Wednesday January 25, 2023
Riverbank News —
South San Joaquin Irrigation District is assessing storm damage to its water delivery system from rockslides in the High Sierra to key canals above Knights Ferry and on the valley floor.
SSJID Public and Government Relations Manager Katie Patterson said this past week that engineers and crews are determining strategies to repair the issues.
They run the gamut from unstable canyon walls above supply canals, destroyed sections of canal lining spots in the joint supply and main canals, as well as rock slides.
It is too early to determine if the repairs will require a delay of the start of SSJID irrigation season that is typically in mid-March.
Patterson said the district is committed to “doing repairs right.”
Some of the damage is to the Tri-Dam Project that SSJID operates jointly with Oakdale Irrigation District to capture 600,000-acre feet of water rights the two districts share on the Stanislaus River watershed.