Nicole Neeman Brady, an environmental policy expert with experience in energy, water and agricultural management, was appointed to the Board of Water and Power Commissioners by Mayor Eric Garcetti. She was confirmed by the Los Angeles City Council on November 8, 2019 to serve a term ending June 30, 2021.

“Nicole’s breadth of experience in environmental policy and track record as a creative problem-solver will make her a powerful leader at LADWP,” said Mayor Garcetti. “I have no doubt that her vision and expertise will help us strengthen a utility that’s front and center in building a greener, more sustainable Los Angeles.”

Neeman Brady has over 11 years of experience in energy, water, and agriculture management, and she currently serves as the Chief Operating Officer and Principal of the Renewable Resources Group, where she directs investments and develops opportunities. She’s also a member of the Colorado River Board of California and sits on the board of directors for the Library Foundation of Los Angeles.

Prior to joining the Renewable Resources Group, Neeman Brady was President and Founder of Edison Water Resources, a subsidiary of Edison International, where she developed water treatment and recycling strategies. Neeman Brady also served in several leadership roles at Southern California Edison, including the role of Director of Energy Procurement.

“I am excited and humbled by the opportunity to represent the city and LADWP’s customers in providing oversight of our utility, and I’m grateful for Mayor Garcetti’s trust and support,” said Neeman Brady. “I’m eager to begin, and look forward to being a part of shaping our great city’s water and power future.”

Earlier in her Edison career, Neeman Brady served as Director of Renewable and Alternative Power Contracts, and Manager of Strategic Projects. Before joining Edison, Neeman Brady worked in consulting for McKinsey & Co, strategic planning for Twentieth Century Fox, and private equity for Goldman Sachs.

She holds dual Bachelor of Arts degrees, with honors, in architecture and in economics from Brown University and a Master of Business Administration degree, with distinction, from Harvard Business School.

Neeman Brady currently serves on the Colorado River Board of California and on the board of directors of the Library Foundation of Los Angeles.

By Albert Rodriguez

Long revered as a symbol of health, civic pride and a champion of public space, the urban drinking water fountain has seen tough times in recent years. The advent and saturation of single-use plastic water bottles and sugary drinks has denigrated the once noble water fountain to a weathered, barely functioning object of curiosity in parks and schools.

Today, all that is changing, as LADWP moves forward with a multi-faceted initiative to make Los Angeles one of the most sustainable cities in the world.  LADWP plans to install or refurbish 200 drinking water fountains, more recently referred to as hydration stations, citywide by 2035 for the enjoyment and health of all residents and visitors in the city. LADWP will partner with the City’s Department of Recreation and Parks and Department of General Services to install, refurbish and maintain the hydration stations.

L.A.’s Tap Water, by the Numbers

1 state-of-the-art filtration plant
2 aqueducts
84 pump stations,
118 tanks and reservoirs,
328 pressure regulator and relief stations (controls water pressure)
560 miles of trunklines (pipes greater than 20 inches in diameter)
6,780 miles of distribution mainlines (20 inches in diameter or less)
120,000 water quality tests performed on samples taken throughout the city!

This concerted effort to increase access to clean drinking water and decrease reliance on single-use plastic water bottles is one way LADWP can promote a more sustainable, healthier future for customers and the communities it serves. Nearly 50 million plastic water bottles are purchased and discarded every year across the U.S. with only 30 percent getting recycled. This is in addition to the environmental impacts created and the resources used to manufacture, package, and distribute these bottles.

It is only fitting that a world-class city like Los Angeles promote its drinking water and public hydration stations in much the same way that Rome, Tokyo or Paris does. Locals in those cities use their nasonis, mizu nomi ba, and fontaines d’eau potable every day. In contrast, many people here in L.A. don’t realize that bottled water is largely unregulated while LADWP’s tap water meets all federal and state drinking water regulations.

“The new and refurbished hydration stations will remind Angelinos of the importance that clean drinking water plays in our lives, our health and our connection to the environment,” said Razmik Manoukian, LADWP Director of Water Quality. “Thanks to LADWP’s comprehensive planning, robust treatment and monitoring infrastructure, our drinking water is clean and reliable and should be a focal point of our civic pride as it is in many other prominent cities.”

The new hydration stations will be placed at a variety of locations throughout the city where individuals can fill up their reusable water bottles with clean, refreshing tap water. All hydration stations will feature reusable water bottle filling stations and some outdoor stations will include spigots to fill water bowls for pets.

Stations have already been placed at Balboa Park, L.A. City Hall East, and at the John Ferraro Building. In addition to the installation at large municipal buildings and at parks, LADWP is working to install or refurbish hydration stations at our customer service centers and employee facilities.  Older water fountains will be replaced with new stations at LADWP’s Water Testing Laboratory, Water Quality Laboratory, L.A. Aqueduct Filtration Plant, Western Yard, East Valley Yard and the Surveyors Office.

