RE: Some people better pay close attention!
I heard that Hyperion was requested to build another 5 mile pipe
side by side with the current one, so when this happened they could
switch over transparently, and without interuption and doing what
they're doing starting today. Yes, very disturbing indeed.
John.
Parker 2320 'FloMar'.
Edited to add . .
http://www.surfrider-southbay.org/
HYPERION TREATMENT PLANT FIVE-MILE OUTFALL SCHEDULED FOR INTERNAL MAINTENANCE INSPECTION
November 28th to 30th
Beaches Closed from Ballona Creek to the Manhattan Beach Pier
LOS ANGELES (November 17, 2006) - The City of Los Angeles' Hyperion Treatment Plant is sending divers into the Plant's Five-Mile Outfall on November 28th to 30th (weather permitting) to assess its structural condition, evaluate its reliability and identify potential trouble spots before they could become pr.
Hyperion Plant's Five-Mile Outfall is a pipe that runs under the ocean and through which Los Angeles' processed wastewater, called effluent, is discharged on a daily basis. It was built in 1960, and is inspected externally every year. The Five-Mile Outfall has never been inspected internally during its near 50-year existence.
In order to assess the condition of the pipe and to ensure the safety of divers during the operation, Hyperion's highly treated secondary effluent will be diverted from the Five-Mile Outfall to the Plant's One-Mile Outfall over the three-day period. As a precaution, beaches will be closed from Ballona Creek to the Manhattan Beach Pier, and an extensive water monitoring program will be implemented throughout the diversion.
"The Five-Mile Outfall has never been inspected from the inside, and an assessment is prudent to ensure it is structurally sound, safe and reliable and that it meets the highest safety standards," said Board of Public Works President Cynthia M. Ruiz.
The inspection includes several scientific and engineering exams, including an internal dive inspection, external remote operated vehicle inspection, field studies, hydraulic analyses, pressure evaluations and seafloor mapping. A six-month study will follow the inspection, and recommendations may be made for repairs or other work to the ocean pipeline to ensure it meets the highest safety standards.
The City's monitoring plan will be extensive: The Environmental Monitoring Division's "Extensive Receiving Water Monitoring Plan" includes the beach closure in conjunction with the Department of Public Health and Heal the Bay; compliance with all National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit requirements from the Environmental Protection Agency and Regional Water Quality Control Board; laboratory studies to evaluate potential indicator bacteria and effluent plume tracking (where effluent goes after discharge through the One-Mile Outfall); and assessment of the immediate and eventual environmental impact of the diversion.
http://www.dailybreeze.com/news/articles/4749156.html?showAll=y&c=y
Pipe check will close miles of South Bay beaches
As main outfall is inspected, Hyperion plant will route wastewater closer to the coast. Shores from Ballona Creek south to the Manhattan Beach Pier will close.
By Lee Peterson
Daily Breeze
Miles of local beaches will be closed this week as a precaution when the Hyperion Treatment Plant near LAX starts releasing its massive flow of processed wastewater just 1 mile from the coast, in 50-foot-deep waters.
The plant normally sends 300 million-plus gallons a day of effluent 5 miles o, but is shutting down that main outfall Tuesday through Thursday, so scuba divers for the first time ever can enter and inspect the concrete conduit for wear and tear.
The county Public Health Department will post as unfit for swimming and surfing all of Dockweiler State Beach and the north half of Manhattan Beach -- from Ballona Creek south to the Manhattan Beach Pier -- for those days when the 1-mile outfall is still being used. Some of that stretch of beach could be opened up earlier, if the extensive monitoring shows no signs of bacteria contamination from the effluent.
However, if the testing shows elevated levels of bacteria, the beach closures could extend beyond the last testing day Thursday.
Authorities say the only thing that will delay the inspection project now is a significant rainstorm.
The project originally was scheduled to start Oct. 3, but was postponed when many local officials were taken by surprise. Their reaction not only prompted the city's Public Works Board to move the date back, but to also improve its outreach efforts.
Most of the initial concerns have been allayed.
"I really feel the city has been completely transparent, and we think they are being prudent in closing the beach from Ballona to the Manhattan Beach Pier," said Mark Gold, executive director of Heal the Bay. "I think they are doing the right thing."
El Segundo Mayor Kelly McDowell, however, still has many concerns.
"I think there are a lot of unanswered questions," McDowell said.
It's been warm recently, and there may be more beach-going than sanitation officials had anticipated, he said. Also, the "off season" is prime surfing time in the South Bay.
Hyperion's plan to increase its use of chlorine during the inspection might be fine to kill pathogens, but McDowell says he is concerned about its effect on marine life.
