A generator failure causes chlorine to spill into creek
By Nathan R. Huff
Almost 1 million gallons of chlorinated water were released into Smith Creek Nov. 9, when a tree limb fell into PG&E lines, causing a power outage at the Rinconada water treatment plant.
According to the Santa Clara Valley Water District and the Department of Fish and Game, there is no public health threat.
Normally, the plant's backup generator immediately comes on, ensuring that intake valves close, stopping the flow of water into the facility. This time, something went wrong with the generator.
"We have the emergency generators checked every week," said Mike Di Marco, a water district spokesman. "We think a component of the controller burned out, but we got it going again."
The open intake valves, which take 20 minutes to close with electricity and 45 minutes without, allowed approximately 866,932 gallons of water to rush through the plant. The water quickly filled up the series of capturing ponds before splashing into Smith Creek. Smith Creek connects with Los Gatos Creek and the Guadalupe River, both of which are active fisheries.
However, according to Di Marco, the incident never posed a public health threat. Testing near the overflow site revealed a chlorine level lower than what the state considers unsafe.
Department of Fish and Game rangers joined the county fire department and the water district at the Rinconada facility to evaluate any potential public health threats.
Fish and Game wardens took chlorine readings where Smith Creek runs into Guadalupe River, did not return phone calls regarding the results.
The Rinconada water treatment plant serves the cities of Santa Clara, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, and the San Jose Water Co.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
