The black balls of Ivanhoe http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/the-black-balls-of-ivanhoe.html#more-3104 By Spooky on June 11th, 2008 Category: Events, Pics, Tech LIKE DISLIKE * Share * 0diggsdigg * * * * * Email * Sharebar * Share * 0diggsdigg * * * * 0 * Email Thousands of black plastic balls cover the Ivanhoe reservoir in Los Angeles. It might not look like serious business, but The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power dropped 400,000 black plastic balls into one of the city’s reservoirs for a reason. The sunlight mixes with the chlorine and bromide in the water creating a deadly mix which some scientist believe may be causing cancer. The balls are meant to shade the water from the dangerous sunlight. Sure a tart or some kind of lid would have seemed more normal, but the authorities say a tart would have cost to much too manufacture and a metal lid would have taken too long. So, although it looks like an oil spill, this was the best measure and it’s only temporary, the Ivanhoe and Elysian reservoirs will be covered by 3,000,000 black plastic balls for the next four years. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/10/local/me-balls10 Los Angeles Times A reservoir goes undercover The DWP dumps about 400,000 black balls into the water to block formation of the carcinogen bromate. June 10, 2008|Francisco Vara-Orta | Times Staff Writer The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power dropped the ball Monday. Actually, it dropped 400,000 of them. The agency started dumping thousands of floating plastic balls into Ivanhoe Reservoir -- the dwarf sibling next door to Silver Lake Reservoir, the neighborhood's crown jewel -- to protect the drinking water supply needed for summer. The water needs to be shaded because when sunlight mixes with the bromide and chlorine in Ivanhoe's water, the carcinogen bromate forms, said Pankaj Parekh, DWP's director for water quality compliance. Bromide is naturally present in groundwater and chlorine is used to kill bacteria, he said, but sunlight is the final ingredient in the potentially harmful mix. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/jun/10/local/me-balls10 Los Angeles Times A reservoir goes undercover The DWP dumps about 400,000 black balls into the water to block formation of the carcinogen bromate. June 10, 2008|Francisco Vara-Orta | Times Staff Writer The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power dropped the ball Monday. Actually, it dropped 400,000 of them. The agency started dumping thousands of floating plastic balls into Ivanhoe Reservoir -- the dwarf sibling next door to Silver Lake Reservoir, the neighborhood's crown jewel -- to protect the drinking water supply needed for summer. The water needs to be shaded because when sunlight mixes with the bromide and chlorine in Ivanhoe's water, the carcinogen bromate forms, said Pankaj Parekh, DWP's director for water quality compliance. Bromide is naturally present in groundwater and chlorine is used to kill bacteria, he said, but sunlight is the final ingredient in the potentially harmful mix. http://la.curbed.com/archives/2008/06/balls_out_ivanh.php#balls-12 Los Angeles Curbed A big day in Silver Lake as 400,000 bird balls--black, hollow balls--went sliding down the concrete banks of Ivanhoe Reservoir. As the city overhauls its water reservoirs, today's ball drop was intended to both protect the water from the sun (the balls act as protective discs) and to keep birds from landing on the reservoir (the birds may foul the water). "It's a weird feeling for the birds," said James B. McDaniel, chief operating officer at the DWP. "If they land [ on the balls], they won't stay." Sure, but there will always be those few birds who'll like the feeling, right? "I'm a bird at a water theme park! Wohoo! It's like tubing!" Yeah, McDaniel didn't seem to like that suggestion. More information via McDaniel and Brian White, biologist for the DWP: ---Eventually, 3 million black balls will fill the reservoir. They will stay in the reservoir for 3-5 years. ---The balls are being made by Orange Products, a company out of Allentown, Pennsylvania. The city has a contract with Orange Products, which will deliver 200,000 new balls a week to the reservoir. Basically, Orange Products has shut down work on everything else just to make our balls. ---Was there another color option other than black? No, there was not. ---The balls cost 34 cents each. All together, the balls are costing $2 million. Paid by for you, dear water user. --The balls are non-toxic and UVA-stable (the sun won't affect them). · Reservoirs, Bird Balls and Property Values Discussed in Silver Lake [Curbed LA] http://www.spike.com/blog/la-reservoir-has-bad/65638 The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power dumped 400,000 