Use of state-of-the-art systems for optimum water management

Moist Pacific air masses and effects from the Pacific 'high' can create a wide range of weather conditions in California. As a result, the annual runoff in California has ranged from 18 to 167 million dekameters during recent years. Such variability of the water supply makes it difficult for water agencies and public utilities to manage optimally their water resources.Pacific Gas and Electric Company, which owns and operates fifteen hydroelectric developments in northern and central California, uses many state-of-the-art methods and equipment to make the best possible use of the available water supply.The systems PG&E uses to manage its water resources and to comply with license and contract requirements include supervisory control and data acquisition systems, dam, canal, and penstock safety monitoring systems, power plant efficiency monitoring systems, the Hydroelectric Systems Scheduling Model, and Hydro-Thermal Optimization Model.