San Diego County Water Authority history

Water from the Colorado River finally arrived in the San Vicente Reservoir in November 1947.

After Pipeline 2 was completed and began delivering water in 1954, the Water Authority constructed three more large-diameter pipelines, giving the region five major pipelines that extend from north to south throughout the county.

In 1959, SDCWA officials including Board Chairman, Fred A. Heilbron and General Counsel, William H. Jennings joined a statewide effort to pass the Burns-Porter Act.

1961 – Pipeline 3, a 72-inch diameter pipeline capable of delivering nearly three times the water as Pipeline 1, was completed in the Second San Diego Aqueduct.

1978 – The first water from Northern California was delivered to the San Diego region via the State Water Project’s California Aqueduct and MWD.

1989 – A $530 million Capital Improvement Program was adopted by the Water Authority, encompassing 10 major water infrastructure projects.

102 Relative to Water Awareness Month, signed by Senator Killea; map of SDCWA areas of responsibility in 1995 (in Oversize Collections F4 D1).

2003 – The Water Authority dedicated Olivenhain Dam, completing Phase One of the agency’s $1.5 billion Emergency Storage Project.

2011 – The 11-mile, 8.5-foot diameter San Vicente Pipeline Tunnel, a key component of the Emergency & Carryover Storage Project, was finished.

2014 – The San Vicente Dam Raise, the largest water storage increase in county history, was completed.

The Claude "Bud" Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant began commercial operation in 2015 and produces 50 MGD day of potable water.