Get to know your treatment plant
The Rinconada Water Treatment Plant in Los Gatos is the oldest of the Santa Clara Valley Water District’s three treatment plants and has served Santa Clara County since 1968. Inside this facility are plant and raw water operators, maintenance mechanics, electricians and many others working as much as 24 hours a day, seven days a week to ensure clean, safe drinking water.
As the second-largest of the district's plants, Rinconada can treat and deliver up to 80 million gallons of water each day for retailers who supply residential and commercial users in the west valley, including the cities of Santa Clara, Campbell, Sunnyvale, Cupertino, Mountain View and Los Altos and the towns of Los Gatos and Los Altos Hills.
Water source
Rinconada draws water from the South Bay Aqueduct (SBA) and the San Luis Reservoir. The San Luis Reservoir is a key component of the federal Central Valley Project while the SBA is a key component of the State Water Project system. Water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta pumps into the Delta-Mendota Canal and then into the San Luis Reservoir. The water district is one of many users that draw water from this reservoir. The water district's local Anderson and Calero reservoirs can also supply the plant.
What's happening at your plant
Rinconada has a number of major construction projects taking place designed to extend the life of the plant by repairing, replacing and upgrading the existing facilities. They include the Chemical Systems Upgrade, Elevator and Alarm, Primary Electrical System, Valve Replacement and Clarifier Rehabilitation projects.
These projects continue the water district's commitment to make the treatment plant more reliable. Completed projects include upgrades to the plant's internal water supply system in 2004 and upgrades to the treated water storage reservoir in 2005.
A plan to upgrade the plant to an ozone treatment process has been deferred to allow for a re-evaluation of the type of upgrades that are most appropriate for Rinconada. Besides ozone disinfection, which has been a major part of the project, another disinfection process may prove to be a better fit for the plant.
Contact information
If you have any questions or concerns about the Rinconada Water Treatment Plant, please contact Neighborhood Liaison Tony Mercado at (408) 265-2607, ext. 2342 or by e-mail at tmercado@valleywater.org.
If an urgent problem arises after regular business hours, please call the on-duty plant supervisor at (408) 265-2607, ext. 2121.
The Santa Clara Valley Water District is committed to providing a healthy, clean, reliable and affordable water supply that meets or exceeds all applicable water quality regulatory standards in a cost-effective manner.