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SFPUC and Fire Department outline AWSS upgrades, supervisors press for clarity on West-Side coverage
Summary
PUC and Fire Department officials told the committee that the Auxiliary Water Supply System is being strengthened with bond-funded pipeline and pump work, but supervisors and public safety witnesses pressed for independent cost comparisons, district-level reliability details and raised concerns about a shift from a proposed flexible hose system to potable 'co-benefit' pipelines for West-Side coverage.
San Francisco's Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) and Fire Department gave the Government Audit and Oversight Committee an update March 15 on the city's Auxiliary Water Supply System (AWSS), detailing recent maintenance, capital upgrades and a shift away from a flexible water supply system toward a mix of pipeline extensions and potable "co-benefit" mains.
The hearing, led by Chair Jane Kim and sponsored by Supervisor Peskin, brought SFPUC project manager David Myerson and David Briggs alongside Assistant Deputy Chief Anthony Rivera of the San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD). Briggs said the PUC cleared sediment from seawater channels that feed AWSS pump stations and repaired leaks that now retain roughly 500,000 gallons in the system; Twin Peaks Reservoir now holds 10 million gallons and supports gravity-fed, high-pressure delivery crucial after major seismic events. "We're taking it on, finding the resources and scheduling difficult work," Briggs said of maintenance and upgrades.
Why it matters: AWSS supplies high-pressure water for firefighting when…
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