El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-10-01

Through the courtesy of the engi-
neers in charge of the great water
system officially known as the Los
Angeles aqueduct," now under con-
struction by the city of Los Angeles.
/ am enabled to reproduce the profile
of that project. It is Intended for two
purposes: First, to convey an idea Of
1.-THE magnitude of the enterprise I'M
dertaken by the. city of Los Angeles;
second, to give a graphic illustration
of how the city of Ell Paso may secure
for herself a similar gravity water
system that will furnish her with an
inexha ustible supply of mountain
water for all time TO come, for COM
paratively small cost, and do away
with everything in the shape of pumps
and alkaline water in the future.
In a former article appearing in
The Herald on March 10. this year,
my reasons for advocating water from
the Sacramento mountains were ex-
planned, and it is therefore not neces-
sary TO repeat them here. 1 shall en-
deavor instead to give a few figures
pertinent to this Sacramento-El Paso
water scheme.
All figures and statements men,
toned relating to the Los Angeles
aqueduct are taken from the third and
fourth annual reports of that project.
and information generally furnished
by j. B. Lippincott, assistant chief en-
gineer of the Los Angeles aQueduct,
and are therefore official.
The figures pertaining to the pro-
posed Sacramento-El Paso system are,
as a matter of course approximate and
computed from a rather limited amount
of data, but will serve as a possible
basis upon which to determine whether
or not the proposition is worthy of a
thorough investigation.
To Cost $50, 100000.
The Los Angeles aqueduct is being
built by that city at an estimated cost
of So, 500, 600, plus 5000, 900 more for
the development of hydro electric
power at the various power drops"
along the aqueduct This great sum
is being raised by the city on munich
pal bonds. The water will be con-
Quoted about 23O miles, from the snoA
capped Sierras across the Mojave des-
ert, thence under the coast range
through tunnels, across canyons and
eventually to Los Angeles; the engi-
neering difficulties that have to be and
are being overcome are stupendous A
brief classification of the aggregate
length of the aqueduct, from the final
location. is as follows
Unlined canal .-....... % miles
Concrete lined and covered
canal NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. 152 miles
Tunnels in rock. 1S miles
Tunnels in earth. II miles
Steel syphons Cinverted)
across canyons .. Is miles
Distance taken up in reser-
voirs ..-..-.......-. Is miles
Total .231 miles
This brings the water to the lower
outlet and storage reservoirs from
where it will be distributed for do
mestic consumption, point about 90
miles from Los Angeles, and thus the
water is brought total distance OF
ESQ miles.
Great Storage Reservoirs.
The daily average consumption Of
water IN Los Angeles at the present
Time is 35.000,0 900 gallons The con-
tinuous available supply Of water from
the new system will be 400 second feet,
equivalent to 259 million gallons every
"a hours. The system is a storage
scheme and entails q series of reser-
voirs, HYDRO electric power plants,
etc. too extensive TO describe here:
suffice to say that two large reservoirs
at the lower terminal Of the aqueduct,
from which the city of Los Angeles
will be supplied, have a combined ca
pacity Of 1880 acre feet. equal to a
four months supply for population of
one million people with a. percapita
consumption Of 100 gallons per day.
Sixty percent of this great municipal
undertaking has now been completed,
and they have expended a trifle less