TID adopts mitigation plan to protect funding pipeline for dams and canals

TID adopts mitigation plan to protect funding pipeline for dams and canalsTurlock Irrigation District’s board has unanimously adopted its 2026 Local Hazard Mitigation Plan, a prerequisite for federal and state mitigation grants. The plan keeps major water-system resilience initiatives, including Turlock Lake dam rehabilitation and Upper Main Canal replacement planning, within an approved funding framework.

The board unanimously adopted the 2026 Local Hazard Mitigation Plan on 6 October after FEMA issued an "Approvable Pending Adoption" notification.

The plan is required to retain eligibility for FEMA hazard-mitigation funding and other government mitigation grants; it does not affect eligibility for post-disaster public-assistance funding.

TID identifies dam failure, drought, flooding, extreme rainfall, debris flows and aquatic invasive species among the hazards affecting its water infrastructure.

The plan carries forward Turlock Lake dam rehabilitation through 2031 and envisages construction of a replacement Upper Main Canal facility from 2030 to 2035.

A catastrophic Don Pedro Dam failure is assessed as unlikely, but TID estimates that more than $2 billion of District facilities and infrastructure would be exposed.

Turlock Irrigation District has unanimously adopted its 2026 Local Hazard Mitigation Plan, retaining a key route to federal and state funding for resilience work across its irrigation, storage and conveyance assets. The board approved the plan on 6 October after FEMA and the California Office of Emergency Services reviewed it under FEMA’s "Approvable Pending Adoption" process. The signed resolution will now be sent to FEMA and Cal OES for final approval. Jason Hicks, TID’s Manager of Security and Emergency Preparedness, told directors that the plan is particularly important because mitigation grants are contingent on maintaining an approved plan. While the District can still access post-disaster public-assistance funding without it, "all of our mitigation grants that we've received for various projects in civil and other ways is tied to the LHMP," he said. The plan updates the District’s previous mitigation plan, adopted in 2021, and has a five-year term. TID said it developed the document through public outreach and consultation with internal departments, partner agencies and ratepayers. Outreach included the Turlock Certified Farmers Market and Ceres National Night Out. For water infrastructure, the plan identifies dam failure, drought, flooding, localized extreme rainfall, debris flows and aquatic invasive species as material risks. TID’s system includes Don Pedro Reservoir, Turlock Lake, Dawson Reservoir, La Grange Diversion Dam and more than 250 miles of open canals, laterals and distribution turnouts. The plan retains a programme to rehabilitate and rebuild selected Turlock Lake dams. TID said the project’s mitigated negative declaration has been completed, while a Section 10 consultation with the US Fish and Wildlife Service and coordination with the California Division of Safety of Dams continue. The work is expected to continue through 2031. A separate Upper Main Canal resilience initiative is also progressing. TID is developing a hydraulic model to assess operational performance and capacity under normal and hazard conditions, identify vulnerabilities, evaluate replacement alternatives and update cost estimates. Subject to the results, the District plans to begin construction of a replacement facility in 2030, with work continuing through 2035. Other carried-forward water measures include expanded regulating-reservoir use and Total Channel Control systems to improve real-time flow management and reduce operational losses; additional infiltration galleries at Fox Grove on the Tuolumne River; and improved watershed forecasting using the Airborne Snow Observatory and Hydrocomp Forecast and Analysis Model. The plan also proposes new water-focused actions, including a boat-inspection and motor-flushing programme at Don Pedro Reservoir to prevent aquatic invasive species, canal-bank road-base improvements for storm access and erosion reduction, and formal staging areas outside dam-inundation zones. TID classifies Don Pedro Dam as an Extremely High Hazard Potential facility, while Turlock Lake’s Drop 1 is classified as High Hazard Potential. The plan assesses the probability of a catastrophic failure at TID-owned or controlled dams as unlikely, citing regulatory oversight, inspections and maintenance. Nevertheless, it estimates that a catastrophic Don Pedro failure would expose more than $2 billion of District facilities and infrastructure, including canals, pipelines, regulating reservoirs, pumping plants and hydroelectric assets. Drought is assessed as highly likely. The plan notes that reduced Tuolumne River inflows constrain storage at Don Pedro Reservoir and can require reduced irrigation deliveries. It also identifies sedimentation, algae growth and lower hydraulic efficiency in canals as operational consequences during dry conditions.