San Vicente Reservoir

San Vicente Reservoir
Phil Konstantin · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Name	San Vicente Reservoir
Location	San Diego County, California, United States
Type	Reservoir
Inflow	San Vicente Creek (San Diego County), Guajome Creek
Outflow	San Vicente Creek (San Diego County)
Catchment	69.4 sq mi
Area	1,400 acres
Max depth	250 ft
Volume	90,000 acre-feet (expanded 2014)
Elevation	600 ft
Coordinates	32°49′N 116°58′W

San Vicente Reservoir is a large water storage impoundment in San Diego County, California constructed to supply potable water and regulate streamflow for surrounding communities such as San Diego, California, Chula Vista, California, El Cajon, California, and La Mesa, California. The facility, owned and operated by the City of San Diego Public Utilities Department, sits within the Peninsular Ranges and is linked to regional systems including the Colorado River Aqueduct, the State Water Project, and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California infrastructure. The project has been the focus of civil engineering, environmental regulation, and recreational policy discussions involving agencies like the California Department of Water Resources, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the California Coastal Commission.

Infobox and Overview

The impoundment lies in the watershed of San Vicente Creek (San Diego County), northwest of Otay Mesa, adjacent to San Vicente Mountain and near communities such as Rancho San Diego and Santee, California. It functions as part of the San Diego County Water Authority network, interconnected with conveyance projects like the Second San Diego Aqueduct and storage facilities including Lake Hodges, Lower Otay Reservoir, and Cuyamaca Reservoir. The site is accessible from regional highways including Interstate 8, California State Route 125, and California State Route 52, and lies within jurisdictions including County of San Diego and the City of San Diego.

History and Construction

Initial planning dates to early 20th-century water development efforts by entities such as the City of San Diego and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California amid debates over sources like the Colorado River and the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta. The original dam, built in the 1940s by contractors working with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and municipal engineers, was a rolled-earth structure that created a reservoir whose operations tied into wartime and postwar growth in San Diego County. Later proposals for expansion involved consultants and firms experienced with projects like the Hoover Dam and the Oroville Dam, and required approvals under statutes such as the California Environmental Quality Act and reviews by regulators including the California Coastal Commission and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

In the 21st century, a major enlargement project—advocated by the City of San Diego Public Utilities Department and financed with bonds involving institutions like the Federal Emergency Management Agency and state financing agencies—raised the dam height to increase capacity. Contractors, engineering consultants, and construction management firms coordinated to implement techniques informed by cases like the Teton Dam failure studies and standards from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and American Society of Civil Engineers guidelines.

Reservoir and Dam Specifications

The enlarged storage increased gross capacity to roughly 90,000 acre-feet, comparable to reservoirs such as Lake Hodges (California) and smaller than reservoirs like Lake Perris or Castaic Lake. The dam is an earthfill/rockfill structure with a concrete intake and spillway controlled to meet downstream obligations to streams crossing properties owned by entities including the California Department of Transportation and local water districts. Instrumentation follows protocols recommended by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the National Inventory of Dams; monitoring includes seepage, settlement, and seismic performance relevant to the nearby Rose Canyon Fault and other Peninsular Ranges faults cataloged by the United States Geological Survey.

Hydraulic connections include pumped-storage or pumping facilities that tie into the Second San Diego Aqueduct and pumping stations similar to those at Turner Reservoir and regional lift stations used by the San Diego County Water Authority. The reservoir supports flood attenuation for downstream neighborhoods such as Bonita, California and National City, California.

Recreation and Public Use

Recreation at the reservoir has included boating, angling, and limited shoreline access under policies set by the City of San Diego and in coordination with county parks programs and agencies like the California Department of Parks and Recreation. Recreational planning referenced models from Lake Perris State Recreation Area and facilities at Lake Murray (San Diego) and required compliance with risk-management standards from entities like the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and local sheriff departments such as the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. Conflicts over public access involved stakeholders including National Audubon Society chapters, the Sierra Club, and municipal planners.

Angling species observed have included introduced gamefish similar to those stocked by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife programs at lakes like Lake Cuyamaca and Lakeside Recreation Area, with shorelines hosting trails and viewpoints used by outdoor groups such as the Backcountry Hunters & Anglers and regional hiking clubs.

Ecology and Environmental Impact

The reservoir inundated riparian habitat originally occupied by species documented in regional surveys by institutions like the San Diego Natural History Museum (the San Diego Society of Natural History) and researchers at University of California, San Diego. Environmental assessments addressed impacts on native fauna including coastal sage scrub assemblages, species of concern listed by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and consulted under the Endangered Species Act (federal) where applicable, and botanical communities monitored by the California Native Plant Society. Wetland mitigation and compensatory measures included habitat restoration projects similar to programs supported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's watershed initiatives and nonprofit partners like The Nature Conservancy.

Water quality management targeted issues seen in other Southern California reservoirs such as algal blooms and nutrient loading studied by the Water Research Foundation and academic groups from universities such as San Diego State University and University of California, Riverside.

Water Supply and Management

Operational management integrates the reservoir into regional supply portfolios alongside imports from the Colorado River, allocations from the State Water Project, and local groundwater basins like the San Diego County Groundwater Basin. Policies are coordinated with the San Diego County Water Authority and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and guided by planning documents similar to the California Water Plan. Drought planning, water transfer agreements, and emergency response drew on precedents from water-rights litigation involving entities such as the California State Water Resources Control Board and interagency coordination with the Federal Emergency Management Agency during extreme events. Adaptive management includes conjunctive-use strategies, conservation programs paralleling those of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, and infrastructure resilience initiatives funded through sources such as state bonds and federal grants administered by agencies like the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Category:Reservoirs in San Diego County, California