Volume 34 • Number 3 • Fall 2013

Nevada Irrigation District • 1036 West Main St., Grass Valley, CA 95945 • (530) 273-6185 or (800) 222-4102 • nidwater.com

WaterwaysA NEWSLETTER TO THE CUSTOMERS OF THE NEVADA IRRIGATION DISTRICT

Water Supply andLocal Agriculture

...page 3

Rate AdjustmentsConsidered

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District is a LeadingEmployer in Nevadaand Placer Counties

WW ith a skilled work forceof 175, NID is a leadingpublic employer in

Nevada and Placer counties. Most of the district’s employees

- 152 - work in the Water Division.They staff the NID Business Centerand maintenance complex in GrassValley, as well as the Placer WaterOperations Office in North Auburnand the Placer Maintenance Centernear Lincoln. Water Divisionemployees operate and maintain anextensive network of reservoirs,canals, pipelines and water treatmentplants, and provide key support serv-ices such as customer service,accounting, engineering, surveyingand purchasing.

Another 17 employees staff theHydroelectric Division, which isheadquartered off Interstate 80 east ofColfax. Hydroelectric employeesoperate and maintain the NID Yuba-Bear Power Project, which includesseven mountain division reservoirs,many miles of canals and tunnelsand four hydroelectric power plants.

NID’s Recreation Divisionincludes a year-around staff of sixwho are responsible for public recre-ational activities at Rollins andScotts Flat reservoirs, NID’s moun-tain division campgrounds, and trailmanagement activities.

Range of OccupationsEmployees fill a wide range of

occupational specialties. The districtoffers more than 100 job descrip-tions, ranging from accountants tobuyers, engineers, managers, rangers,technicians, and water treatment oper-

ators. These many occupations aredescribed on the district’s website.

Through the years (NID wasformed in 1921), the district has builta reputation as a top employer in theregion. Human Resources ManagerYvonne DuBose says the districtoffers desirable working environ-ments, competitive wages and excel-lent benefits.

Employee turnover has tradition-ally been very low, with mostemployees pursuing their careers

(Please See Working, P. 2)

Technician Dale Smith and Engineer Adrian Schneider reviewproject plans in the NID Engineering Department.

Working for NID

PAGE 2, NID WATERWAYS, FALL 2013

Continued From P. 1

until retirement. The past few yearshave brought a higher level ofturnover as a generation of BabyBoomers moves into retirement.DuBose said NID filled 26 positionsthrough new hires or promotion in2011 and 27 positions in 2012.Fourteen positions had been filled byOct. 1 of this year and this trend isexpected to continue for another yearbefore slowing.

Employment positions arerecruited from within and outside ofthe organization. With complexwater and power operations, systemknowledge and experience are key.This critical need has helped establishthe district’s strong record of promo-tion from within. For example,today’s management staff includes abalance of professionals who havegained experience elsewhere and thosewho have risen through the ranks.

NID Water Operations ManagerChip Close is a leading example ofNID promotion from within. Hejoined the district 19 years ago as atemporary worker, moved into a per-manent position as a storekeeper,

studied water treatment, and went onto earn several promotions. Afterserving as Treated WaterSuperintendent, he was promoted thisyear to the department head position.

“It’s a great place to work,” saidClose. “I feel very fortunate to livein a community I love and enjoy andto be able to pursue a career with agood organization.”

NID employment requires a highschool diploma or equivalent at mini-mum and college degrees, licenses orcertifications as required in variouspositions. Water treatment special-ists, for example, must earn licensingfrom the state Department of HealthServices.

Quality Work Force“The district is proud to employ

a quality work force,” said DuBose.“We hire great people; talented, dedi-cated people who want to do a goodjob. If we have a big water outage,or a snowstorm with trees down inthe canals, an emergency in the mid-dle of the night, they’re out therekeeping the water flowing.”

For more information on NIDemployment opportunities, wages,benefits and working conditions,please visit the NID website atw w w.nidwater. com. and click onthe Human Resources tab.

