$1.6 Million Pipeline To Tap In Neighborhood Rife With Failed Wells
Jamestown, CA – Good news this week for residents in a water-troubled neighborhood. Funding for a $1.6 million pipeline extension has come through.
State Water Resources gave its official nod to approve funding for a nearly two-mile residential potable water connection from the Quartz/Stent area of Jamestown into the Tuolumne Utilities District (TUD) system. According to Ethan Billigmeier of the Tuolumne County OES Office, TUD is anticipating that the project will allow 70 new connections to tap into TUD services, with a capacity for adding more, as residents express interest. The neighborhood was among the county’s hardest hit by the drought, as dozens of wells went dry or declined, forcing residents to rely on water tanks and deliveries of potable water.
Billigmeier explains that the monies collectively are coming from the state’s designated Clean-up and Abatement Account (CAA) and the Public Water System Emergency Response Program (PWSDER) as well as from emergency drought funds. “The success of the project is a testament to the strong working relationships of local and state agencies coming together to solve a problem,” he says, matter-of-factly.
Plans are next to have TUD engineering staff commence with survey and design of the pipeline extension, finalize its alignment and acquire the necessary easements.
Local residents interested in connecting to the TUD system through the new project may contact the TUD Engineering Department at 209 532-5536, extension 526.
