2004 NATIONAL EARTHQUAKE CONFERENCE

Award of Excellence Recipient

Award Category:  Mitigation

Program Name: Development and Implementation

of Seismic Design Policy

Contact: David Skoubye, Senior Engineer

Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake and Sandy

3430 E. Danish Rd.

Sandy UT 84093

Phone:  (801) 942-9630

Fax:      (801) 942-3674

Email:   skoubye@mwdsls.org

The Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake & Sandy (MWDSLS) is a non-profit special-service district supported by taxes and fees for water provided. The MWDSLS recognized its vulnerability to earthquake damage and interruption of the critical service it provides in 1997 and began developing a district-wide seismic policy to improve earthquake resistance of existing facilities, while ensuring that new facilities are built to performance-based standards. The program was initiated by the MWDSLS Board and project managed by David Skoubye, MWDSLS Senior Engineer and Contracts Manager.
 

The MWDSLS began by empanelling a seismic advisory board consisting of local engineers and scientists to work with the District's engineering staff on seismic policy matters, including appropriate performance levels for particular facilities. The District's principal water-treatment facility was particularly vulnerable, being within a few thousand feet of the Wasatch fault and of pre-1960s design. The District was the first of the many water districts serving the Salt Lake City area to develop and implement such a policy and has set an example for others to follow, which several have subsequently done. The MWDSLS presented its plan to the Utah Seismic Safety Commission in 2002, and received recognition for its landmark and precedent-setting policy.

The Organizing Committee of the 2004 National Earthquake Conference is doing business as the Western States Seismic Policy Council.