The new surface water plant that is supplying treated Tuolumne River water to homes in Ceres and Turlock has been recognized because of several achievements.
The plant is operated by the Stanislaus Regional Water Authority (SRWA).
The Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) gave the SRWA a National Award of Merit.
Chris Fisher, general manager of the SRWA, explained in a presentation at the Ceres City Council meeting that the award is given to agencies for projects that demonstrate efficiency, streamlining for faster completion and cost savings through fewer and less costly change orders. The local plant was one of 25 across the country recognized with the honor.
The final cost to build the plant came to $197,255,475, with $38 million in grants and a $185 million low-interest loan from the State Revolving Fund. The largest grant was $27.75 million from the Proposition 68 Parks and Water Bond passed by state voters in 2018. Borrowing from the State Revolving Fund at 1.2 percent interest rate has saved the project $100 million it would have incurred through municipal bond financing at a four percent rate.
The SRWA plant saw 55 change orders, which equates to less than one percent of the total contract cost.
A total of 640,746 hours of construction time was spent on the plant over 42 months. During construction there were very few recordable incidents (accidents and mishaps), breaking down to 0.94 to the industry standard of 3.9. In terms of loss of time due to accidents – recorded as Days Away, Restricted or Transferred cases, the project saw a rate of 0.31 versus the industry average of 2.1.
Change orders on the project also used only 15 percent of the original contingency fund. Typically a contingency is an amount of money set aside to cover unexpected issues that were not factors in the original bid.
“We were severely impacted by COVID,” explained Fisher. “A lot of the voltage switch gear we were unable to get but because of the design-build process we were able to work through that and really not delay the project.”
He noted that plant manager Selena Estrada’s role.
“She took charge of the starting up of the facility. It was a monumental task. It’s staffed with some of the best operators in California and really her dedication has been instrumental in the plant’s seamless operation.”
He said it is a privilege to deliver safe and reliable water to Ceres and Turlock taps. The plant is capable of processing 15 million gallons of water per day, with 10 million gallons earmarked for Turlock and 5 million for Ceres.
The plant became a reality and went online in November after decades of discussion. In 2011, both cities, along with Turlock Irrigation District, formed the Stanislaus Regional Water Authority, a joint powers authority to build and operate the plant. To pay for the plant, the city councils of both cities enacted a series of water rate increases.
Based on water needs of their populations, Turlock is responsible for two-thirds, or roughly $123 million, while Ceres will pay roughly a third of the cost, or about $62 million.
