As Bay Area residents struggle to save water during a historic drought, the region’s water providers have been losing about 23 billion gallons a year, a new analysis of state records reveals.
Aging and broken pipes, usually underground and out of sight, have leaked enough water annually to submerge the whole of Manhattan by 5 feet — enough to meet the needs of 71,000 families for an entire year.
Bay Area water agencies have lost from 3 to 16 percent of their treated water, according to this newspaper’s analysis of the latest reports on water that disappears before the meter. The figures are especially irritating for residents who are being forced to cut up to 20 percent of their water use and contend with the first-ever statewide restrictions on outdoor watering.
Los Angeles officials announced Monday they are beefing up their water-wasting patrols. But just don’t call them “water cops.”
Until now, the Department of Water and Power has assigned just one inspector to drive around handling complaints of water wasting in a city of 4 million people.
The DWP said Monday it now has four water-wasting inspectors, but officials emphasized that their job will be more educational than enforcement. From January through June, the unit received 1,400 reports of violations and handed out 863 warnings letters. But so far, no one has been fined.