Update Regarding Sewer Smell on the East Side of Town

– Courtesy Photo

“Last week, we had several complaints regarding a foul odor in the area located east of the Sawpit Wash, south of Foothill Boulevard, and north of Orange Avenue. Upon receiving the complaints, City staff went to investigate the situation, and we opened up every manhole in the area to investigate. Our staff report that the odor was not a sewer-based smell, but rather, identified the odor as more akin to a dead and decomposing animal.

“Given the odors that were present, City forces initiated a process whereby our sewer crews jetted and cleaned each of the sewers in the area in an effort to alleviate the smell. As we engaged in that work, we also hypothesized that the odor could be coming from storm drain catch basins located in the area. Given that the catch basins are the responsibility of Los Angeles County; our staff contacted the appropriate LA County representatives to investigate. Upon investigation, LA County representatives shared that they did not find the source of any odors in the storm drain catch basins.

“With all of the sewer line cleaning and investigative work that was done last week, we have not yet been able to determine the cause of the odor. Residents have reported that the smell is stronger in the evening and early morning hours, and staff has put together a small internal working group to come up with additional measures we can implement to try and mitigate the foul odors. Our next course of action is to actually jet and clean the storm water catch basins, as we received approvals from LA County representatives to engage in that maintenance work last week. Moving ahead, we will continue to assess and monitor the overall situation, and will be sure to share any news regarding the situation as additional information becomes available. Also, many thanks to our team in the Public Works Division for their response to this particular concern!”

Content taken from the Monrovia City Manager’s Report.

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