Water Services

The topography of Tuolumne County varies greatly from gently rolling terrain at the lower elevations, to steep hilly uplands deeply traversed by streams and tributaries that drain south to the Tuolumne River or north to the Stanislaus River. The majority of TUD customers reside in or near the community of Sonora which is at about elevation 2,000 feet. TUD also serves customers in several communities to the east up to about elevation 6,000 feet in the Sierras and west of Jamestown at an elevation of less than 1,500 feet. Through its history, the water system, which is now operated by TUD, has changed from a utility serving mainly gold rush mining operations to one that serves the 21st century vibrant and diverse residential, commercial and industrial sectors of Tuolumne County.

TUD has a contract with PG&E which provides for perpetual water supply for TUD from the South Fork Stanislaus River. This water is stored in Pinecrest Lake, Lyons Reservoir, Phoenix Lake and other small reservoirs on the TUD ditch system. PG&E owns Lyons Reservoir and the 15.7-mile Main Canal that leads to its Phoenix powerhouse. From the Main Canal, TUD’s water splits into three branches – one serves Twain Harte, Soulsbyville and Tuolumne; and another feeds TUD’s network of ditches, pipelines and treatment plants that serve Crystal Falls, Big Hill and Columbia. The remainder goes into Phoenix Reservoir to serve Phoenix Lake, East Sonora, Sonora and Jamestown.

• Water Connections – 14,105 homes and businesses
• Delivered 1.4 billion gallons of treated drinking water in 2016
• Operates 14 Surface Water Treatment Plants
• 78 Treated Water Storage Tanks
• 71 miles of ditch system, some of it originally built in the 1850s
• Maintains 330 miles of treated water pipeline