OVER 60 YEARS of Water Recycling
Metropolitan’s 38-member board unanimously voted on Oct. 14 to name IEUA leader Shivaji Deshmukh as the agency’s 16th general manager effective Jan. 1, 2026.
From Metropolitan, Page 3
manager at Orange County Water District, where he oversaw the design, construction and operation of one of the state’s first and largest recycled water projects, the Groundwater Replenishment System in Orange County. Deshmukh is also president-elect of the WateReuse California Board of Trustees and serves on the US Water Alliance Board of Directors. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering from UCLA. “Water resiliency is not just important to Southern California but to the entire nation. We are such a large economy here that without a reliable water supply we’re not able to provide that value,” Deshmukh said at a recent BizFed Institute water forum. (See BizFed article, page 6) Deshmukh is a big believer that long-term water reliability will only be achieved through cooperation amongst water agencies and community leaders. Stepping in to this role, he said: “We are a group of 26 member agencies that I feel work extremely well together. I’ve never seen it as productive as it is now. There is common consensus with planning and respectful dialogue even when we don’t agree on issues. Deven has done a great job creating an environment where we can have frank conversations and I hope to leverage that, preserve that and build upon that to keep all the member agencies engaged in a meaningful way.” On Jan. 1, 2026, Deshmukh will begin as general manager, earning an annual salary of $495,040, under the contract approved by Metropolitan’s 38-member board. Metropolitan, comprised of 26 member agencies, delivers water directly or indirectly to nearly 19 million people in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties. Metropolitan imports water from the Colorado River and from Northern California. Metropolitan has an annual operating/ capital budget of $1.8 billion, about 1,700 employees and more than 30 facilities throughout Southern California.
Charley Wilson, Executive Director of the Southern California Water Coalition (SCWC), notes that Deshmukh will take the helm at a pivotal moment. The state’s water delivery system, once considered an engineering marvel, he said, is now facing significant challenges from climate-driven extremes, aging infrastructure, and competing environmental priorities. “Persistent strain on the State Water Project, coupled with the highly politicized and over-allocated Colorado River system, has created uncertainty for Southern California’s imported water supplies,” Wilson said. “These pressures have amplified the need for Metropolitan to balance investments in local supply development, water use efficiency, and recycled water projects, while maintaining affordability for ratepayers already burdened by rising costs.” Deshmukh said the term “pivotal” is appropriately used a lot in the water sphere, “because we’re always pivoting.” He continued, “The Metropolitan Board made a very firm decision on our investment in planning dollars for the Delta Conveyance Project, so I look forward to getting to a point where we can bring data forward to the board so they can make an informed decision.” The Board, Deshmukh notes, is also nearing a milestone certification of Pure Water Southern California, a large joint water recycling project with the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts. At IEUA, a Metropolitan member agency, one of Shivaji’s most notable accomplishments was the development and operation of approximately 200,000 acre-feet per year of recycled water in the region. This initiative has significantly transformed the water and wastewater industries, greatly contributing to environmental sustainability and improved water resource management. Prior to his role at IEUA, he served as assistant general manager at West Basin Municipal Water District and as program
Partially treated wastewater at Whittier Narrows Water Reclamation Plant in 1962. OVER 1 TRILLION GALLONS RECYCLED
In Los Angeles County, about half of our drinking water comes from wells pumping up groundwater and the remainder is imported from hundreds of miles away—from the Colorado River and Northern California. In 1962, our Whittier Narrows Water Reclamation Plant began producing recycled water that is used to refill our groundwater basins. Since then, we have been recycling at 10 of our 11 wastewater treatment plants and, along with our water agency partners, have recycled over 1 trillion gallons. That’s enough water to fill an 8-foot diameter pipe that circles the earth 23 times! This recycling reduces the need to import water and makes our region more sustainable. Nonetheless, we are striving to do more. We have partnered with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California on a project to reuse the water from our 11th treatment plant. This project could produce enough water for 1.5 million people, making it one of the world’s largest water recycling projects. For more info, contact us at info@lacsd.org or 562-908-4288, ext. 2301. For more on the new recycling project, visit www.mwdh2o.com/rrwp.
LACSD SanDistricts SanitationDistrictsLACounty www.lacsd.org
Civic Publications, Inc. | 5 Water percolating into the ground to refill a groundwater basin.
4 | 2025 CALIFORNIA WATER
ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT TO THE L.A. TIMES
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online