OC O&M - Flood Control
- Channels
- Confined Space
- Dams
- Engineering
- Pump Stations
- Storm Drains
- Vegetation & Pest Control
CHANNELS
The County of Orange maintains 350 miles of concrete, rock lined and earthen flood
control facilities. Flood control facilities are designed to handle water flow from
storm drains and other runoff and "channel" the water into the bay or ocean. Operations
&, Maintenance conducts regular inspections and performs cleaning as needed. We
encourage the public to notify us when a channel or ditch is blocked or filled with
debris to help minimize the possibility of flooding and help improve water quality.
There are also numerous miles of privately owned and maintained channels and ditches
within the County.
CONFINED SPACE
The County of Orange Confined Space Team is responsible for physically entering
and inspecting all the underground county flood facilities, from 36" storm drain
pipes up to 14x14' concrete boxes. Confined space also inspects all the newly constructed
storm drain systems in new developed tracts throughout the un-incorporated area
within the County of Orange. We also have drain cleaning crews who clean and inventory
all the catch basins in County right of way once a year.
DAMS
Seven Oaks Dam is one of the largest earth and rock filled dams in the world. It
is as high as a fifty story building and ten football fields in length from side
to side. Situated between the north and south branches of the San Andreas fault,
the dam has been designed to withstand an earthquake of eight plus on the Richter
scale. Seven Oaks Dam is a zoned earth and rock fill dam with a maximum height of
550 feet above the existing streambed at the dam axis and 650 feet above the lowest
foundation bedrock contact. The dam crest is 40 feet wide, 2,760 feet long and has
a minimum crest elevation of 2610 feet NGVD.
ENGINEERING
The Engineering Support Section of the Operations and Maintenance Division provides
engineering services and support to the maintenance functions of the division. These
services include providing recommendations for maintaining and improving a variety
of Operations And Maintenance facilities including streets, sidewalks, and curbs
and gutters access ramps, sidewalk, channels and culverts, bridges, trails and park
facilities. The section is responsible for maintaining inventories of the pavement
condition using the OCPMS (Orange County Pavement Management System), the street
inventory (Road Index) and the sign inventory through the TCDI (Traffic Control
Device Inventory).
PUMP STATIONS
Flood control is provided by a system of levees, canals and pump stations. All stormwater
runoff is conveyed by gravity through a system of drainage lines and canals into
the suction bays of various pump stations then pumped to a higher elevation into
larger levees or the ocean. The pump station operators are responsible for the operation
and maintenance of 7 pump stations, 3 ultra violet / filtration systems and 4 urban
runoff diversions containing 46 pumps throughout the Orange County watershed area.
The primary goal of the group is to provide staffing for operations and maintenance
of all pumping equipment and associated machinery. All pumping equipment is driven
by either natural gas combustion engines with propane back-up or electric motor
drives. Some pump stations are now monitored using SCADA, which stands for Supervisory
Control and Data Acquisition. SCADA systems interface with District computers to
alert staff of operational problems. The technology saves time money by pinpointing
malfunctions and minimizing staff time to shut off general alarms for non-critical
situations. Soon, this state-of-the-art technology will be in place for all 14 pumping
locations.
STORM DRAINS
Flood control is provided by a system of levees, canals and pump stations. All stormwater
runoff is conveyed by gravity through a system of drainage lines and canals into
the suction bays of various pump stations then pumped to a higher elevation into
larger levees or the ocean. The pump station operators are responsible for the operation
and maintenance of 7 pump stations, 3 ultra violet / filtration systems and 4 urban
runoff diversions containing 46 pumps throughout the Orange County watershed area.
The primary goal of the group is to provide staffing for operations and maintenance
of all pumping equipment and associated machinery.
VEGETATION & PEST CONTROL
The County of Orange vegetation maintenance program includes pesticide applications
to manage, reduce, and control the growth of vegetation. The County uses an Integrated
Pest Management Program and Best Management Practices (BMP) that consider all alternatives
and methods available before proceeding with pesticide applications. When vegetation
control is deemed necessary, the County will determine whether the work should be
accomplished by hand crews, heavy equipment, pesticide applications, or a combination
of available resources.
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