Stantec announces milestone in Friant-Kern Canal restoration project
Stantec, along with the Bureau of Reclamation and Friant Water Authority in Lindsay, California, has announced completion of the first phase of construction for a 10-mile section of the Friant-Kern Canal Middle Reach Capacity Correction Project. The canal, which delivers water to more than 1 million acres of highly productive farmland and 250,000 residents, is being restored after years of canal capacity loss due to land subsidence — a sinking of the earth from groundwater removal. The eastern San Joaquin Valley is part of California’s Central Valley, which produces about a quarter of the U.S. food supply. Stantec was selected as the engineer of record for the 33-mile, multiphase project in 2017. The $326 million phase-one portion of the project to replace 10 miles of canal began construction in late 2021. The Bureau of Reclamation owns the canal, while the Friant Water Authority operates and maintains it.