As the city prepares for the 2028 Olympics, LADWP will be working to strategically place hydration stations in areas that are anticipated to have large gatherings of spectators and participants. These stations will provide an alternative to sugary drinks and help promote the benefits of drinking water. LADWP counterparts at Eau de Paris (Paris Water) are currently preparing for the 2024 Olympics and have over 1,200 hydration stations throughout their city.

“We are working closely with our friends in Paris to learn from their experience and efforts,” said Serge Haddad, Section Manager in LADWP’s Water Quality Division.  “The Olympics is a world stage where people witness the best athletes competing for medals and it is the perfect opportunity to put L.A. water on that highest podium and share why it’s the gold standard in quality.”

 Moreover, LADWP is looking to expand the Hydration Station program by establishing partnerships with commercial customers and other agencies such as LAUSD. Educating children on the benefits of L.A.’s drinking water is critical to achieving the city’s sustainability goals for future generations.

L.A.’s drinking water is safe and treated to the highest quality.  So drink up, and drink with confidence!

By Albert Rodriguez

LADWP Water Quality staff helped kick-start summer 2019 back in June for their Adopt-A-School pen pals from 75^th Street Elementary School with an end-of-the-school-year celebration and luncheon. The event at the John Ferraro Building, finally allowed the pen pals to meet in person following a year of exchanging hand-written letters about their hobbies, family and friends, school work, and career goals. The program helps students develop reading, writing, and social skills and also provides them with an opportunity to learn from our own in-house S.T.E.M. professionals by developing friendships and learning about careers in the water system.

LADWP employees and their student pen pals were able to get to know each other face-to-face, enjoy a meal and listen to informative presentations by Utility Services Specialist Lead, Sandra Yeh on how the Pen Pal program benefited and motivated her as a young student and another on water conservation by Anthony Tew, Civil Engineering Associate. After the meal students took part in an interactive science experiment developed by LADWP Microbiologist and Adopt-a-School program coordinator Manely Rashedan. Students learned about culturing microbes and their presence on various surfaces/objects.

“We planned all the presentation and activities in a way that would inspire our little pen pals to think about a future career in S.T.E.M. fields,” said Rashedan “Students had a wonderful time meeting their employee pen pals and loved participating in the science activity. It was quite special to them.”

75th Street Elementary School is one of 22 schools adopted by LADWP during the 2018-2019 school year. The two main components of LADWP’s Adopt-A-School initiative include the Pen Pal Program and Reading Buddies Program. Although this is the 8^th year the Water Quality Division has partnered with 75^th Street Elementary School, employees Department-wide have written to and inspired students at various local elementary schools since the Adopt-A-School program began back in 1984.

JFB Becomes Test Site for Dual Battery Pilot Project

By Carol Tucker

The northeast corner of the LADWP JFB parking lot has hosted several demonstration projects over the years, including a 200 kW fuel cell and three micro-turbines totaling 120 kW. Recently, the site has been expanded to accommodate a battery energy storage system (BESS) pilot project that will help determine the viability of battery technology in transitioning to a clean energy future for Los Angeles.

The JFB BESS Pilot Project will “pave the way for multiple energy storage projects at the transmission and distribution levels as well as customer-owned energy storage projects,” said James Barner, Manager of Resource Planning and Development.  “This project will help inform future decisions on achieving the goals of the Mayor’s Green New Deal and state mandates for reducing carbon emissions from our power generation portfolio.” Under the Green New Deal, LADWP is working to increase renewable energy to 55% by 2025, 80% by 2036, and 100% by 2045 and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from its power portfolio.

“It’s important that we gain a better understanding of all available energy storage technologies to meet our goals,” said Electrical Engineer Matt Hone, who heads the Power System’s energy storage and new technologies group. Once the test period is concluded, the JFB BESS will be used for a variety of energy applications, such as shaving energy use during peak periods, and remote energy monitoring and control.

The project has involved installing two types of battery energy storage technologies side by side, and connecting them to LADWP’s headquarters building. One is a 100 kW, 4-hour lithium-ion battery and the other is a 100 kW, 4-hour vanadium redox flow battery.

With installation nearly complete, the project will undergo a series of tests before being placed into service prior to the end of the year. Subsequently, LADWP will partner with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) for a one-year pilot study. The study will evaluate and gain insights regarding the performance, operation and feasibility of these two types of battery technology as well as provide training for LADWP staff. Other goals are to help LADWP transition to a more resilient electric power system, and ensure that the most up-to-date operational and safety standards are incorporated.

Lithium-ion batteries are the more popular type of battery technology, commonly used in cell phones and also widely used in electric and hybrid vehicles. LADWP has already gained experience with lithium-ion batteries at the Beacon Energy Storage System in the Mojave Desert. Flow batteries are not widely used by electric utilities but offer a lot of potential advantages for energy storage, such as improved safety, increased charging capacity and longer duration capability. Flow batteries use liquid electrolyte stored in external tanks rather than in each battery cell.

