ASCE honors EID Reservoir 1 project

The American Society of Civil Engineers Sacramento Section has named El Dorado Irrigation District's Reservoir 1 Floating Cover Emergency Replacement Project its 2025 Outstanding Project of the Year.

The award recognizes the project team's contributions to the civil engineering profession and the Northern California community, and was presented at the section's awards banquet in Sacramento in September.

Reservoir 1 (Res 1) is a 2.8-million-gallon lined and covered drinking water reservoir at the Res 1 Water Treatment Plant in Pollock Pines.

Its floating cover and liner had been in service since 1989, beyond their 20- to 30-year design life, and a routine 2025 inspection found holes and ripped seams that could not be repaired.

In October 2025, the EID Board of Directors declared an emergency to replace the cover and liner and protect drinking water service to Pollock Pines, Cedar Grove and Camino.
The project faced a narrow window. Because Res 1 also serves as the treatment plant's chlorine contact basin, work had to be completed during the plant's annual winter outage, and the reservoir could not be taken offline with existing infrastructure.

EID and its partners designed and built a temporary bypass system - including temporary storage tanks, 24-inch bypass piping and pump station modifications - and placed it into service on Dec. 10, 2025.

Of 842 customers notified of potential service interruptions, only 42 were affected.

Crews then replaced the cover and liner through winter weather, including heavy snow, and returned Res 1 to service on March 19, 2026, less than seven months after the project began.

Completion was reached on July 16, 2026. Total project funding was approximately $2.7 million.

"Our engineers, operators and field crews worked hand in hand with our contractors to protect drinking water service for Pollock Pines, Cedar Grove and Camino," said El Dorado Irrigation District General Manager Pravani Vandeyar. "This honor reflects their skill and dedication, and I couldn't be prouder of them."

Project partners included EC Applications, Doug Veerkamp General Engineering, Rain for Rent, Inferrera Construction Management Group and Aqua Tech Company.
Res 1 is one of seven floating cover reservoirs operated by EID.

The district is evaluating all of them through its Tank and Reservoir Master Planning Project, with findings to be incorporated into future capital and financial planning.

For a closer look at the project, visit "Reservoir 1: Racing the Clock to Protect the Water Supply" at https://new.express.adobe.com/webpage/GMxbIsJaD2QBH.