The Smell in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco's big push for low-flow toilets has turned into a multimillion-dollar plumbing stink, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Skimping on toilet water has resulted in more sludge backing up inside the sewer pipes, which has created a rotten-egg stench near AT&T Park and elsewhere, especially during the dry summer months, the article stated.

The city has already spent $100 million over the past five years to upgrade its sewer system and sewage plants, in part to combat the odor problem, the article noted.

According to the article, officials are stocking up on a $14 million, three-year supply of highly concentrated sodium hypochlorite — better known as bleach — to act as an odor eater and to disinfect the city's treated water before it's dumped into the bay: It will also be used to sanitize drinking water.

That translates into 8.5 million pounds of bleach either being poured down city drains or into the drinking water supply every year, the article added.

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