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posted by cmn32480 on Thursday August 13 2015, @06:18AM   Printer-friendly
from the how-many-balls-are-too-many dept.

This story seems to almost be out of science fiction (or The Prisoner) but the pictures don't lie. The water people in Los Angeles are so desperate to save what water is left in some reservoirs that they are essentially putting a roof on it by filling the lakes with black plastic balls:

Facing a long-term water crisis, officials concerned with preserving a reservoir in Los Angeles hatched a plan: They would combat four years of drought with 96 million plastic balls.

On Monday, Mayor Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles arrived at the 175-acre Los Angeles Reservoir to release the final installment of the project: 20,000 small black orbs that would float atop the water. [...]

Mr. Garcetti said that the dark balls would help block sunlight and UV rays that promote algae growth, which would help keep the city's drinking water safe. Officials also said the balls would help slow the rate of evaporation, which drains the water supply of about 300 million gallons a year. The balls cost $0.36 each and are part of a $34.5 million initiative to protect the water supply.

This is an ingenious way of reducing evaporation. Perhaps the state's aqueduct system can also be filled with these balls to stop evaporation there.

HughPickens.com also submitted this article just minutes later!


Original Submission 1

Original Submission 2

 
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  • (Score: 4, Interesting) by karmawhore on Thursday August 13 2015, @02:06PM

    by karmawhore (1635) on Thursday August 13 2015, @02:06PM (#222298)
    I'm not sure why the coverage has focused on evaporation. There was an interview on NPR yesterday with someone involved in the project. He said the goal was to comply with the EPA's newish requirement that reservoirs be covered to prevent sunlight causing the formation of bromates and other carcinogens in the water. This is water that has already been treated and contains chlorine, bromine, etc. They had seen these balls used at airports to keep birds off the retention ponds and thought it would work for their needs. So the priority was to keep the sun off the water. Then the useful side effects were preventing algae growth and keeping wildlife away. They figured if it prevents evaporation, that's a bonus, but it didn't sound like it was a big concern for them in the first place. Keep in mind they have already used these in other reservoirs in the area before the drought.
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