Our speaker this month will be Mr. David Thomas, the Director of the Joint Federal Programs Office (JFPO) with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District. Mr. Thomas champions the collective partnership between the Corps and its mission stakeholders from the Bureau of Reclamation, the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency, the California Department of Water Resources, Central Valley Flood Protection Board and two U.S. Congressional members. Mr. Thomas’ mission covers program, project and construction management coupled with engineering design across three major projects valued at $1 billion.

The Folsom Joint Federal Project, consisting of a six-gated control structure, a 2100-foot spillway with a stilling basin, and an approach channel in the reservoir leading to the control structure, is one of the largest ongoing projects in the Corps. This project will improve the ability to manage large flood events by allowing more water to be safely released earlier in a storm event and leaving more storage capacity in the reservoir to hold back the peak inflow when it arrives. Mr. Thomas will present an overview of the project and address some of the project challenges.