Why this matters
The San Dieguito Dam created the San Dieguito Reservoir, which serves as a regulating reservoir when receiving water from Lake Hodges.
Repairs on a century-old dam with a suspected leak located downstream from Lake Hodges are underway.
The repairs to the San Dieguito dam are projected to cost $650,000, Marissa Potter, the Santa Fe Irrigation District’s engineering manager, said at a September district meeting.
The dam was built in 1918, forming the San Dieguito Reservoir, which serves as a regulating reservoir when receiving water from Lake Hodges, according to the irrigation district’s website. Given its old age, the dam has regular checkups, according to the agency’s spokesperson Teresa Penunuri.
The Department of Safety of Dams discovered a potential leak in the dam during a maintenance check last year. Officials isolated the area and created a temporary dam made of rebar and tarps to pull the water away from the dam so repairs can be made.
The irrigation district has recommended that the leak in the dam be filled with concrete. The district is currently awaiting approval from the Department of Safety of Dams, which is expected in coming weeks, and then Penunuri estimated it would take two months to complete the repairs.
From the Documenters
This story came in part from notes taken by Maya Flores, a San Diego Documenter, at a San Dieguito Water District meeting earlier this month. The Documenters program, run by inewsource, trains and pays community members to document what happens at public meetings. Read more about the program here.
Type of Content
News: Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
