orrance and the Harbor Gateway area residents can expect to see multiple lane closures and construction as the Metropolitan Water District undertakes a $60 million rehabilitation of about 3.8 miles of the Sepulveda Feeder pipeline.

The Sepulveda Feeder pipeline spans more than 40 miles and has been delivering water to Southern California communities from the Joseph Jensen Water Treatment Plant in Granada Hills for 50 years.

During a routine inspection, however, it was discovered that a portion of pipeline beginning along Van Ness Avenue in Torrance, and traveling south to Del Amo Boulevard and Western Avenue in the Harbor Gateway, required urgent repairs.

“Our board is investing in rehabilitating our aging infrastructure so that we’ll be able to continue to reliably deliver water,” MWD chief engineer Mai Hattar said. “Right now, we’re doing just this 3.8 miles. In the future, we will do other sections.”

The rehabilitation will include uncovering the eight-foot-long pipelines, cutting into them at certain access stations and inserting a steel liner inside the pipe, reinforcing the infrastructure for another 50 years, Hattar said.

“That’s the most effective way to rehabilitate the pipe and creates less disruption to the community compared to other things that we could do, such as building a whole new pipeline,” she said, adding that there will be no disruptions to the water supply during construction.

It is also important that this work happens now to ensure there are now ruptured pipelines in the future, Hattar said.

“It’s a 50-year-old pipe and we want to make sure it’s able to continue to reliably deliver water,” she said. “We don’t want to take a chance of having an unplanned outage.”

Staging and excavation work has already begun, with some lane closures occurring along Western Avenue. Construction is set to begin next month, followed by close to a dozen lane closures along the pipeline route over the next eight months. Full rehabilitation is set to be completed in June.

“We understand that construction near your business can create questions and concerns,” MWD said in a statement. “The type and extent of construction impacts will vary by location. Depending on where your business is located, construction may create temporary traffic delays, lane reductions, parking restrictions, detours, sidewalk or bike lane closures, and construction-related noise. Work may also take place 24 hours a day, as needed. Your water service will not be disrupted.”