The Current
Reclamation's Biweekly Newsletter
August 10, 2018
The Bureau of Reclamation owns nearly 10,000 miles of canals. Water is a powerful force and with such a dispersed network of infrastructure, protecting the public is a serious responsibility. Ensuring reliability of operations and public safety is paramount. Achieving safe and reliable water delivery requires collaboration across all levels of federal, state and local governments as well as private operators and the public.
Many of Reclamation's conveyance features are operated and maintained in partnership with irrigation and water districts. To keep water flowing, Reclamation and its associated canal managers, inspectors and operators are experts at both repairs, ranging from simple fixes to embankment replacement. Canal operations ensure appropriate amount of water is reliably delivered to Reclamation's many customers. To continue to support our partners to manage and deliver water, Reclamation shares best practices and expertise through manuals and training classes.
Reclamation has created guidance for canal operators to promote safe and effective operations and maintenance for canal systems. The following reference documents are available on Reclamation's website:
- Canal Operator Manual
- Canal Operation and Maintenance Manuals
- Vegetation Control and Repair
- Animal Control and Damage Repair
- Concrete Lining and Structure Maintenance and Repair
- Embankment Maintenance and Repair
- Mechanical Equipment and SCADA Maintenance and Repair
Guidance helps irrigation and water districts identify operation and maintenance issues and to plan, budget and prioritize actions to address those issues. These manuals are available as a notebook or as a set of individual booklets for field use upon request.
Some canal operators have been working on their canals for decades while some only a few months. Regardless of experience, everyone needs to know why their job is vital to the health and safety of our water systems.
Reclamation offers Canal Operation and Maintenance Training. This class provides Reclamation project staff and operating entities the knowledge and tools to efficiently and effectively operate and maintain canals to ensure delivery of water. Reclamation also provides training to reinforce the why underlying effective operation and maintenance practices.
The eight-hour course covers:
- Why Your Work is Important
- Embankment Breach Consequences
- Emergency Embankment Breach Response
- Operations: Running Smoothly
- Review of O&M Inspections
- Vegetation Control Methods
- Rodent Control Methods
- Concrete Maintenance
- Maintenance of Mechanical Equipment
- Embankment Maintenance Methods
- Seepage Repairs/Response
- People Impacts/Outreach/Education
- Public Safety Features
- Documentation
Please visit Reclamation's Asset Management website at https://www.usbr.gov/assetmanagement/canalOamM.html to download the curriculum and documents.
If you have any questions or would like to arrange for a course, please contact Nick Casamatta at 303-445-3104 or ncasamatta@usbr.gov.
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