LOS ANGELES, Aug. 13 (UPI) — California, in the midst of one of its most severe droughts in history, has turned to a curious method to preserve water: plastic balls.
Some 96 million four-inch black plastic orbs, called “shade balls,” have been released into the 175-acre Los Angeles Reservoir, located about 25 miles northwest of downtown, to shade and cool the water, making it less susceptible to algae blooms and evaporation.
“It takes bold ingenuity to maximize my goals for water conservation,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. “This effort by [the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power] is emblematic of the kind of the creative thinking we need to meet those challenges.
The Los Angeles Reservoir, which holds 3.3 billion gallons of water, or enough to supply the city for three weeks, is among three others in the state already covered with shade balls. The balls are expected to save 300 million gallons a year from evaporation in Los Angeles alone.
At about 36 cents per ball, the project cost $34.5 million. The balls, made from high-density polyethylene, the same plastic used in milk jugs, are not expected to release any toxic chemicals and should last about 10 years.
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