DWP Starts Work on Owens River Restoration

The Department of Water and Power has begun the court-ordered construction of a project to send water flowing into a 62-mile stretch of the Lower Owens River, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Thursday.

The project will reverse damage to the river's environment caused by L.A.'s diversion of water from the Owens Valley to Southern California.

The courts have fined the city $5,000 a day since September for delays -- or $645,000 -- and another $2.4 million in fines are expected before the project is finished.