Photo from the Materials Engineering Laboratory.
Coatings are tested for durability before they are put to use at Metropolitan facilities.
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
ABOUT MET THIS WEEK
A weekly newsletter by and for Metropolitan employees
September 30, 2019
Check Your Calendars - It's a New Water Year
Did you know today is "Water New Year’s Eve"?

(The official water year starts October 1 because some precipitation that falls in late autumn and winter accumulates as snow, and doesn't melt until spring or even summer.)

As water years go, 2019 was all wet. And forecasters, farmers and water agencies hope for more of the same.

Metropolitan's water managers say supplies are better on all fronts compared to last year at this time:

  • Our reservoirs have more water

  • Precipitation - both as rain and snow - was relatively high in 2019

  • Thanks to this improved hydrology and the Drought Contingency Plan that Metropolitan help negotiate, the chance of future Colorado River supply disruptions has gone down.

  • Most Californians have changed their water habits and are conserving more

In fact, the latest report shows Metropolitan's potential storage levels at an impressive 3.3 million acre-feet. The latest water supply report is here .

What's next? Predicting the 2020 water year is a coin flip. "The only constant for our weather is how unpredictable it is," a spokesperson for the California Department of Water Resources said last week
Met's First Stormwater
Pilot Program Launched
Metropolitan is getting ready to launch it’s first-ever stormwater pilot program.

As the region's population grows and the climate continues to change, so is the approach to ensuring there's enough water now and in the future.

Those are some of the reasons for the new $5 million pilot program that was recently approved by the Board to help agencies build new stormwater capture projects or add monitoring equipment to existing projects. Data will be collected for three years to help make decisions about future investments.

“We want to better understand that potential and its cost as part of our commitment to developing local resources,” said Chairwoman Gray in a press release.

For decades, Metropolitan has been diversifying its water supply portfolio by investing in local water projects. This includes over $500 million for more than 100 groundwater recovery and recycled water projects through the Local Resource Program. But local stormwater capture projects have not been funded through the program.

General Manager Kightlinger noted stormwater projects “are typically expensive to build. So as we explore opportunities to invest in these projects, in partnership with parties interested in their other benefits, we need to understand their water supply value.”

Project applications will be accepted starting January 1.
It's Dance Time for this Talented Employee
When Carlos de León says “let’s boogie” he may mean it literally. He and his wife Susan are part of a 16-member dance team called Juke Joint Rhythm that recently competed and won third place at the National Jitterbug Championships.

The four-day championship attracts top talent from around the world and includes social dances, classes and a competition. Watch the full dance here .

Jitterbug, also known as Lindy Hop, is an Afro-Euro-American swing dance with a joyful, flowing style that reflects music from late 1920's Jazz to 1940's Big Band.

Carlos first started dancing with a few friends and explains the opportunity came at a perfect time for him. “Lindy Hopping provided me with a strong support system and allowed me to escape the stress of caring for my aging father,” he says.

While Carlos may be new to competitive dancing, he’s not new to Metropolitan. He was hired 25 years ago as an engineer by recent retiree Mike Rojas and promoted in 2006 to his current position as a Resource Specialist in Water Resource Management. In this role, he works on supply acquisition, groundwater storage, conservation and the Local Resource Program (LRP).

Carlos is proud he has helped make Metropolitan’s supply more reliable and sustainable. “These programs helped us get through the drought,” says Carlos . “We had a limited supply, but Southern Californians were able to use it more efficiently.” 
New hires, transfers, promotions & retirements are posted here each month.
NEXT LIST: OCTOBER 7, 2019
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