West Basin to Install Temporary Pipe System After Contamination

The West Basin Municipal Water District, which operates the Temporary Ocean Water Desalination Demonstration Facility at the SEA Lab in Redondo Beach, is building an interim piping system to supply the aquarium with fresh ocean water, according to a statement from the utility.

Last week, household bleach used at the desalination facility to prevent growth in the pipes leaked into the intake water at SEA Lab, killing thousands of fish at  the aquarium and the White Sea Bass Restoration Project.

As soon as the leak was detected, West Basin shut down pumps and established a lower-volume supply of seawater to the tanks; however, that supply of water is not enough to fully fill the existing tanks, West Basin said.

The new piping system, which will take about a week to construct, will provide enough water to fill the tanks so it can operate normally, according to West Basin. Once the system is in place, West Basin will send divers underwater to find the source of the leak and start fixing it.

"West Basin estimates the interim ocean water supply for the SEA Lab aquarium will be in place within one week," the utility said in a statement. "The District cannot estimate timing for the leak repair until the cause of the leak and necessary repairs are determined by an underwater diving crew and team of
engineers."

Stay up to date on West Hollywood news and events, by following @WehoPatch and “like” on Facebook.