While pipe leaks and main breaks are not always avoidable, as the utility’s principal engineer, it’s Hayes’ job to make sure they are not a common occurrence.
With Los Angeles officials perplexed by a recent rash of high-profile water main breaks — including one that caused a sinkhole so big it almost swallowed a fire engine — Glendale Water & Power officials say they are confident in their own pipe infrastructure. Since 1996, the city has spent more than $17 million on pipe replacement and maintenance programs.
The programs appear to be paying off. Last year, the city experienced 12 main breaks and leaks, far below the city’s goal of fewer than 38 incidents.
“I’d love to see that number be zero, but it’s a matter of risk,” Hayes said. “You can’t completely eliminate the risk.”
THE L.A. PROBLEM
Hayes was quick to point out that in a water system as large as Los Angeles’, a high number of leaks and breaks are unavoidable.
While Glendale Water & Power manages about 400 miles of drinking-water pipes, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power oversees 7,200 miles of pipe.
“I don’t envy the management of all that,” Hayes said.
At a recent Los Angeles Department of Water and Power Commission meeting, Jim McDaniel, senior assistant general manager of the water system, said that on average the utility sees about four leaks or main breaks per day, or an average of 1,400 leaks per year.
But McDaniel acknowledged that the city has seen an increased number of “blowouts,” major main breaks that often cause significant damage to the street and flooding of houses and businesses nearby.