An Overview of NIDNID is an independent,

publicly-owned special dis-trict governed by a five-member Board of Directorselected to four-year termsby district voters. Theboard is NID’s policy-mak-ing body.

NID supplies treateddrinking water and irriga-tion water to more than24,000 customers inNevada, Placer and Yubacounties. The district pro-duces enough clean hydro-electric energy to power60,000 homes, offers publicrecreational opportunities,and is active in watershedstewardship.

TeamworkA district maintenance crewworks on a pipeline replace-ment job near Nevada City.

Fall MaintenanceDean Rutter sweeps theChicago Park Flume duringthis year’s fall maintenanceoutage.

Working For NID

nidwater.com

MainOffice

Remodel

The NID Business Center in Grass Valley is undergoing an exteriorremodel this fall. A local firm, Bruce Ivy Construction, is replacing sec-tions of the exterior walls on the east end of the building, where leakagehas been a problem. A November completion was planned.

NID WATERWAYS, FALL 2013, PAGE 3

Upgrading old irrigation pipelines can be a difficultproposition. Such work often includes excavation inroadways, or in orchards, vineyards, pastures, even back-yards.

NID has hundreds of aging steel culverts andsiphons throughout its canal system and many of theseneed to be upgraded.

A new method of rehabilitation that is quicker, lessexpensive and requires considerably less excavation on pri-vate and public property is now being tested by the dis-trict.

The NID Board of Directors in September approved a

pilot project that uses an expandable, jointless pipe-in-pipe lining within existing pipelines. The liner can beexpanded up to 1000 feet in both directions from a singleexcavation.

The pilot project includes 1400 feet of expandablelining in the 18-inch Godwin Siphon on the RattlesnakeCanal, near Alta Sierra. The upgrade of the near 50-year-old siphon is scheduled in November.

NID Maintenance Manager Brian Powell has beenresearching the method and says it is a proven technology.He is confident the technology will work well on the NIDcanal system and will be useful in the future.

AAfter last year’s unusualrainfall season - whichwas followed by twomajor supply interrup-tions - it appeared that

local water supplies might be limitedfor the 2013 irrigation season.

Fortunately, that was not thecase. Through careful water manage-ment, NID’s supply held up well,with water storage remaining atabove-average levels throughout theseason (105 percent of average as ofSept. 30). Meanwhile, local farmersand ranchers have reported good 2013crop harvests.

Thanks to near record storms oflast November and December, the2012-13 rainfall season brought 83percent of average precipitation toNID mountain watershed, despite theunusually dry months of January,February and March.

The good early season storagepositioned NID to to meet this year’sdemand for irrigation water, includingthe supply of an additional 163 min-ers inches made possible by comple-tion of the Banner Cascade pipelineand DS Canal flume replacementprojects.

Water Supt. Nathan Wasley saidthe additional irrigation water wasrouted to customers who had been onwaiting lists because of the systembottlenecks. He noted that ongoingflow tests will determine how muchmore water will be available in com-ing years.

This year’s irrigation seasondeliveries were complicated by thefailure of a 90-year-old pipelinebeneath the dam at BowmanReservoir. The district was able toconstruct an emergency bypass andkeep water supplies flowing whilethe pipe was replaced.

Another complication arose dur-ing the summer when a flume breakoccurred on the Pacific Gas andElectric Company’s South YubaCanal between Lake Spaulding andScotts Flat Reservoir. Althoughsome brief outages occurred, NIDwater managers were able to divertbackup sources and keep most irriga-tion canals in water while repairswere completed.

NID Operations AdministratorSue Sindt said the district hopes for a

good 2013-14 rainfall season thatwill fill all reservoirs for next year.In the meantime, she said, the districtwill operate conservatively to retainas much water in storage as possible.

The NID irrigation season typi-cally runs from Apr. 15 through Oct.14. This is when most irrigationcustomers purchase seasonal water forcrop needs.

Good Year For Water Supply and Local Agriculture

Pilot Program: Better Pipelines With Less Digging, Fewer Property Impacts

Green Pastures

NID’s Bob Page visits withirrigation water customer SueHoek, operator of theRobinson Ranch in PennValley. Hoek also serves aspresident of the NevadaCounty Farm Bureau.