little plastic black balls into the Ivanhoe reservoir this past Monday (June 9th). After reassuring local McDonalds owners that they hadn’t raided every Play Place within a ten mile radius for their 4 inch plastic balls, the DWP said that they were just a first batch of what would ultimately be 3 million balls dumped into the reservoir. No, this isn’t the DWP’s idea of a really, really late April Fool’s Day prank. Nor is this the result of a bunch of bitter, disgruntled employees making a statement in a bid for higher wages or better benefits. To the best of my knowledge the LA DWP consists of a highly gruntled work force. Rather, the black balls are intended to cover the more than 7 acres of surface area of the Ivanhoe reservoir to shield it from the sun. Sunlight can act as a catalyst to the bromide and chlorine in the reservoir, which can then produce the carcinogenic bromate. Ok, so that’s your little science lesson for today. It’s my hope that the rest of your Friday will be much less educational, and I apologize if I’ve killed your TGIF buzz. Sometimes learning happens, even when we do our best to protect ourselves against it. You can never have enough protection—and that’s something I learned in college. Right. Back to the black balls. Is anyone other than me a bit puzzled as to how it is the water in the reservoir has up to now been kept from producing this noxious chemical? I mean, has anyone at the DWP noticed that it’s sunny in LA, like, EVERY SINGLE DAY? Did they just up and decide to start pulling their weight on June 9th, 2008? “Hey guys, this water is making a horrible carcinogen, let’s go dip our balls in it!” If this is the future of environmental protection, I’m afraid, very afraid. And, yes, I’m definitely going to grab my aqua socks and foam noodles and jump in that reservoir. Sunlight + dangerous chemicals = biggest play pit EVER. http://www.nowpublic.com/environment/400-000-bouncy-balls-help-protect-against-carcinogen-water-reserves NOW PUBLIC When I saw this story today I did a double take, as I assumed it was another one of those "living art" ideas, this time with black bouncy balls vs. multucilored. I was very wrong. In a step to really "think outside the box", the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power poured 400,000 black bouncy balls into the Ivanhoe Reservior to help protect against the formation of carcinogens in the water. The water needs to be shaded because when sunlight mixes with the bromide and chlorine in Ivanhoe's water, the carcinogen bromate forms, said Pankaj Parekh, DWP's director for water quality compliance. Bromide is naturally present in groundwater and chlorine is used to kill bacteria, he said, but sunlight is the final ingredient in the potentially harmful mix. The DWP drop was designed to stop the three from mingling in the 10-acre, 58-million-gallon Ivanhoe Reservoir. The 102-year-old facility serves about 600,000 customers downtown and in South Los Angeles. · Ivanhoe Reservoir About To Be Seriously Balled [Curbed LA] http://riversphere.blogspot.com/2008/06/dwp-drops-400000-balls-onto-ivanhoe.html RIVERSPHERE The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power dropped the ball Monday. Actually, it dropped 400,000 of them. The agency started dumping thousands of floating plastic balls into Ivanhoe Reservoir -- the dwarf sibling next door to Silver Lake Reservoir, the neighborhood's crown jewel -- to protect the drinking water supply needed for summer. The water needs to be shaded because when sunlight mixes with the bromide and chlorine in Ivanhoe's water, the carcinogen bromate forms, said Pankaj Parekh, DWP's director for water quality compliance. Bromide is naturally present in groundwater and chlorine is used to kill bacteria, he said, but sunlight is the final ingredient in the potentially harmful mix. The DWP drop was designed to stop the three from mingling in the 10-acre, 58-million-gallon Ivanhoe Reservoir. The 102-year-old facility serves about 600,000 customers downtown and in South Los Angeles. Elected officials, community activists and two dozen DWP officials and maintenance workers grabbed a few balls out of a white tub and tossed them into the aquamarine pool after a brief news conference. Pebble-heavy "plops" permeated the laughter of smiling onlookers. City Councilman Tom LaBonge shouted, "For quality of water for all of Los Angeles!" with each of three balls he chucked into the water. At a signal from DWP General Manager David Nahai, a dozen crew members began opening dozens of white nylon bags that lined the reservoir. Each bag bulged with 2,100 balls. Resembling a stream of oversized caviar, the black balls rolled thunderously down the reservoir's slopes. "Water quality doesn't get more exciting than this," Marina J.F. Busatto, a DWP biologist, said smiling.