DWP Should Act Quickly to Construct Filter Plant

Should a modern filtration plant be built promptly at the Encino Reservoir? The answer is yes if you want safe, clean drinking water.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power has decided to build a filtration plant, ideally on approximately five to nine acres near the reservoir.

Unfortunately, a few individuals and some groups would like to see federal and state water standards gutted even though public health is at stake. Here are some facts about drinking water provided by the DWP:

Studies show that the Los Angeles water supply carries algae blooms, crustacea as well as bacteria including enterobacter cloacae, cryptosporidium, Mycobacterium avium and the giardia parasite. According to the U.S. General Accounting Office, consumers are at risk when they buy home treatment water filtration systems. Because home filtration systems are generally not well-maintained, they do not remove all harmful viruses and bacteria.

For several years, the DWP has been under a mandate to improve the water quality from the Lake Encino reservoir. Perhaps 15% of Valley residents receive their water from this storage system. They need to be assured that the water meets at least minimum EPA and state standards.

Water comes from Northern California through an aqueduct, arriving at a filtration plant in Sylmar. There it is purified and made sparkling clear. At this point it meets federal and state standards. From Sylmar it flows into the Encino reservoir before being delivered, after chlorination, to households in the Valley south of Roscoe Boulevard roughly between De Soto and White Oak avenues.

The reservoir serves many functions. It stores water to even out peak demand loads. It provides water in case of earthquake or other emergency. It allows the DWP to buy cheap water from the Metropolitan Water District in the winter to balance the higher cost in the summer.

But there is a problem. The water in the reservoir becomes polluted with algae, animal droppings and hillside runoff.

State regulations now require that drinking water be filtered before being delivered to residents. Since the DWP did not meet the new state drinking water standards by June, it must periodically inform all Los Angeles residents of this fact. Further, the city could be subjected to millions of dollars in EPA fines.

The city last month agreed to build the Encino plant, by 2003, and two others. A public hearing on the agreement will be held Wednesday evening in DWP headquarters. I intend to argue for an earlier completion date.

A remaining issue is where to put it. Some sites under consideration are feasible from an economic and engineering standpoint, but others are not.

Here are sites being considered:

* The Sylmar plant, which could be expanded. This should be rejected out of hand as costly and infeasible. It would require tearing up 10 miles of Valley streets to install huge pipes, at least 60 inches in diameter. It would also mean costly pumping of water uphill to Sylmar from the reservoir.

* The northeast corner of Ventura Boulevard and Hayvenhurst Avenue. It should be rejected because it involves purchasing land not now owned by DWP for millions of dollars and tearing up Ventura Boulevard. It would be costly and disruptive. Many homes abut the site.

* The Orange Grove site at the foot of the dam. It is too close to residences. Otherwise, it would be feasible, not requiring pumping water uphill or buying land.

* Two isolated sites on the reservoir property known as Dikes 2 and 3--the best options. Either would be excellent.

They face opposition from those arguing that construction would disturb the habitat of Canada geese and deer. When matters of public health are concerned, the objections of environmental extremists should take second place to human needs.

The fact that Canada geese may use the reservoir as a resting place should not preclude any site, since the reservoir will still be there for them. Judicious construction practices and care for the environment can enable a plant to be built without damage to the local biota.

City and state officials are under pressure from a few people to stall the project. But instead of delay, what’s needed is prompt implementation of the health law.