from the
Power Office

Major Equipment Upgrades in Curecanti

By Larry Lingerfelt, Curecanti Field Division Manager and Eric Langley, Blue Mesa Powerplant Supervisor II

The Curecanti Field Division is nearing the end of a multi-year, multi-million-dollar contract to upgrade and modernize its powerplants. In 2016 Toshiba America Energy Systems was awarded a contract to install new excitation systems at Crystal, Morrow Point, and Blue Mesa and a complete rehab of both generators at Blue Mesa.

Toshiba started with exciter replacement at Crystal in early 2017. The exciter creates the electromagnetic field in the rotor of a generator; without the electromagnetic field the generator would not produce any electricity. After completion of Crystal, Toshiba moved on to Morrow Point and completed exciter replacement in April 2018. After completion of Morrow Point, Toshiba started building the first new stator for Blue Mesa.

Starting in July 2019, Blue Mesa Unit 1 generator was taken off-line for a major rehabilitation. The rehabilitation required the generator to be completely disassembled; to include removal of rotor, removal and replacement of stator, and various ancillary equipment, a tremendous amount of work. As is common with most contracts of this scope, unforeseen things come up that delay work, this contract was not an exception, but due to the diligence of an excellent team comprised of Curecanti personnel, the Upper Colorado Region Power Office and the outstanding support from Lisa Hilton and her Acquisitions Team working with the contractor the delays were minimized as much as possible.

Even with an excellent team, as we've all experienced in 2020, we could not avoid the impact of COVID-19. Blue Mesa Unit 1 was within a few weeks of completion when the pandemic struck requiring us to stop all contractor work and enter "Protect the Pilot" mode of operations. After a four-month delay, while we worked out how to adjust to a "new normal", Toshiba was finally allowed to return to work on August 5.

Toshiba picked up where they left off in March and completed the work and commissioning of Blue Mesa Unit 1 on September 25, 2020. On October 19, 2020 Toshiba will start work on the second and final generator at Blue Mesa with a projected completion date of April 2021.

Upon completion Blue Mesa, Morrow Point, and Crystal powerplants will be positioned to provide reliable service for the next 15-25 years.

Blue Mesa, Morrow Point and Crystal power plant and dams are part of Reclamation's Wayne N. Aspinall Unit of the Colorado River Storage Project, which retains the waters of the Colorado River and its tributaries for agricultural and municipal use. The project furnishes the long-term regulatory storage needed to permit States in the upper basin to develop their share of Colorado River water and still meet their flow obligation at Lees Ferry, Arizona, as defined in the Colorado River Compact.

from the
Provo Area Office

East Bay Retention Pond Parking Rehabilitation Project

By Deborah Hilton, Administrative Officer

In August 2020 construction began on the East Bay Retention Pond Parking Rehabilitation Project. The front parking area was partially funded through a Department of Transportation grant for improvements to lands accessed by the public. The public uses this parking area to access the East Bay Retention Pond for day use activities such as fishing, observing waterfowl, picnicking, and other day-use recreation activities as well as to access the new Lakeview Parkway Trail.

The Provo Area Office building and parking area were constructed on reclaimed land over a former city landfill which added unique challenges. Since construction of the building and parking area in the 80s, the subbase has shifted, causing the surface of the asphalt cement concrete to sink in places. This created low and high spots in the parking area surface resulting in ponding as the water was unable to drain to the catch basins. Because of improper storm water drainage, water from melting snow and ice was trapped and froze in the low areas creating dangerous conditions for pedestrians and vehicles. This project was needed to create safe conditions for recreators, employees, and visitors.

The contractor has completed the major components of the back-parking area and is currently working on the front-parking area and pavilion. Estimated date of completion (substantially complete) December 2020.

from the
Western Colorado Area Office

Western Colorado Area Office roundup

By Matt Byner, Civil Engineer and Justyn Liff, Western Colorado Area Public Affairs

Paonia Dam Modifications

The second phase of the Paonia Dam Outlet Works Modification Project is about to begin. Work to be accomplished this year will begin with the placement of a bulkhead over the intake. The diving barge had to be placed in July before reservoir levels dropped to the point the boat ramp could no longer be used. A dive team is scheduled to arrive at the end of September and will be working from the diving barge placing the bulkhead in October.

