Man records South Bay city pumping water down drains

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- People across the state are trying to conserve water during this drought and many are watching out for waste. An ABC7 News viewer has seen several South Bay cities pumping water into the street and down the drain, so he started recording.

Mountain View where city leaders say there's a reasonable explanation.

"I was just kind of alarmed by the quantity of water going out," plumbing contractor Mark Billings told ABC7 News.

Billings said the sight and sound of wasted water is scary. He said, "So we are doing a lot of toilet repairs, faucet repairs. People who weren't concerned about little drips now are concerned. So when you look over and see a full hydrant gushing out you think, 'Hey, that could be a problem.'"

He recorded the scene in Mountain View on Tuesday with his cellphone.

Mountain View assistant public works director Gregg Hosfeldt told ABC7 News, "The volume of water that comes out of a hydrant when we flush it is pretty impressive, on an average probably 500 gallons per minute."

Hosfeldt said there is a reasonable explanation. He said, "Water is like a food product and if it sits in the system for too long, it tends to become stale and pick up odors and tastes."

Flushing the system is usually annual maintenance for all cities, but due to the drought, Mountain View delayed the flush by an additional year.

ABC7 News was there in January as crews began the work after receiving complaints of smelly tap water. So it's necessary, but does it have to go down the drain?

Billings said, "Hey, by the time they get done with one block, they could probably water quite a few plants or lawns, or wash a car or two."

However, Hosfeldt explained, "If we stopped the water to fill up water tanks, we would let all the sediment settle back into the lines. So it would somewhat defeat the purpose of flushing."

Hosfeldt admits any water loss is alarming, but he says they're offsetting it. Mountain View recycles some 360,000 gallons a day from other sources and water usage dropped by 13 percent from 2013 to 2014.

The line flushing should conclude within the next few weeks.

Click here to report water wasters to ABC7 News.

For water rebate information from Bay Area water suppliers, click here. And click here for tips on how to conserve.

For full coverage on the drought, click here.