Minimizing utility risks

The utility’s $28.5-million Smart Grid project, to include the installation of more than 100,000 advanced water and electric meters, will help the utility spot leaks early using a series of microphones. Leaks create a distinct sound, alerting engineers to the pending danger. Still, the city’s oldest pipes are the target of nine replacement projects estimated to cost $15.6 million in the next 10 years. Another three pipe cleaning and lining projects are estimated to cost $13.2 million within the same period.

Utility officials cited the unpopular rate increase approved by the City Council in 2007 as a key funding source for the pipe maintenance programs.

“I thought that was difficult but a good decision from them,” said Peter Kavounas, assistant general manager for water services.

The pipes being completely replaced are 4 inches in diameter, a size common in the early 20th century that is no longer big enough for fire flow requirements.

The pipe maintenance projects are for pipes with a 6-inch diameter or larger that are still structurally sound, Hayes said.

Rather than completely replace the pipes, workers can clean them out and line them with cement mortar, which prevents the build-up of deposits.

All new pipes are installed already lined so they last much longer than older pipes, officials said.

Lining projects add another 70 years to the pipe’s life, Hayes said.

The cost of keeping up with the aging system, while totaling tens of millions of dollars, is much less expensive in the long run when compared to repairing damage caused by major water main breaks, officials said.

“Of course, you can’t proactively maintain everything,” Kavounas said. “The real art in managing the public’s money is determining how much maintenance should we be doing in advance so we prevent and avoid those major issues?”

A major 10-day road reconstruction project along Grandview Avenue in north Glendale serves as a reminder. The damage to that area was caused by a massive water main break last year.

By the end of the next decade, Glendale Water & Power expects to have replaced or refurbished the oldest pipes, but Hayes said there is always more work to be done.

“It’s kind of like painting the Golden Gate Bridge,” he said.

 MELANIE HICKEN covers City Hall. She may be reached at (818) 637-3235 or by e-mail at melanie.hicken@latimes.com.