Rollins Reservoir, shown here at low levels on July 10, is now actively refilling. As of this week, flows into the reservoir are approximately 570 cubic feet per second, with Rollins at 57% of usable storage. PCWA continues to coordinate with NID and monitor reservoir recovery ahead of full service restoration. Photo courtesy of Placer County Water Agency

AUBURN, CA (MPG) - Placer County Water Agency (PCWA) is preparing to restore full untreated water deliveries to customers following Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s (PG&E) completion of repairs at Lake Spaulding Powerhouse No. 1 and resumption of water flows into Rollins Reservoir beginning July 24. With flows now refilling the reservoir—a key source for PCWA’s canal system— Placer County Water Agency anticipates full service for affected customers will resume by August 15.

PG&E first reported critical damage to its Spaulding facility in March of 2024 and cut off releases from Spaulding Reservoir during the summer of 2024 while it completed the first phase of repairs. PG&E began the second phase of repairs this past spring and again halted water flows during the work.

Due to the limited access to water from Rollins Reservoir, which is owned and operated by Nevada Irrigation District (NID), approximately 2,700 Placer County Water Agency customers (those receiving one miner’s inch or more of water) had their canal water delivery reduced by 20 percent.

PG&E’s Spaulding Powerhouse No. 1—now fully repaired—has resumed water releases into the Drum Canal, marking a critical step toward restoring untreated water deliveries for PCWA customers. Photo courtesy of Placer County Water Agency

Placer County Water Agency’s operations teams are now in the process of restoring full water deliveries to those customers’ water delivery mechanisms (orifices). During the outage, Placer County Water Agency coordinated closely with NID and also supplemented its water supply by activating interties and increasing pumping from the American River.

“We would like to thank all our customers for their understanding and commitment to conserving water during the time PG&E’s repairs impacted our supply,” said Andy Fecko, PCWA General Manager. “Our customers’ cooperation made a huge difference, and we’re happy to be moving forward with full water deliveries.”

About PCWA

Placer County Water Agency (PCWA) is the primary water resource agency for Placer County, California, with a broad range of responsibilities including water resource planning and management, retail and wholesale supply of drinking water and irrigation water, and production of hydroelectric energy.