LAKEPORT >> The Lake County Board of Supervisors discussed flood proofing the PG&E transmission line Tuesday. The supervisors sat as the Lake County Watershed Protection District Board of Directors during the discussion.
Lake County Water Resources Director Scott De Leon requested direction from the board regarding the transmission line because it crosses the northern edge of the Middle Creek Flood Damage Reduction and Ecosystem Restoration Project area. The project started in 1995 when Watershed Protection District requested the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin work. In 2004, a feasibility study was completed. The following year, the county supervisors approved an environmental impact report (EIR) required under the California Environmental Quality Act.
All towers require foundation retrofitting to make them resistant to damage from frequent flooding, De Leon said. Five of the transmission towers have foundations below the 7.56 feet on the Rumsey scale, which is full lake level, and one tower has foundation just above full lake level.
Construction of a boardwalk is also required to allow year-round access for service vehicles.
Distribution and transmission teams from PG&E reviewed the scope of the project and gave a “very preliminary” estimate of $7.25 million, according to De Leon. The estimate includes flood-proofing the transmission line and reconfiguring the local electric network, but does not include rights-of-way, acquisition costs and special permitting costs that may be required.
“These figures are very preliminary and have been derived without benefit of preparing a formal estimate ? to give us a very rough cost estimate for planning purposes,” De Leon said.
The district will need to pay an advance deposit of $75,000 to get a more accurate estimate for the relocation of PG&E”s Distribution and Transmission facilities, as well as preliminary engineering and land work.
The district may request at any time that PG&E stop preliminary work on this project, De Leon added. With any actual costs incurred up to that time being deducted from the advance deposit and the balance, if any, refunded without interest.
During the preparation of the feasibility study, it was determined that flood proofing of infrastructure, which includes elevating PG&E transmission towers, approximately one-quarter mile of Highway 20, constructing a new bridge and elevating a portion of the Nice-Lucerne Cutoff were required for the project to properly function.
In 2012, the district was informed by the Corps of Engineers that retrofitting of infrastructure was a local cost and needed to be paid by the local sponsor as an up front cost, instead of being part of the project construction as the district thought.
The addition of retrofitting costs, which will probably exceed $10 million, to land acquisition is “a substantial financial burden, with no guarantee of reimbursement,” De Leon said.
Property acquisitions for the project have begun using Flood Protection Corridor Program grants.
“Property acquisition costs will be counted toward the required local match for USACE funding,” De Leon said.
The county is required to match 35 percent of funding, of which land acquisition and relocation costs are anticipated to exceed.
Costs associated with lands, easements, rights-of-way, relocations and disposal areas in excess of the required local match are eligible for reimbursement from the Corps of Engineers after the project is complete.
However, reimbursement will only be awarded if funding is available.
The board will further discuss the topic at 9:15 a.m. During its Nov. 4 meeting, in order to allow time environmental concerns to be addressed and additional information to be gathered.
“This may be one of the most important projects to our county environmentally,” District 3 Supervisor Denise Rushing said.
J.W. Burch IV can be reached at 900-2022
