Council Lays Down Law on Water

Mandatory water conservation was ordered Tuesday in a major admission by Los Angeles officials that growth has overwhelmed the city’s sewer system, a situation that is also soon expected to force Los Angeles and some surrounding cities to impose temporary limits on new development.

All property owners will be required to install water-saving devices to reduce the flow of waste water through the city sewers under the law passed 12 to 0 Tuesday by the City Council. The law, which was signed immediately by Mayor Tom Bradley, provides that the devices be distributed free to every household in the city.

Also on Tuesday the City Council legally blessed an order by Bradley last week that further restricts water use by city residents because of drought conditions in the Sierra Nevada, the source of most of Los Angeles’ water.

Under the drought-fighting measure, all property owners in the city are required to fix leaky faucets and toilets and are forbidden to use water to hose off paved areas such as patios, sidewalks and driveways. The law, which was invoked in Los Angeles during the last major drought, in 1977-78, also forbids restaurants from serving water to diners except on demand and bans the use of fountains not plumbed to recycle the water.

Both water-saving measures, which passed without debate Tuesday, go into effect as soon as the city publishes the legal notification, perhaps as early as Thursday, the city attorney’s office said.

In practice, the more significant measure is the one designed to ease the strain on city sewers, thus protecting the waters of Santa Monica Bay and staving off possible legal action against the city.

Bradley first proposed the measure last December when he acknowledged reports by the city engineer and by environmental groups that the sewer system was dangerously near capacity. At the city’s current rate of growth, which has accelerated in the last two years, flows into the sewage treatment system are rising at a rate of 10 million gallons a day every year and would reach its practical capacity of 460 million gallons a day by 1992.

Critics have blamed Bradley and the City Council for allowing too much construction without first putting up the money to expand and modernize the sewer system. But Deputy Mayor Mike Gage deflected blame from his boss Tuesday, saying that Los Angeles voters rejected a 1976 bond issue that would have provided money to upgrade the sewers to handle a population in excess of 3 million.

The city finally agreed two years ago to undertake a $2.3-billion overhaul of the sewer system under pressure from the state and the federal Environmental Protection Agency, which sued the city in 1978 for dumping excessive sewage into Santa Monica Bay. But progress has been slow, and Bradley and the council felt forced to order mandatory water conservation to avert an embarrassing sewer system collapse.

Gage and council leaders acknowledged Tuesday that the action was also necessary to avert a lawsuit or other action by the EPA and environmental groups that might shut down all growth in the city because of the inadequate sewer system.

“This is a bitter pill to swallow, but we have to do it,” said Councilman Hal Bernson, chairman of the council Planning Committee.

The measure seeks to protect the sewer system by reducing the flow of liquid waste, which accounts for 90% of the flow in any urban sewer. Los Angeles currently pumps more than 400 million gallons a day of partially treated sewage effluent--essentially, mildly contaminated water--into Santa Monica Bay from its 35-year-old Hyperion treatment plant near Playa del Rey.

City sanitation officials say the effluent pumped into the sea is cleaner now than at any time in recent years. But the record level of raw sewage flowing into Hyperion could force plant operators to let the sewage flow through to the bay without adequate treatment. That in turn could lead to fines and other action against the city by the federal Environmental Protection Agency and state regulators.

Under the water-saving ordinance approved Tuesday, owners of commercial property--including apartments--will be required to have the installation of low-flow shower heads and toilet-tank displacement devices inspected and confirmed by Oct. 13. Violators will face a 10% surcharge on their water bills that would escalate with repeat violations.

Process in the Works

The checks may be performed by plumbers, home inspectors or other workers certified for that purpose by the city Department of Building and Safety. The department must first set up the certification process, which could take several weeks, officials said.

Free shower heads and toilet-tank devices will be distributed to all households in the city--again including apartments--by the Department of Water and Power. Although residents will not be charged, the devices will cost the DWP an estimated $4 million and officials said they will have to seek a rate increase to cover the cost and also recoup the revenue lost since most people will use--and buy--less water than normal.

Owners of single-family homes will not need to prove they have installed the devices until they sell the property or apply to the city for a building permit to remodel or expand.

The drought-inspired law works somewhat differently. That law will require all residents and businesses to immediately change their habits of water use. After two written warnings, violators would face having a valve that restricts flow to just above a trickle installed on their water line by the DWP.

Although of less application to residents, the most sweeping action requested by Bradley to protect the sewers is a temporary delay in the issuance of building permits by the city. If the law were in force today, it would force a 30% reduction in the pace of current development in Los Angeles, city officials said.

After tacking on more than a dozen amendments to Bradley’s proposal last week, the City Council on Tuesday exempted four major projects sponsored by Los Angeles County. The entire measure was sent to the city Planning Commission for a hearing this Thursday.

Gage said the Bradley Administration is confident that the measure will come back to the City Council next week for final approval.

As now written, the measure would allow the city to issue building permits that cause up to 5 million gallons a day of new sewage flow to be added in Los Angeles each year. An amendment by Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky reserved 65% of that allotment for home builders and other projects that add housing.

City Engineer Robert Horii estimates that another 1 million gallons a day of flow will be added each year in growth within the cities, such as Beverly Hills and Santa Monica, that use the Los Angeles sewer system. Those cities will also be ordered to cut back growth. Another 1 million gallons a day of added flow has been set aside to accommodate population growth in Los Angeles that occurs because of migration, not new development.

The 7 million gallons a day in new flow is all that can be accommodated, Horii said, until expansion is complete at a Van Nuys sewage treatment plant in mid-1991. The controls can be lifted once the plant is completed, or sooner if the water conservation measures succeed.

RESTRICTING WATER USE

Mandatory water restrictions will take effect in Los Angeles this week under two different city actions.

Mayor Tom Bradley signed an order Tuesday triggering provisions of a 1977 city ordinance designed to prevent water shortages that:

* Bans hosing of patios, sidewalks and driveways.

* Bans restaurants from serving water except on request.

* Requires all property owners to repair leaking faucets and toilets.

* Forbids decorative fountains that do not recycle water.

* Requests everyone in the city to voluntarily reduce water use by 10%.

The City Council gave final approval Tuesday to an ordinance, sought by Bradley, that imposes water conservation measures to reduce flow through Los Angeles sewers. The new ordinance was motivated by fears that the sewer system is reaching capacity. Originally conceived as a temporary measure, it was approved as a permanent city policy. Under the law:

* All businesses, apartments and homes must have toilets and showers fitted with water-saving devices by Oct. 13.

* Owners of commercial property, including apartments, must have a plumber, home inspector or other installer certified by the city Department of Building and Safety inspect the installation.

* Owners of single-family homes must prove compliance when selling homes or applying for permits to remodel.

* The DWP will spend about $4 million to provide free water-saving shower heads and a device that displaces a half-gallon of water in toilet tanks to all households.

* Board of Public Works will get authority to order stricter measures if sewer problems worsen.