SAN DIEGO — CBS 8 is Working for You to investigate the Lake Hodges water supply, after receiving a huge response to our report on the release of more than 600 million gallons of water into the ocean.
Now, CBS 8 has learned, the city of San Diego has lost its access to Lake Hodges water, due to a state order by the Division of Safety of Dams (DSOD), which effectively shut down a pipeline operated by the San Diego County Water Authority.
The city of San Diego is under a state order to keep Lake Hodges water levels low at an elevation of 280 feet. The state's condition assessment for Hodges dam is listed as "unsatisfactory," the lowest possible condition assessment given by the DSOD. The agency defines unsatisfactory as a "safety deficiency" that requires "immediate or emergency remedial action for problem resolution."
In February of this year, after the water level on Lake Hodges was lowered to an elevation of 280 feet, the city published a Lake Hodges FAQ info sheet that said, "There is not an imminent threat of failure of Hodges Dam."
Neighbor Michael Citrin was not happy to learn that, since January, the city of San Diego has released 619 million gallons of water from Lake Hodges, and there is no end in sight as another storm is on its way next week.
“It's a shame that we're losing the water and that the loss, I think, is probably tied up with bureaucracy,” said Citrin, who lives near the lake.
He was one of several viewers who emailed CBS 8, wanting to know why the water can't be pumped to other reservoirs instead of being dumped in the ocean.
It all comes back to low-water order by the Division of Safety of Dams.
“During the winter months when the rains come in, and we typically receive a lot of runoff, that's when there's usually the lowest water demand. And so, the water needs to be released from Hodges Reservoir to maintain those safety levels,” said Drew Kleis, an assistant director with San Diego’s Public Utilities Department.
The city owns Hodges dam and is in charge of maintenance. Other water districts with water rights to Lake Hodges also pay the city to maintain the dam.
City officials argue the dam needs to be replaced because it’s old. “Hodges Reservoir has been in our portfolio of reservoirs and dams for over 100 years it was actually constructed in 1918. So, it's over 100 years old,” said Kleis.
But if you speak with other district officials, who have water rights to Lake Hodges, they’ll tell you the city of San Diego did not maintain the dam properly for decades. “Had there been increased maintenance of the dam it would have extended the life of the dam,” said Seth Gates, an administrative director with the Santa Fe Irrigation District.
Moreover, Gates said the state order to keep the water level low on Lake Hodges forces his district to purchase more expensive, imported water resulting higher water bills for customers. “There are customers that are seeing roughly a 35 percent increase in their bills,” Gates said during an interview in August.
Both the Santa Fe Irrigation District and the San Dieguito Water District share a pipeline from Lake Hodges, which sends water to their relatively small, San Dieguito Reservoir to the west.
For decades, the city of San Diego had no way of piping water out of Lake Hodges. Then in 2012, the San Diego County Water Authority opened a $208 million hydroelectric plant on the shore of Lake Hodges.
Construction of the plant, called the Lake Hodges Pumped Storage Facilities, allowed water from Lake Hodges to be pumped up to Olivenhain Reservoir through a 10-foot diameter, 1.25-mile pipeline. The water could then be transferred to the city of San Diego's water system with the help of the County Water Authority. The transfer of Lake Hodges water into the city’s system was mainly intended for use during water emergencies or droughts.
Because of the state’s February 2023 order to lower Lake Hodge’s water level to 280 feet, the pipeline to Olivenhain Reservoir had to be shut down due to the level of the intake pipe. As a result, the city of San Diego no longer has access to water from Lake Hodges until the dam is replaced and the state order is lifted.
The city said it could take a decade to build a new dam.
Additionally, because of the state order, the Water Authority’s hydroelectric plant had to be shut down, as well. The agency estimated it will lose $3 million dollars per year for the next decade, as a result of the Lake Hodges hydroelectric plant being shut down.
“There are only two straws and the lake, is what we say. One is (Santa Fe’s), that we actually pull water out and treat it at our plant and distribute it both to our district and San Dieguito Water District,” said Gates.
“The other straw in the lake is actually through the County Water Authority. Their system has to have the lake level basically at 290 feet to be able to pull water out through that system. And the Division of Safety of Dams says you have to keep it at 280 feet. So, it is 10 feet too low to be able to use that outlet to be able to move water anywhere else,” Gates continued.
Citrin, the Lake Hodges neighbor, said he had a message for the city. “Please serve your constituents. We all think this water loss is a darn shame. Manage the dam repairs! Pun intended,” he said.
The city of San Diego emailed CBS 8 the following statement:
"Our number one priority in the operation of Hodges Dam is public safety. The City of San Diego is committed to protecting public safety to the fullest extent possible by maintaining the water level at a safe elevation in accordance with our state regulator, the State Division of Safety of Dams.
Solving for our water supply and water capacity issues requires long-term planning, and a significant investment in resources, and this is not a situation that is unique to the City or the County of San Diego. Water agencies across California face similar challenges in terms of water storage and reliability.
But there are solutions in the works. The City is currently in the process of completing a design study for the demolition and replacement of the existing Hodges Dam with a new, roller-compacted concrete dam located downstream of the existing dam. The design study is intended to be the basis for the full design of the new dam. In coordination with our state regulators, we are continuing to look for ways to shorten the schedule and get a new dam constructed as quickly and safely as possible."
EDITOR'S NOTE: This article has been updated to include additional information related to the DSOD water elevation restriction.
WATCH RELATED: City of San Diego releases 600 million gallons of water from Lake Hodges.