2025 Coastal Smart Ball Inspection

The California Department of Water Resources, through its San Joaquin Field Division, plans to conduct a smart ball inspection of the State Water Project Coastal Branch pipeline between Devil’s Den Pumping Plant, Bluestone Pumping Plant, Polonio Pass Pumping Plant, and the Polonio Pass water treatment facility’s Water Tank 1. The inspection will involve inserting a smart ball at each pumping plant and retrieving it at designated downstream points—either at the forebay or air vent—before moving to the next segment. The work, scheduled to begin in September and last approximately one week, will occur entirely within the DWR right-of-way across Kern and San Luis Obispo counties, near Lost Hills and Shandon. Access to pipeline vaults along the route will be maintained via existing dirt roads, with vehicles restricted to established pathways to limit environmental disturbance. Minor modifications at insertion and retrieval points may be required, potentially involving crane operations to facilitate smart ball handling, and sensors will be installed in multiple vaults to enhance monitoring capabilities. All activities are classified as routine maintenance under exemptions from environmental review per Public Resources Code sections 21080(b)(1) and 15268, eliminating the need for formal environmental impact documentation. The project is being executed directly by DWR-Operations & Maintenance, with no external contractor involved. While the scope includes collecting internal pipeline integrity data through the smart ball’s onboard sensors and delivering a comprehensive inspection report, no specific technical standards, quality thresholds, or formal acceptance criteria are outlined. There is no stated contract value, pricing structure, or formal solicitation number, and no evaluation factors, award basis, or contractor certification requirements are defined because this is a government-operated maintenance effort. The only formal documentation provided consists of an exemption finding and notice, filed with the Office of Planning and Research in Sacramento, with no additional attachments, packaging instructions, invoicing details, or administrative data such as payment offices, COR/COTR assignments, or accounting codes publicly specified.