Dams and reservoirs are a huge undertaking due to the nature of their construction, and Sukut Construction is an expert in taking on these challenging projects. Some of the past works include a newly finished Calaveras, San Vicente, and San Pablo dams, as well as the current Lake Isabella Dam and Trampas Dam and Reservoir. While a few of these projects are joint ventures, the rest are managed by Sukut alone. One of the latter projects, solely managed by Sukut, is Trampas Dam and Reservoir, located in South Orange county.
Built in the early 1970’s, the Trampas reservoir became part of the sand mining operation in the hills of Rancho Mission Viejo. However, in 2014, the Santa Margarita Water District (SMWD) chose to repurpose the reservoir to serve as additional seasonal storage for recycled water.
At the end of 2017, the Board of Directors of SMWD authorized the construction of a 5,000-acre-foot Trampas Canyon Dam that was designed to hold 1.6 billion gallons of recycled water coming mainly from Chiquita Water Reclamation Plant. When complete, the Trampas Dam will be the largest surface water reservoir in south Orange County and would fit 2,500 Olympic size swimming pools. The new dam will allow for Chiquita to recycle 100% of its wastewater and save the water during anticipated periods of drought.
The project requires an immense amount of knowledge and work. Sukut is adding more than 3.7 million cubic yards of material to buttress and build to the new level that will rise 40 feet above the old reservoir. The improved dam and a correlated increase in reservoir capacity call for six hundred thousand tons of filter blanket materials along with a host of control and support features. Additionally, Sukut will construct a dam control building with dam instrumentation, emergency outlet structure, inlet/outlet structure, concrete spillway of 400 feet in length, 700 feet of 63-inch micro tunneling, four MSE walls, reservoir aeration system, 9,100 feet of 16 and 30-inch CML&C waterline, 20,000 feet of perimeter fencing, and 6,800 feet of asphalt access roads. The project is on schedule to be completed in the summer of 2020.
The full article about Sukut’s Trampas Dam and Reservoir project is available at: CalContractor Grading and Excavating 2019 Issue.
About Sukut:
Sukut Construction is a general heavy civil engineering contractor with over 50 years of superior performance on residential, public, commercial, and industrial projects throughout the Western region. Sukut is most widely referred to as one of California’s largest mass excavation and grading contractor, moving up to 150 million cubic yards of earth per year and maintaining an equipment fleet of more than 300 pieces of heavy equipment. In recent years, Sukut has received more than 30 industry honors, including Contractor of the Year and Best Company to Work For. Sukut maintains its high status in the construction industry by offering the maximum level of project quality and safety, the very best in personnel, and cost-effective work.