ISCO Supplied HDPE Pipe in Emergency Situation
Nestled in the North Bay region of San Francisco, idyllic Benicia, California boasts a population of just under 30,000 people. On 29 March 2023 the cumulative effects of winter rains caused a landslide near Interstate 680. A frontage road and multiple infrastructure assets were affected, including a break in the primary raw water line to the city’s water treatment plant.
A portion of that 36-inch steel pipe that provides 80% of Benicia’s water was displaced. After an emergency declaration and water restrictions, ISCO supplied 1,400 linear feet of 12-inch HDPE pipe, fused together a temporary bypass, and connected the dual fabricated HDPE bypass to the two 30-inch diameter steel manifolds at locations north and south of the landslide. The first phase was completed within eight days of the initial call to action. By 20h00 that day, raw water delivered from the Putah South Canal pump station reached the Benicia water treatment plant. In phase two of the temporary bypass, two additional 12-inch HDPE lines were installed in May to help meet the higher demand for water in the summer months. It was a village-like approach to mitigate the effects of the landslide on the people of Benicia, and help them return to their bucolic normality.