He also wonders if unmanned robots could have done the same job, and negated the need to shut down the 5-mile outfall.
The city of Los Angeles' main sewage treatment plant says it needs to inspect the 12-foot-diameter concrete outfall, specifically the joints where the segments connect to each other on the ocean bottom. Officials said divers are the best way to do that.
The plant's flow will be redirected and then divers will enter the 5-mile outfall from the plant end, and check probably just the first half-mile from within. That first part of the pipe is the most crucial, said Lauren Skinner, Public Works Board spokeswoman.
The pipeline's exterior is checked every year, but this is the first internal inspection since it was built in 1960. The 5-mile outfall releases effluent at a depth of 270 feet. The plant's original 1-mile outfall now serves only as a backup. It is used once every three months briefly, just as a test.
"Our expectation is that everything is really fine," Skinner said.
Manhattan Beach Mayor Nick Tell said his City Hall has been kept informed and that the project and beach closures seem necessary.
"At least they are very focused on making it as short as possible," Tell said. "It's more of a precaution than anything else."
David Sommers, press deputy for South Bay Supervisor Don Knabe, said, "There's no good time to do this, but this is really the best time."
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-beaches28nov28,0,3471104.story?coll=la-home-headlines
South Bay beaches shut for pipe check
The affected area includes Dockweiler State Beach and parts of Manhattan Beach, including the popular El Porto surfing area.
By Stuart Silverstein, Times Staff Writer
November 28, 2006
South Bay beaches will be closed through at least Thursday as officials check the condition of a five-mile sewage pipeline that carries treated wastewater into Santa Monica Bay.
It marks the first time divers have inspected the inside of the pipeline since it was built in 1960 to ca sewage from the city of Los Angeles' Hyperion treatment plant. Until now, annual inspections have been done only by looking at its exterior.
Officials on Monday described the evaluation as a long-planned preventive measure to spot potential trouble spots before they turn into breakages or leaks. The pipeline runs underground from Hyperion below Dockweiler State Beach before heading five miles into the bay.
During the inspection, the city's daily 300 million to 350 million gallons of treated wastewater will be diverted to a nearby one-mile pipeline normally used only for emergencies.
As a precaution to protect beachgoers from the possibility of bacteria-tainted water near the shore while the backup pipeline is being used, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is closing beaches effective today.
The affected area extends about seven miles from Ballona Creek just south of Marina del Rey down to the Manhattan Beach Pier. It includes Dockweiler State Beach and parts of Manhattan Beach, including the popular El Porto surfing area.
Mark Gold, executive director of the Santa Monica environmental group Heal the Bay, lauded the efforts by the county health department and the city Department of Public Works. Gold, whose organization worked with city and county officials on the pipeline inspection plan, called the work a "prudent step" intended to "prevent any future major spills into the bay." He also said officials would be "monitoring the water quality like crazy" to protect the public while the one-mile pipeline is being used.
For more information, call the county Department of Public Health's beach closure and advisory hotline at (800) 525-5662.
http://www.healthebay.org/news/2006/11_22_hyperion_inspection/default.asp
Beaches to be Closed Nov 28-30 During Hyperion Outfall Inspection
Wednesday, Novebmer 22, 2006
The Hyperion Treatment Plant will be inspecting its 5-Mile Outfall November 28-30 requiring diversion of effluent flow to the 1-Mile Outfall. L.A. County beaches from Ballona Creek to the Manhattan Beach Pier will be closed as a precaution.
The City of Los Angelesâ?? Hyperion Treatment Plant is sending divers into the Plantâ??s Five-Mile Outfall on November 28th to 30th (weather permitting) to as its structural condition, evaluate its reliability and identify potential trouble spots before they could become problems.
Hyperion Plantâ??s Five-Mile Outfall is a pipe that runs under the ocean and through which Los Angelesâ?? processed wastewater, called effluent, is discharged on a daily basis. It was built in 1960, and is inspected externally every year. The Five-Mile Outfall has never been inspected internally during its near 50-year existence.
In order to assess the condition of the pipe and to ensure the safety of divers during the operation, Hyperionâ??s secondary treated effluent will be diverted from the Five-Mile Outfall to the Plantâ??s One-Mile Outfall over the three-day period.
As a precaution to protect public health, beaches will be closed from Ballona Creek to the Manhattan Beach Pier, and an extensive water monitoring program will be implemented throughout the diversion. Beaches will reopen as soon as bacteriological data confirm that the waters are safe. At that time, the beach closure signs will be removed.
For more information, including updates on the inspection, visit LASewers.org.
