CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – Rivanna Water & Sewer will be conducting a controlled blast on Foxhaven Farm property just north of Reservoir Road sometime between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Friday.

The blast is intended to make room for a new 36-inch raw water line which will the Ragged Mountain and South Fork Rivanna reservoirs.

The process will involve drilling into rock and setting small charges. Heavy mats will also be laid across the surface to prevent loose debris from leaving the site.

A localized siren will go off prior to each blast. The blasts may generate up a sound level up to 120 decibels and cause minor localized ground vibrations.

The work will also necessitate some temporary closures of some of the recreational trails near the blast area.

The RWSA said in its release that water line project is “a critical component of the Community Water Supply Plan.” The project aims to replace two aging 18-inch water pipes, which are anywhere from 70 to over 100 years old, with a single 36-inch pipe.

RWSA spokesman Westley Kern told Cville Right Now the overall project connects Ragged Mountain, the larger reservoir that stores some 1.5 billion gallons of water, with the South Fork Rivanna, which holds just over half of that amount, but has a huge 259 square-mile watershed, larger than Ragged Mountain’s. The projects aims to join the capacities of both with the greater watershed.