Aging Sonoma County Water Pipeline Getting New Valve

SONOMA COUNTY, CA -- A major water supply pipeline is undergoing a valve replacement Feb. 1 in Santa Rosa, according to the Sonoma County Water Agency.

The 50-year-old pipeline supplies water from the Russian River to more than 600,000 residents in Sonoma and Marin counties. Work on it began around 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Sears Auto Center parking lot at 98 Santa Rosa Ave. in downtown Santa Rosa, according to the Water Agency.

The operation involves cutting into the 36-inch diameter pipe, lowering the installation valve into the aqueduct and welding it into place, Water Agency spokesman Brad Sherwood said.

The valve is one of 14 that will help build resiliency in advance of a major earthquake, Sherwood said. The valves will reduce the risk of adverse impacts of pipeline failure or rupture from ground shaking, fault rupture, liquefaction and lateral spread caused by earthquakes.

The valve installation is part of a $1.9 million grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to install isolation valves throughout the Water Agency's supply system.

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