Keeping a Watch on Emergencies 24/7 |
As Southern Californians, we are used to feeling the occasional jolt of a small earthquake and shrugging it off. But when a quake hits, even a small one, Metropolitan immediately begins an extensive process to assess its systems, offices and facilities for any damage or impacts. The same is true in the case of wildfires, major power shutdowns and other emergencies.
Collecting information to help manage these events is Ian Whyte, who heads up Metropolitan’s emergency management program. “As a duty officer, my job is to connect all the dots for the many incidents and the staff that need to respond to them,” Ian says.
Last week, for example, in addition to Monday’s 3.5 magnitude earthquake in Yorba Linda, Metropolitan was monitoring the Apple Fire, a second earthquake, and SCE’s Public Safety Power Shut-off events that were in our service area.
One of the most useful tools for doing this is the WebEOC Dashboard, a one-stop screen that displays pertinent emergency event notifications in one place. Ian is working with Security and GIS staff to integrate a real-time map into the Dashboard so the information is one place and can be viewed on the phone.
Alerts come from many sources including other emergency operations centers and alerting systems, as well as social media, which plays a growing role in providing real-time information.
What’s really impressive is how quickly the 24/7 Operations Control Center, Security Watch Center, Water System Operations staff and managers respond. “This real-time assessment is an area where Metropolitan’s capabilities and experienced staff really stand out," says Ian.
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Baseline Testing of Water Purification Process |
The Regional Recycled Water Advanced Purification Center, a demonstration facility for the Regional Recycled Water Program, has been brimming with activity lately as it begins a key milestone in its operation – baseline testing.
“Baseline testing marks the start of a year-long effort necessary to get regulatory approval of our innovative purification process. We’ve been working closely with state regulators and it’s exciting to start implementing it,” expressed Joyce Lehman, Senior Engineer in the Water Quality Section.
The Center’s treatment process includes membrane bioreactors, which are not traditionally used to produce purified recycled water and thus require extensive testing and regulatory approval. During testing, Metropolitan staff with support from consultants collect water samples from throughout the process. While hundreds of water quality parameters are being measured and evaluated, most critical are microbial samples showing removal of pathogens such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia. The results will be used to demonstrate the effectiveness of the purification process.
Baseline testing is expected to continue for four months. It will be followed by eight months of challenge testing, where membranes will be strategically cut to evaluate water quality under compromised conditions. After the year-long testing period, regulators will review results. Once approved, it could be used anywhere in California.
“Our work at the Advanced Purification Center is cutting-edge research that can have a major impact on potable reuse throughout California and globally,” explained Dr. Sun Liang, Manager for Water Reuse Development. “It’s rewarding to be pioneering Metropolitan’s future in this field.”
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She is a Fan for All Season(ing)s |
"Molecular gastronomy!" says Jennifer Fan, senior engineer, when asked about her favorite hobby. "I love the science of cooking more than the process."
An answer that's to be expected from Jennifer who has two undergraduate degrees from UCLA--Biology and Electrical Engineering, and a Master's in Environmental Engineering from Stanford. That love for science shows in her career.
Hired in late 2012, Jennifer works on the Treatment Plant Design Team and has become one of Metropolitan's go-to chlorine experts. She helped design and provide support for the Chemical Unloading Facility, the Weymouth Chlorination System Upgrades and Chlorine Process Safety Management compliance. Though it now serves only as a secondary disinfectant, on occasion, chlorine becomes the primary disinfectant, when the ozonation system is offline.
"I'm directly making a meaningful contribution to our 19 million end-users by designing facilities," remarks the Monterey Park resident. "I get to build relationships and exchange ideas with WSO field staff, who implement, operate and maintain what I design. Their feedback makes me a better engineer."
Jennifer recently finished a two-year rotation with the CRA Project Management Team that exposed her to projects outside of treatment plants: utility replacements, reservoirs, dams and power transformers. All to make her a better project/design manager.
Becoming a better communicator also brought Jennifer to her current position as president of MWD's Toastmaster's Club. Which all leads back to her love of cooking. "Now, I am an articulate foodie. I even gave a speech on how to cook the perfect steak," she says.
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