Construction crews convert an open canal to buried pipeline while Oakley roadway is widened.
Contra Costa County, California, August 24, 2025
The Contra Costa Water District is advancing a major canal replacement program to convert roughly 20 miles of its main open canal into buried pipeline, part of a broader effort to reduce water loss, improve safety and boost drinking water quality. The work is tied to an Oakley road‑widening project that requires burying the canal under a new roadway; the district will reimburse the city $2.2 million for the pipe under the road. The program affects service for more than half a million residents, includes reservoir and reuse targets, and is linked to a senior engineering leadership recruitment.
The Contra Costa Water District (CCWD) has announced a $1 billion program to replace the district’s Main Canal and support ongoing growth across its service area. The plan centers on a 20-mile segment of the canal within a larger 48-mile system, with progress to date noted as replacing four miles and planning for the remaining 16 miles to reach the 20-mile replacement target. This work forms a centerpiece of the district’s 10-year capital-improvement program aimed at improving reliability, water quality, and resilience during emergencies.
CCWD serves roughly 560,000 customers across Contra Costa County, a region described as highly diverse in ethnicity, culture, and income. The service footprint spans both Central County cities—Martinez, Pleasant Hill, Concord, Clayton, Pacheco, Clyde, Port Costa, and portions of Walnut Creek—and East County communities including Pittsburg, Antioch, Oakley, Bay Point, and parts of Brentwood. The population growth in these areas has been among the fastest in the Bay Area, intensifying demand for reliable water supply, modern treatment, and resilient infrastructure.
At the organizational level, CCWD’s strategic leadership is being guided through a key recruitment for the Assistant General Manager, Engineering & Construction position, a role described as the District’s Chief Engineer. The successful candidate will oversee a team of 38 staff and help steer the Main Canal Replacement Program and other major capital projects in the 10-year CIP. The district is seeking an experienced water-industry professional with strong strategic, technical, and management skills. Applicants typically need a decade of relevant administrative experience in a municipality or special district, as well as five years of senior-level administrative leadership. A Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering is required, with California professional civil-engineer registration highly desirable and large-scale project management experience strongly preferred. The compensation package is capped at $305,240 DOQE and is backed by an attractive benefits program. Applications are invited online via the recruitment firm’s portal, with a closing date of Sunday, September 21, 2025.
The recruitment effort is led by TERI BLACK & COMPANY, LLC, which provides a detailed brochure online. Contact details are listed for recruitment staff, and the firm’s involvement underscores the district’s goal of aligning governance with high-caliber engineering leadership for major infrastructure upgrades. The authorities emphasize that this is a rare opportunity to guide the Main Canal Replacement Program and other capital projects within the next decade.
CCWD emphasizes a priority on maintaining water supply during disasters and emergencies, including fire and earthquake scenarios. The district notes that when PG&E outages occur, its storage tanks are emptied promptly to sustain service continuity. According to district leadership, water quality must be managed carefully, with the statement that “Water only stays sweet for six to seven days” in the absence of proper storage and treatment. The district relies on surface and stored water from regional sources, including Lake Shasta and the Los Vaqueros Reservoir, with Lake Shasta reported around 94% full and Los Vaqueros near 93% full at recent checkpoints. CCWD currently obtains water from the Central Valley Project via Lake Shasta, and it owns Los Vaqueros Reservoir for storage capacity. About half of CCWD’s customers receive treated water, while the other half rely on raw water services, reflecting the district’s diversified water-supply structure.
The district has outlined ongoing efforts to expand resilience and reliability, including the goal to increase recycled water use from its current 10% to 15% as part of integrated water-resource planning. CCWD’s approach also includes a focus on drought-related learning, with the district noting that it has effectively removed drought-era constraints on development but emphasizes ongoing water-quality and environmental safeguards. The organization highlights a history of adapting to growth while maintaining service standards and striving to minimize rate increases for customers.
CCWD representatives point to ongoing investments in infrastructure such as pipelines, treatment upgrades, and system-operations improvements as part of a comprehensive “Investments in infrastructure” framework. The district’s long-range planning includes collaboration with various associations and national partners to manage regulations that often stem from federal mandates. Within this planning framework, CCWD has highlighted the importance of sediment and habitat considerations, screening intakes to protect fish, and ensuring a robust water supply in the face of changing climate and demand patterns. The district notes it has a strong bond rating, which supports lower interest costs for financing capital projects.
