Community Corner
Upper Chiquita Reservoir a Guard Against Terror
The emergency water supply could play an important role in the event of a natural—or man-made—disaster in South Orange County.
The Upper Chiquita Reservoir, South Orange County's trump card against a contaminated water supply, was dedicated Friday amid engineers and politicians.
Atop a hill in Rancho Mission Viejo, not far from Tesoro High School and just beyond the ridge of homes in the communities of Las Flores and Wagon Wheel, about 50 people gathered just a few yards away from $55-million, 18-acre water bed.
The Upper Chiquita Reservoir—a fully enclosed reservoir with a surface area of 18 acres that is 120 feet deep and holds about 244 million gallons of potable water—is online and ready to go should the need arise, either through natural disasters or those created by terrorists.
Find out what's happening in Rancho Santa Margaritawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
It should be able to provide water for a half-million people for 7-10 days.
The lining of the reservoir is similar to that of a water bed, and its tan color helps it blend in with the surrounding area. It can't be seen from any residential communities, and in fact, can only be seen from an airplane or a strategic point on the Starr Ranch.
Find out what's happening in Rancho Santa Margaritawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
According to Dan Ferons, chief engineer for the Santa Margarita Water District, the reservoir holds about as much water as Lake Mission Viejo. The entire site is 23 acres.
Friday was a celebration of the partners who built it and have a stake in it should the emergency supply need tapped: Santa Margarita Water District, South Coast Water District, Moulton Niguel Water, and the cities of San Juan Capistrano and San Clemente.
Speakers were State Senator Mimi Walters, Supervisor Patricia Bates, Rancho Mission Viejo President and CEO Anthony R. Moiso, and Charley Wilson, the president of the board of directors of the Santa Margarita Water District.
Also celebrated were the varous entities that built the project:
Engineering
- Lead consultant: AECOM
- Geotechnical: GeoPentech
- Water Quality: Trussell Technologies Inc.
- Circulation Analysis: Flow Science
- Floating Cover: Denny Gerber
- Electrical/Instrumentation: Moraes, Pham & Associates
- Surveying: Huitt-Zollars
- Environmental Permitting: Dudek
- Project Management Support: Henry Miedema
- Feasibility Studies: Genterra Consultants, Inc.
Construction
- General Contractor: Sukut Construction
- Reservoir Liner and Cover: Layfield
- Pump Station and Disinfection Facility: Olsson Construction
- Electrical: Southern Contracting Company
Construction Administration
- Construction Management Support: AECOM
- Geotechnical: GeonPentech; Ninyo & Moore; NMG Geotechnical
- Liner and Cover Consulting: Ron Frobel
- Liner and Cover Inspection: Infractructure Engineering Corp
- Environmental Compliance: Dudek
- Surveying: Huitt-Zollars
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