Once the bulkhead is placed there is no outlet for the reservoir water until the water level reaches the emergency spillway. The water level will continue to slowly rise throughout the winter months. During this time the contractor, Gracon LLC, will be racing against the rising water to complete emergency and regulating gate rehabilitation and install a new air relief system in the inlet tunnel. This work must be accomplished before water begins to flow down the emergency spillway as the only access large enough to move the new components into the dam gate chamber is through the outlet tunnel at the bottom of the emergency spillway. Historically the reservoir level will reach the emergency spillway somewhere between March and May. Gracon's construction schedule shows outlet tunnel access work to be finished by March. 

Work completed last winter – Phase 1 – included removal of the outlet tunnel cover, removal and replacement the concrete invert immediately in front of the outlet gates in the outlet tunnel and disassembly and survey of the emergency and regulating gates that will be updated in Phase 2. The outlet tunnel cover had to be replaced and access scaffolding removed prior to water flowing down the emergency spillway.

Volunteers Build Bird Boxes

The Western Colorado Area Office was thrilled to be approached by RiversEdge West and Xcel Energy to be part of "Xcel Energy's Day of Service". Sept. 17, about 12 volunteers from Xcel and employees from RiversEdge West and the Western Colorado Area Office met at the Grand Junction Wildlife Area located in Grand Junction, Colorado to build wood duck and owl nesting boxes. The boxes will provide a safe place for the birds to build their nests that is protected from the elements and predators.

The Western Colorado Area Office provided the materials, and employees Cory Lidberg and Kyle Alstatt prepared for the event by cutting out all the needed pieces, organizing tools and personal protective equipment, setting up the site and demonstrating box construction. Participants social distanced outside and wore face masks when near each other. A total of 14 new wood duck and owl nesting boxes were completed.

RiversEdge West is a non-profit organization that works to restore rivers and improve riparian habitat across the Southwest. More information can be found at riversedgewest.org. "Xcel Energy's Day of Service" began in Colorado in 2010 to honor the anniversary of Sept 11. It is the company's way of thanking individuals and organizations serving our communities and country.

from the
Four Corners Construction Office

Cutter Lateral Being Prepared for Water Delivery

By David Stoliker, P.E., Design Group Chief

Construction of the Cutter Lateral Water Treatment Plant is nearing completion and testing of the plant and entire Cutter Lateral system has begun. A team of professionals from the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, Navajo Nation Department of Water Resources, New Mexico Environment Department, Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency, Navajo Engineering and Construction Authority, private consultants (Jacobs, Woods and Souder Miller & Associates), and the Bureau of Reclamation are holding daily meetings to coordinate every detail needed to ensure that all systems are ready to start producing and delivering good, clean drinking water. Some actions being discussed include:

1. Flush/clean and disinfect all pipelines and water storage tanks – Flushing is done by pushing water through a pipeline at a high flow rate so that the water cleans out any last bits of dirt and debris releasing it through “blow-offs” valves along the pipeline. Then the pipelines and tanks are disinfected with water containing chlorine (similar to household bleach but approved for disinfecting drinking water) to kill all the viruses and bacteria that might be present. Bacterial testing follows to prove to the regulatory agencies that the system is disinfected and ready to transport potable water.




2. Coordinate the systematic introduction of water to the six distribution systems sequentially – NTUA will be starting the introduction of the new treated water to each distribution system in order of its location on the transmission pipeline (i.e., Carson/Huerfano, Dzilth-Na-ODith- Hle, Nageezi, Ojo Encino North, Torreon/Ojo Encino, and Whitehorse Lake). NTUA expects to start this process in mid-October and each system could take up to one month to complete. Given six distribution systems, it could take up to six months to introduce the new water to all the distribution systems on the Cutter Lateral.




3. Inform the public – NTUA is working on public radio announcements, brochures and other informational methods to inform the public of what to expect. In addition, Reclamation plans to conduct a social media campaign to provide updates on the testing and commissioning process.

Commissioner Burman's Message on New Logo

The Bureau of Reclamation is modernizing our visual identity, including the logo, as part of a proactive effort to better articulate the important work we do. The new visual identity and logo improves accessibility, is more suitable for digital communications, and can be more uniquely and directly associated with Reclamation.