In a parallel development, Oakley officials reached an agreement to bury a segment of the CCWD canal that lies beneath a key roadway to enable road-widening work. The corridor includes East Cypress Road in the eastern Oakley and Bethel Island areas. The design-and-construction agreement approved by the Oakley City Council will replace the canal at East Cypress with a buried pipeline, which is expected to improve water quality and resilience while allowing a broader roadway project to proceed. The undergrounding is described as a critical step to completing the roadway improvements and to benefiting both local residents and emergency personnel. The widening plan involves multiple stakeholders, including private developers, the county, and property owners, with the first phase constructing a 2,200-foot stretch of road just north of the existing roadway. The old road will remain as a frontage road during this initial phase.
CCWD has completed the majority of its canal-replacement work, with one segment remaining at East Cypress Road. Earlier phases tied to Cypress Grove, Emerson Ranch, Delaney Ranch, and Burroughs subdivisions were completed by 2019, forming a legacy of buried-pipeline efforts dating back to 2009 intended to improve water quality, reduce losses, and cut wildfire risks associated with above-ground canals. The project scope includes reimbursement to the city for underground pipe installation and the pipeline’s location under the roadway, estimated at approximately $2.2 million. Oakley’s roadway-extension plan contemplates a broader effort to reconstruct a fully rebuilt six-lane corridor with bike lanes, improved storm drainage, lighting, and landscaping, funded by traffic-impact-fee revenues from developers. Environmental review and feasibility analyses are underway for other widening options, including a potential Bethel Island Road extension to Delta Road, which could add roughly 1.5 miles of new linkage at an estimated cost near $20 million.
In sum, the Oakley collaboration reflects a broader trend in which canal infrastructure and road networks are increasingly integrated to support resilience, safety, and growth. The CCWD canal system, part of a larger effort to modernize water delivery and management, continues to be a central factor in both regional development and emergency readiness. The district’s ongoing capital program and the Oakley project illustrate a balancing act between expanding transportation capacity and maintaining high-quality water service for hundreds of thousands of residents.
The Main Canal Replacement is part of an ongoing capital program that has seen ecosystem and public safety benefits from moving to buried pipelines since 2009. The canal-replacement work has been described as a major cost center, with inflation and labor costs contributing to projected cost escalations from initial estimates. The district notes that a robust bond rating helps keep debt service costs lower, supporting stable financing for critical infrastructure upgrades. The CCWD’s budget and staffing levels underscore the scale of these efforts, with hundreds of employees and a substantial operating budget dedicated to infrastructure maintenance, water supply planning, and customer services. The Master Plan is publicly available and updated periodically, guiding long-range investments across the water system.
As the system grows to meet population and economic expansion, CCWD emphasizes maintaining a reliable supply while keeping rates as modest as feasible. The district also highlights its ongoing commitment to customer engagement and community partnerships, including educational initiatives, workforce development, and environmental stewardship as essential components of its overall strategy.
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Main Canal Replacement scope | ~20 miles of the canal replaced; 48-mile system total; $1 billion project; 4 miles replaced to date, 16 miles remaining to complete 20-mile replacement target. |
| Funding and financing | AAA bond rating cited; project financed through bonds and capital-improvement funding; rate impacts described as minimized with finance strategies. |
| Oakley canal burial and road widening | Buried pipeline beneath East Cypress Road; new 2,200-foot road segment; old road retained as frontage; CCWD reimbursed $2.2 million for underground work; Bethel Island Road extension planned later. |
| Water-supply status | Lake Shasta ~94% full; Los Vaqueros ~93% full; 10% recycled water currently, with a goal to reach 15% recycled use; drought constraints eased but ongoing planning remains essential. |
| Customer impact and costs | Average residential user cost around $3 per day; system cost per gallon ~1.3 cents per day; comparison to peer systems cited (e.g., EBMUD 2.0 cents per gallon). |
| Assistant General Manager, Engineering & Construction | Role oversees 38 staff; requires 10 years of administrative experience and 5 years of senior-level management; Civil engineering degree; CA P.E. desirable; salary up to $305,240 DOQE; closing Sept 21, 2025. |
| Regional scope | CCWD serves approximately 520,000–560,000 customers across Central and East Contra Costa County; service area includes Martinez, Pleasant Hill, Concord, Oakley, Pittsburg, and other communities. |
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