Operating Engineer - Fall 2014

Feature
Moving a River to Remove a Dam
Local 3 Operators up to the task on massive reclamation project
BUILT IN 1921, California’s San Clemente Dam once
supplied drinking water to the Monterey Peninsula. Today its
reservoir is choked with silt. Twenty years ago, state inspectors
deemed the dam unsafe. In the event of an earthquake or
flood, a collapse would send a wall of mud spilling down the
Carmel River and the valley below, endangering lives and
property.
Dam owner California American Water and state and
federal resource agencies decided the obsolete dam had
to come down. Traditional demolition wasn’t an option
because of the dirt and water that would spew forth, so
engineers decided to move the river instead.
“Now I’m on a real job,” joked 27-year member Bob
Mote, as he stepped out of his lube truck. The Local 3
Operating Engineers working on the $84 million removal
and reclamation project are cutting a 450-foot-long canyon
through the ridge behind the dam and carving a new river
channel. This Herculean task, the largest dam removal in
state history, will also involve building a diversion dike to
direct the water along its new course.
Mote explained that he has been “keeping the iron
going” on a giant fleet of some 50 pieces of equipment,
which is burning about 4,500 gallons of fuel a day. Granite
Construction, a coast-to-coast heavy-hitter in mining,
earthwork and highway/bridge construction, is providing
both the design of the project and its implementation.
Local 3 is supplying about 60 operators, including more
than 12 apprentices who are getting important skills while on
a job of this size. According to Job Superintendent John Steck,
some apprentices were chosen because of their willingness
to travel. Besides local hands from the Carmel Valley area,
operators have come from Fairfield, Fresno, Redding and
even as far as Nevada to work on the project.
During the three-year timeline that is strict at best –
requiring day and night shifts – operators are re-routing the
Carmel River into San Clemente Creek, using the abandoned
reach as a sediment storage area, creating a diversion dike
and earthen dam and excavating the combined flow-reach
down to pre-dam elevations – all before they can even think
about taking that old dam down.
This has involved a massive excavation effort – some 1.2
[right] An aerial view shows the San Clemente Dam removal
project. Operators are re-routing the Carmel River into San
Clemente Creek before taking down the 93-year-old dam.
[photo] Mandy McMillen/IUOE Local 3
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INTERNATIONAL OPERATING ENGINEER
FALL 2014 15