Operations Begin This Month at Metropolitan's Regional Recycled Water Demonstration Facility.
Photo by Andrew Au
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
ABOUT MET THIS WEEK
A weekly newsletter by and for Metropolitan employees
October 14, 2019
It's a New Era for Southern California's Water Supply
In a major step toward the construction of what could be one of the largest water recycling plants in the nation, Metropolitan officials and staff were joined last Thursday by federal, state and local water leaders to celebrate the start of operations at the Regional Recycled Water Advanced Purification Center .


Congresswoman Grace Napolitano, State Water Board Chair Joaquin Esquivel and LA Regional Board Chairwoman Irma Muñoz spoke at the event.

Metropolitan's Chairwoman Gloria Gray said collaboration is key to these kinds of projects. GM Jeff Kightlinger thanked Met's engineering, design and construction teams for bringing the project from the idea stage to operations, and acknowledged External Affairs staff who organized the grand opening event.

The 500,000 gallon-per-day demonstration facility will take cleaned wastewater from the LA County Sanitation Districts’ plant and purify it using an innovative process that could improve efficiencies and reduce costs.

In the coming months, Met will rigorously test the recycled water to ensure it meets the highest quality standards.

The full-scale program could deliver purified water to groundwater basins, industrial facilities and potentially two of Met’s water treatment plants for direct potable reuse.
MWD will Participate in the Great Shakeout Event
-- What is the best way to respond to the Big One?

-- What will you do if you're at your desk or a work site when a big earthquake hits?

Those questions and more will be answered this Thursday (Oct. 17) when Metropolitan participates in the Great California Shakeout.

In the past, staff would drop, cover and hold on for a few minutes. But this year, in addition to the 10:17 a.m. drill, Metropolitan will be hosting an American Red Cross workshop from 9:30-10:30 am in US 2-456, to be broadcast later on MetTV.

Experts will share the latest research on SoCal’s most dangerous earthquake faults, and talk about strategies to be prepared if your water, power or Internet go out. 

Metropolitan also will conduct a “live-start kind of exercise,” said Ian Whyte , emergency management program manager. This will consider what to do if a major earthquake hits any of our offices or facilities.

Met has conducted similar exercises before, but not in conjunction with the Great California Shakeout, and not taking into account the travel time for employees to get to the emergency operation centers. 

Thursday's events will test communication systems and response activities by Metropolitan, member agencies, and state and local operations centers.
He was at the Mills Plant Before the Water
It’s not unusual for employees to have 10, 20, 30, or more years of service at Metropolitan. It’s a little more unique when they spend their entire tenure at one facility.

That’s the case for Adrian Valentin , who retires this month after a four-decade career at the Mills Water Treatment Plant.

“If you can believe this, I was there before the water was,” said the water treatment plant specialist who got his start at Metropolitan in 1979. Though the plant was commissioned in 1978, it became operational in the early 1980s.

A longtime Riverside resident who owns a house just three minutes from Mills, Adrian recalls the early days when the area was all rolling hills and open fields.

In addition to the short commute, Adrian says he enjoyed working at Mills because of the strong relationships he’s built with co-workers and the career growth he’s experienced.

Adrian started at Mills as a maintenance worker I, then progressed to a level II and III, before becoming a maintenance mechanic. He was promoted to his current position about 12 years ago.

After a long, fulfilling career, the father of two and grandfather of five is now ready to spend more time with his family. “It is time to look at my life and figure out what do I need to accomplish? I feel like I’ve checked all the boxes and I am ready for whatever is next,” Adrian said. 
New hires, transfers, promotions & retirements are posted here each month.
NEXT LIST: NOVEMBER 4, 2019
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