PAGE 4, NID WATERWAYS, FALL 2013

How to Contact Your Elected Directors

DIVISION I - Nevada City AreaNancy Weber, (530) 265-0424

DIVISION II - Grass Valley-Chicago ParkJohn Drew, (530) 272-5257Board Vice President, 2013

DIVISION III - Lake of the Pines-Alta SierraScott Miller, M.D., (530) 268-8778

DIVISION IV - Lincoln-North AuburnJim Bachman, (916) 645-2059

Board President, 2013DIVISION V - Penn Valley-Lake Wildwood

Nick Wilcox, (530) 432-2171

Newsletter produced with 30 percent post-consumerwaste recycled paper and

vegetable-based inks

NID’s QR CodeScan this QR Code with

your smart phone for directaccess to the NID website.

NID News Briefs

WATERSHED STEWARDSHIP

Manager Elected to ACWA BoardNID General Manager Rem Scherzinger

has been elected to the Board of Directors,Region 3, Association of California WaterAgencies. ACWA is a statewide water industryassociation. Representatives are elected from10 regions within the state.New Pipeline Near NC

District crews are completing installation of a mile ofnew pipeline to replace outdated and undersized pipe alongShannon Way and Deer Park Drive off Ridge Road nearNevada City. New service lines to 50 homes and new firehydrants are part of the job.Highway 49 in North Auburn

The new 16-inch ductile iron transmission line alongHighway 49 from Locksley Lane to Quartz Drive was com-pleted in early September, bringing increased water flowsand fire protection flows to the North Auburn area. The diffi-cult job required a road crossing beneath Highway 49 and acreek crossing under Rock Creek.

Mercury Removal Project

NID Featured in Water PublicationNID’s innovative mercury remediation project on the

Bear River is the subject of a feature story in the Sept. 6issue of a statewide water indus-try publication.

The article, titled “Gold CouldPay for Mercury Removal inNevada Irrigation DistrictStreams, Lakes,” appears inACWA News, published bythe Association of California

Water Agencies.The story describes how Gold Rush-era

mercury can be removed from the river as part of anongoing sediment removal program that helps preservewater storage space in Combie Reservoir.

NID estimates the cost of the three- to five-year proj-ect at $9 million, of which $1 million would come fromgold that has been and will be extracted as part of sedi-ment removal efforts. The district continues to seek stateand federal funding for the remainder.

Water Rate Adjustments Seen

AA s this newsletter went to press, the NID Boardof Directors was reviewing a water rate studyand considering a five-year rate schedule that

may include water rate increases for 2014. A public hear-ing on the proposal is scheduled for Dec. 11.

The need for rate increases is expected to be moderat-ed through use of up to $3 million in hydroelectric ener-gy sale revenues. The 2014 rate stabilization plan comesin the first full year of NID’s new power purchase agree-ment with PG&E.

For current information, on NID water rates, pleasesee www.nidwater.com.

Water EfficiencyFall is Planting Time

Planting trees, shrubs and landscapes in the fallgives plants time to adapt and develop healthy roots with-out the stress of hot weather transplanting. Plus fallplanting (October-mid-December) requires less irrigation.

This is the seasonal message from the Save OurWater campaign, a cooperative effort of the stateDepartment of Water Resources and Sunset Magazine.

For more helpful information on saving water, seewww.saveourh2o.org.

NID at SYRCL River CleanupNID is a longtime spon-

sor and participant in theannual South Yuba RiverCitizens League (SYRCL)River Cleanup. This year’sSept. 21 event attracted 550volunteers who removed11,450 pounds or trash andrecyclables from the Yubaand Bear river watersheds.NID’s Matt Miller and TroyGomes helped load and haulmaterials away. They arepictured with Bear RiverHigh School teacher JeffCarrow, left, who brought ateam of Key Club students tohelp clean up the Bear Riverat the Dog Bar Road cross-ing.