Leak detection program saves over 500 acre-feet of water a year

Municipal Water District of Orange County’s (MWDOC) Leak Detection Program has helped plug nearly a thousand hidden leaks throughout Orange County. MWDOC began offering leak detection services to OC water providers in 2019. Over the past four years, MWDOC has partnered with 18 different OC water retailers to detect leaks on their water distribution mains, meter connections, and other fixtures. The acoustic leak detection equipment being used by MWDOC technicians can locate leaks before they surface, shortening their runtime, avoiding collateral property damage, and saving hundreds of acre-feet (AF) of water per year.

MWDOC has surveyed 2,379 miles of water mains, located 764 leaks, and saved 508.3 AF a year, or roughly enough water to serve 1,500 OC households. Local water retailers have repaired these leaks, increasing the efficiency of their system and strengthening water supply resiliency. Stopping these leaks has also saved the agencies $398,767 annually in imported water purchases and local groundwater production costs.

“MWDOC has conducted leak detection on 289 miles of Yorba Linda Water District’s water mains over the last three years. This has helped us save over 35 AF of water per year,” said Yorba Linda Water District President J. Wayne Miller, Ph.D. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with MWDOC to find leaks and reduce water loss for our customers.”

The program has also located 190 leaks on customer property, helping OC residents and businesses save approximately 43 AF a year and $59,765 annually.

“MWDOC has surveyed nearly 200 miles of Mesa Water’s service area, helping save more than 33 AF of water per year and almost $30,000 in avoided water costs per year,” said Mesa Water District General Manager Paul Shoenberger. “Our customers have also benefitted from the program, saving nearly $17,000 on their water bills after repairing leaks found by MWDOC. Mesa Water is a proud early adopter of this program and plans to continue to utilize MWDOC’s leak detection services to provide safe, reliable, and affordable drinking water as efficiently as possible.”