Chain of Lakes Conveyance System Project
Securing Our Water Future
A Local Lifeline for a Resilient Tri-Valley
As multiple challenges continue to put the Tri-Valley’s water future at risk, the need for a reliable, locally controlled water supply has never been greater. The Chain of Lakes Conveyance System Project is Zone 7’s proactive solution to secure our water future. By capturing excess water in wet years and storing it right here in our community, we can build a resilient lifeline that will support the region’s water needs for generations to come.
Why We Are Evaluating This Project
Currently, approximately 90% of our water supply is imported from the Northern Sierra Nevada via the fragile Delta, with most of our storage programs located hundreds of miles away in the Central Valley.
While these systems are effective, our region remains vulnerable to:
- Climate Change: Unpredictable weather patterns and severe atmospheric rivers that overwhelm current infrastructure.
- Emergency Risks: A single major earthquake could cut off our access to outside water supplies for an extended period.
- Lack of Local Control: Relying on distant water sources that could become unavailable in an instant.
The Proposed Solution: A Local Storage Network
Zone 7 is evaluating the Chain of Lakes Conveyance System to utilize an underutilized resource—former gravel mining pits—to create a local water storage and recharge network.
How the Proposed System Would Work:
- Conveyance: A new 7-mile pipeline would connect the South Bay Aqueduct, Lake Del Valle, Del Valle Water Treatment Plant and the Chain of Lakes.
- Capture: During wet years, the system would capture surplus imported water and local stormwater that is currently lost to downstream runoff and the lack of local storage capacity.
- Storage: This water would be transported to the Chain of Lakes, where it would perform “double-duty”:
- Surface Storage: Potentially increase our local capacity by approximately 30,000 acre-feet.
- Groundwater Recharge: Replenish our local basin for use during future droughts.
- Distribution: When needed, this stored water would be pumped back through the new conveyance pipeline to be treated at our Del Valle Water Treatment Plant to provide high-quality drinking water.
Potential Project Benefits
Enhanced Local Control and Reliability
If realized, this project would significantly increase our ability to store water locally. In an emergency, combined with conservation efforts, this system could provide enough water to support the Tri-Valley for a full year—a level of security that would be unprecedented for our region.
Sustainable Groundwater Management
Sustainability has been mission-critical for Zone 7 since day one. This proposed project would help ensure our groundwater basin remains reliably recharged, preventing overdraw and ensuring water is available when it is needed most.
Environmentally Conscious Design
The project is being designed with the ecosystem in mind, utilizing eco-friendly engineering. The proposed pipeline would tunnel underneath local arroyos, leaving creek beds intact and minimizing the impact on local wildlife and habitats.
Realizing the Vision: Support and Funding
The Chain of Lakes Conveyance System is an enormous undertaking, but it would have an enormous impact on our future. This is an investment in a sustainable, resilient, and locally controlled legacy, but it cannot become a reality without the support of our partners and the securing of necessary funding.
We simply cannot continue to rely on water sources that could become unavailable in the blink of an eye. We need a local solution that secures our water future.