity of 826 cubic feet (23.4 m3) per second. The smaller, 12.5 miles (20.1 km) Fallbrook-Ocean Branch branches from the First Aqueduct to Morrow Reservoir. The La Mesa-Sweetwater Branch also originates from the First Aqueduct and flows to the Sweetwater Reservoir.[1]
Contents |
Construction
The First Aqueduct was designed by the Bureau of Reclamation and constructed from 1945 to 1947 by the Navy Department. Pipeline 2 was and built by the Bureau of Reclamation from 1952 and 1957 and roughly parallels the path of Pipeline 1. Construction began in 1957 of Pipeline 3 of the Second Aqueduct by the Metropolitan Water District (MWD), and was completed in May of 1960. Construction of Pipeline 4 continued from 1968 to 1971.
First Aqueduct
The First Aqueduct branches from the Colorado River Aqueduct in San Jacinto, California just north of the San Jacinto River and continues 70 mi (110 km) south as two pipelines built of precast concrete pipe, ranging in diameter from 96 in (240 cm) to 48 inches (120 cm) to its terminus at the San Vicente Reservoir.[2] There are seven tunnels on the First Aqueduct, which range in length from 500 ft (150 m) to 5,700 ft (1,700 m). The total capacity of the First Aqueduct is 196 cu ft (5.6 m3) per second.[1]
Second Aqueduct
The Second Aqueduct is about 94 mi (151 km), beginning at the Colorado River Aqueduct and flowing to Lake Skinner and then the Lower Otay Reservoir near San Diego. The first 16 mi (26 km) from the Colorado River Aqueduct to Lake Skinner, Pipeline 3 is a canal that can handle approximately 500 cu ft (14 m3) per second. The remaining 78 mi (126 km) consist of pre-stressed 72-inch diameter[2] concrete pipe and steel pipe, and Pipeline 4 consists of pre-stressed concrete pipe with a capacity of 380 cu ft (11 m3) per second.[1]
References
- ^ a b c Bureau of Reclamation. "San Diego Project". Dataweb Database. U.S. Department of the Interior. http://www.usbr.gov/dataweb/html/sandiego.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-24.
- ^ a b Bureau of Reclamation. "San Diego Project Engineering Data". Dataweb Database. U.S. Department of the Interior. http://www.usbr.gov/dataweb/html/lcsanengdata.html. Retrieved on 2009-03-24.
External links
- Metropolitan Water District of Southern California official website
- Aquafornia California Water News Blog
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