June 9, 2008
LADWP BEGINS COVERING THE IVANHOE RESERVOIR WITH SHADE BALLS
INNOVATIVE MEASURE TO ENSURE WATER QUALITY
LOS ANGELES (June 9, 2008) — The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) began covering the Ivanhoe Reservoir this morning with floating black plastic balls known as Shade Balls. At a brief ceremony, Los Angeles City Councilmember Tom LaBonge joined LADWP CEO & General Manager David Nahai and Department personnel on-site to toss the first Shade Balls into the reservoir. Thereafter, LADWP crews opened bales of the remaining 400,000 balls and released them en masse into the reservoir.
Said Mr. Nahai, “These balls will shade the water’s surface, helping to prevent a sunlight-triggered chemical reaction with the treated water, thereby ensuring its safety. Nothing tops water quality on our priority list. We are on the record with this priority and we will stop at nothing to ensure our water is safe.”
Shade Balls will cover the Ivanhoe Reservoir until the Headworks underground water storage project in Griffith Park is online, currently projected at approximately 5 years from now. “The most important thing is to provide safe, high-quality drinking water to all Angelenos. As a Silver Lake resident, I know some people might not like their views interrupted by the Shade Balls, but we’re confident that this is our best, most effective solution to the problem. We will return your unobstructed view of the beautiful water of Ivanhoe Reservoir as soon as possible,” said Councilmember LaBonge.
LADWP seeks to minimize the risk of bromate-forming chemical reactions, safeguard the quality of the potable water we store, and be in compliance with federal regulations that require us to cover the open-air Ivanhoe Reservoir, with the unique and simple application of 4-inch, hollow, shade-creating plastic balls known as Shade Balls. Shade Balls are a cost effective method of creating shade without elaborate construction, parts, labor or maintenance. LADWP is the first utility company to use Shade Balls to mitigate a water quality problem in drinking water.
Together with Silver Lake Reservoir, Ivanhoe Reservoir serves drinking water to approximately 600,000 LADWP consumers in Downtown, Central and South Los Angeles.
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Brooks Baker, LADWP Public Affairs
(213) 367-8722
e-mail: Brooks.Baker@ladwp.com
