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SDS Regional Water Project Advances
Significant SDS Construction in Progress
Significant construction progress is being made on the Southern Delivery System (SDS) – one of the largest water projects to be built in Colorado in decades. Seven separate construction projects to build this essential water infrastructure are well under way in both El Paso and Pueblo counties.
Here’s what’s happening:
Pueblo Dam
Pueblo-based contractor ASI Constructors began construction on the SDS connection to Pueblo Dam last May. Crews excavated to a depth of 80 feet below the North Outlet Works of Pueblo Dam and then placed more than 2,800 cubic yards of concrete to form the foundation and valve house for the connection. The steel liner was fabricated and installed, the valve house has been constructed and the massive valves have been installed along with the first section of SDS pipe from the dam. Work on the Pueblo Dam connection will be completed in mid-2012.
Pipeline
Construction to install the underground raw water pipeline started last year. Crews are making progress on pipeline construction. Nearly nine miles has been installed in Pueblo County, including installation under U.S. Highway 50. A majority of the pipeline in Pueblo County is scheduled for completion by the end of 2012. Nearly eight miles of raw water pipeline has been installed in El Paso County.
Water Treatment Plant and Pump Stations
Final design is under way for the water treatment plant in El Paso County, located east of Marksheffel Road and south of U.S. Highway 24. The design-build team of McCarthy Building Companies and Carollo Engineering will begin the bidding process for subcontractors this fall. For a contractor prequalification form, visit the McCarthy website. Additionally, the design-build team of CDM Smith and Western Summit is advancing design on the three raw water pump stations. Click here to preregister for information on upcoming solicitations for the pump stations. Construction on the pump stations is planned to begin near the end of 2013.
State Certification Under Review
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's (CDPHE) Water Quality Control Division (Division) issued a 401-water quality certification under the Clean Water Act for the SDS project in April 2010, certifying that SDS would comply with all applicable state water quality requirements. The Rocky Mountain Environmental Labor Coalition (RMELC) and Pueblo County District Attorney, Bill Thiebaut, then appealed the CDPHE 401 certification for SDS.
Following extensive review, the Colorado Water Quality Control Commission voted unanimously in January 2011 to confirm the SDS 401 Certification issued by the Water Quality Control Division. A Pueblo County judge reviewed the decision at the request of RMELC and District Attorney Thiebaut. Judge Reyes reversed the Commission's ruling and sent the case back to the Division to revise the 401 Certification.
“We are disappointed that the Court disregarded several years of studies and evaluation by water quality experts at numerous federal and state environmental agencies, as well as the extensive mitigation already required of the project,” said John Fredell, SDS Program Director. “We are currently evaluating our appeal rights and coordinating with the appropriate state and federal agencies.”
Construction of the SDS project is proceeding - providing hundreds of regional jobs and infusing tens of millions of dollars in the southern Colorado economy - while we work to resolve this issue in the courts.
Info Event for Companies Interested in SDS Work
Colorado Springs Utilities will present information on SDS contracting opportunities at a breakfast forum hosted by the Associated General Contractors of Colorado on Wednesday, May 16 from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
The event will be held at the Olympic Training Center (West Conference Center), 1 Olympic Place in Colorado Springs. Speakers include Steve Cox, Chief Economic Vitality & Innovation Officer for the City of Colorado Springs and John Fredell, SDS Program Director. To register, visit the Associated General Contractors of Colorado website.
Construction eNews Starting
If you are interested in receiving regular updates on SDS construction activities, please sign up for our construction eNewsletter at our updated website, www.SDSwater.org. The sign up is located at the bottom of the website homepage. If you know of others who are interested in receiving general project updates or construction updates about SDS, please forward this email to them and help us spread the word.
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