3. Description of the San Clemente Dam Project
The San Clemente Dam was constructed in 1921 and has been operated by Cal-Am since the 1960s.1 Due to sedimentation, the reservoir's capacity has declined from a maximum of 2,260 acre feet to 137 acre feet, and Cal-Am's only use of the dam is as a point of diversion during the winter months.
The dam requires seismic safety retrofits which are estimated to cost $47 million. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, among other state and federal agencies, opposes the retrofit and recommends that the dam be removed. The cost estimates for removal exceed the cost of retrofit. The Lead Agencies for the environmental review of the retrofit project, the California Division of Safety of Dams and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, are also requiring Cal-Am to consider a bypass alternative for the dam.
As of the filing of briefs, the final decision selecting an alternative had not been issued.
1 The ratemaking history of the dam is set out in D.06-11-050, mimeo., pp. 39-45.
