Aug 2, 2022
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California was founded in 1928 under an act of the California Legislature to build and operate the Colorado River Aqueduct. Today Metropolitan delivers water from the Colorado River and Northern California to its 26 member water agencies that serve 19 million people in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties.
Metropolitan has also taken significant steps over the past three decades to reduce the region’s reliance on imported water – investing more than $1.5 billion in conservation and local resources. But climate change and the state’s ongoing record drought are reminders that more needs to be done.
The individuals heading up three of Metropolitan’s big initiatives to further the One Water concept while improving the agency’s culture are here with us today to discuss what they see on the horizon. Guests on this episode are: Water Resources Manager Brad Coffey, who is the lead on Metropolitan’s Pure Water Initiative; Liz Crosson, who is MWD’s Chief Sustainability, Resiliency and Innovation Officer, and Liji Thomas, who is MWD Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer.