On October 1, Salt Lake City will shut down the main canal for the season. Once water stops running through our system, BCLC will begin on repairs before snow starts flying. These repairs mostly consists of minor concrete repairs that do not sit in private backyards. The fall season is a great time to take a look at the lines on your own property to see if there are cracks that can be sealed or roots that can be cleaned out. Remember, you are responsible for the maintenance of the system on your own property, while BCLC takes care of repairs on public easements. Please contact your district lead if you have any repair suggestions. Happy Fall!
Your Water Updates
July 2024
BCLC has been working with Salt Lake City, Millcreek, and numerous developers on some issues in our area. Some of you have seen little to no water in your ditches on and off throughout the month as these issues are remedied. District 2, in particular, has been affected by development along Highland Drive. Thank you for your patience!
There are approximately 10 consistent volunteers who work to keep water running for the 200+ members on BCLC. The more help we have, the more quickly we can take care of issues in your local lines. We would LOVE you to volunteer with the organization! This can look like learning your own district line and helping to solve problems as they arise, communicating with developers and city officials, leading member communications, helping with accounting, and/or being available for ditch maintenance and construction. If you can volunteer your time, please complete this form so we know what types of volunteerism you are interested in: Volunteer Interest Form
June 2024
After a fairly wet May, that brought lots of construction disruptions in several BCLC districts, we finally have water running consistently. As a reminder, you may not always have water in your ditch! There are just over 200 members of BCLC and if someone is pulling water up-line from you, your water may be low or gone. Please don’t contact your district representative immediately! Wait a couple of hours to see the water fluctuates back. Along with that, if you are pulling water, you are not the only member wanting to use the water! Please be respectful of your neighbors and only pull water for irrigation (not for your kids to play in). Each unit of water equates to 1 acre-foot per year. I like to think of it as being able to pull water for 1 hour each week of the season, as needed.
We have had lots of people contacting district representatives about water issues that can be easily fixed by going to your own ditch and checking for obvious blockages, or talking to your neighbors about checking their lines. Please attempt to handle the situation at your property on your own BEFORE reaching out to BCLC volunteers.
April 2024
Water has been moved into the main canal by Salt Lake City Corp. We will let the sediment run past and settle out before opening the gates to the BCLC Districts. In order to open the BCLC lines, it is important for each member to clear the debris (leaves, sticks, trash) from the lines and to check in with your neighbors to see if they have done the same. This will prevent flooding situations once the water is allowed down the lines. Though each District has a volunteer to check the lines throughout the season, it is much more efficient for individual members to take care of the lines in their immediate vicinity. Talk to your neighbors and ask about the line in their yard! The plan for 2024 is to open the District lines by May 1 (earlier if all lines are ready).
You are encouraged to attend the Annual Membership meeting on April 11, 2024, at 7:00pm, at Granite Library. This is were you can ask questions about your line, see how BCLC is using the assessments to maintain the system, and volunteer to help in your local district or with the BCLC Board. We are currently looking for volunteers at the Secretary position, people with construction experience (excavation, cement work, metal work), developer-relations, and City-government relations/representative. Please consider sharing your skills with the BCLC community to help you and everyone else get their water allotments on time and throughout the season!
September 2023
Sept 8 – We have received word from Salt Lake City that the canal water will be shut off for the season on September 30th. Please plan accordingly for your property. Once water is clear of your ditch, any off-season clean outs or repairs should be made on your property. Fall is the perfect time for this maintenance. Consider removing trees or roots that are impeding flow or beginning to damage pipes, clear ivy from around junction boxes, cover openings to prevent debris from building up, spend time sealing any cracks in the concrete or fixing holes/replacing pipe that have damage.
Join our Facebook group to share garden and water images, recipes, volunteer opportunities with BCLC, and generally connect with other water members in our organization. Click the Facebook icon at the bottom of the page!
August 2023
**Aug 31 Update** District 7’s main canal gate broke and is now awaiting repair by the Office of Public Utility. District 7 will be without water until this gate is fixed.
August has brought with it some low water times as you’ve probably noticed in your ditches. Luckily, we’ve also gotten some heavy rains! When storms are particularly heavy, we shut down the lines to prevent flooding.
Currently, we have 2 issues:
–District 2 has been working with developers to build and secure a new box that was damaged during construction work. Hopefully, you will see water running this week (assuming the new box and lines don’t show any leaks).
–District 6 was shut down on Aug 29 to allow a new pipe fitting to cure. Water will be turned back on in that district on the 30th or 31st.
July 2023
As the summer heat pushes higher, our water sources get slimmer. The canal ran pretty low for a couple of weeks in July, which is why you may have seen little to no water in your canal lines. We have been able to balance this out somewhat, but there are still other issues that have kept some of you from getting water regularly:
- One major and on-going issue is a home construction site that broke our main line from the canal into District 2. If you are in this district, you have not been getting your water and we are unsure how low it will take for the building company to repair the line.
- Another issue happened on 3900 S (affecting Districts 3, 4 and 5), where the road milling company broke through our line that runs under 3900. We stopped water for a couple of hours, but then were able to open it again since water was still able to stay in the line, even with the break. We expect to have to close this line once they are ready to make repairs, before paving the lane again. We do not have a timeline for this.
- Lastly, District 6 has had to shut down off-and-on due to a leak.
Hopefully, your gardens are growing nicely and you are starting to see some produce. Those sweet garden tomatoes are the best! If you are on Facebook and are a member of BCLC, ask to join the Big Cottonwood Lower Canal Facebook group. You can post pictures of your water systems, gardens, and see other member’s gardens and recipes.
June 2023
Hello BCLC water users. This year’s canal season has been going very well! We have been able to fix some fairly major pipe issues and continue to do so as issues arise. The good news is that because so many of you have already paid your 2023 assessment fees, we are able to pay to get these issues fixed quickly so that you all continue to receive water to your properties. If you still need to pay your 2023 assessment, please refer to this page on our website. The current pipe maintenance is happening on 1100 E. If your property sits on the Sierra-Cutler Line (District 3), you are not currently receiving water due to this maintenance, but water should be able to flow within the next week. Thanks for your help in keeping your water lines free from debris and water flowing to properties down line from you! If you have any issues to report, please email, call or text your district lead. Lead contacts can be found here.
Water is Coming…2023
Some of you may be seeing water in your ditch this week! Most Districts are performing FLUSH-OUTS to clear debris and assess for issues in the line. A flush out will only last a couple of hours before being turned back off. Once any issues are addresses, we will be able to keep water running. If you have any issues to report, please contact your District Water Deputy.
May 4, 2023
There is water flowing in the Main Canal, but there is a lot of “crud” flowing north. We are waiting to open our gates until the debris moves past our lines. We expect to start testing lines next week. This involves opening gates for a short amount of time to allow water to flow through the entire length, then closing the gate to assess for any leaks or failures. Once we know the water will flow without problems, we can open the gate for the season.