Arevik Petrosyan, Associate Electrical Engineer and Project Manager along with Hone, said the two-year initiative has been a team effort including staff from Power Engineering and Construction, Architecture and Drafting, Fire Protection, Supply Chain, and Information Technology Services to address various issues including those related to cyber security. LADWP construction forces did all site preparation work, such as foundation expansion, conduit and ground grid installation, transformer, switch gear and other interconnection equipment. The contractor, Doosan GridTech /KTY Engineering, has been tasked with procuring, installing, integrating, and testing and commissioning both battery systems.

LADWP’s La Kretz Innovation Campus is the first building in the U.S. to achieve both LEED v3 Platinum in New Construction and WELL v1 Gold Core and Shell certifications. LEED Platinum is the highest achievement for a building, according to the United States Green Building Council’s (USGBC) rating system, and La Kretz is the first LADWP building to achieve this level.

“At LADWP, we are committed to walking our talk about sustainability, and that includes green buildings,” said Commissioner Cynthia McClain-Hill, Vice President of the Board of Water and Power Commissioners. “Everything that is happening at La Kretz not only makes sense environmentally, but economically as well, and it shows how our customers and partners can be a part of our move toward a clean energy future.”

Located in LA’s Arts District, the fully-renovated campus, managed by the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI), is a 60,000 square-foot, one-story brick masonry building that was purchased by LADWP in 2010. To celebrate the LEED and WELL certifications, LADWP and LACI held an unveiling of the designation plaques at the campus during the recent Net Zero Conference & Expo, the world’s largest annual building industry event dedicated to net zero energy, water, waste, and transit.

“At LADWP, we are proud to have our sustainability practices extend to not only our customers, but our internal operations as well,” says Chief Sustainability Officer, Nancy Sutley. “By implementing extensive clean energy measures throughout our facilities, we are leading by example to help minimize our environmental impact.”

LADWP created the space as a hub for merging science, entrepreneurship, environmentalism and policymaking to advance the development of a sustainable future.  La Kretz was able to achieve LEED platinum status, thanks in large part to state-of-the-art, innovative design features such as a grey water system that provides irrigation for a neighboring park, a microgrid energy solar and battery system, a 175-kilowatt photovoltaic solar canopy, fast charger EV stations and two bioswales.

La Kretz is also the first public building to be WELL certified in Los Angeles. The building was able to achieve WELL Gold due to the facility’s access to LADWP’s quality potable water system, excellent inside air quality and the overall well-being of the building design. The WELL Building Standard is a performance-based system for measuring, certifying, and monitoring features of the built environment that impact human health and wellbeing, through air, water, nourishment, light, fitness, comfort, and mind.

Western Council of Construction Consumers Honors LADWP with Six Awards

By Paola Adler

Two innovative LADWP projects were recently honored with six awards from the Western Council of Construction Consumers (WCCC) for excellence, sustainability and innovation in construction. LADWP Water System’s Tujunga Spreading Grounds Enhancement Project and LADWP Power System’s Beacon Solar & Battery Energy Storage System were each awarded three 2019 Owners’ Project Excellence Awards. The WCCC award program recognizes continuous improvement and excellence in engineering, design and construction of quality, cost-effective, innovative and sustainable construction projects.

The Tujunga Spreading Grounds Enhancement Project reconfigures and deepens 20 existing stormwater capture spreading basins of varying sizes into 10 deeper basins, doubling the capture capacity of the stormwater that percolates into the natural aquifer below to recharge the City’s groundwater supply. The Tujunga Spreading Grounds Enhancement Project will increase LADWP’s capture capacity to 5 billion gallons of water, enough to supply up to 48,000 single family homes in Los Angeles. The enhancements will also help improve the environment and provide social equity by beautifying the community with native vegetation and open space.

LADWP’s Beacon Solar & Battery Energy Storage System is the Department’s largest owned solar plus utility-scale energy storage facility, supplying 250 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy alongside a 20MW lithium-ion battery storage system. The project is the first of its kind for the Department. The power plant and storage system work in tandem to supply clean, carbon-free energy to LADWP’s customers while maintaining reliability. The project will help support the Department’s renewable energy goals, such as providing a 100 percent renewable energy supply by 2045 as outlined by Mayor Eric Garcetti’s 2019 Sustainable City pLAn.

“These two projects showcase LADWP’s commitment to excellence across the Department,” said Martin L. Adams, LADWP General Manager and Chief Engineer. “Innovation in engineering has always been at the core of what we do at LADWP, all the way back to William Mulholland. Our employees continue to plan and build innovative solutions to provide safe and reliable water and power to our customers.”

In the “Infrastructure – New Construction” category, WCCC awarded LADWP’s Beacon project its second highest award, the Distinguished Project Achievement Award, for meeting its criteria requirements while also maintaining an extraordinary safety record. LADWP’s Tujunga Spreading Grounds project received the Exceptional Project Achievement Award, the WCCC’s third highest honor, in the “Infrastructure – Renovation” category. Both projects were also recognized with two Special Distinction Awards – the Sustainability Excellence Award, given to projects that achieved high sustainability requirements, took creative sustainability approaches and achieved significant energy savings; and the Innovative Project Solutions Award, for projects where new, unique or innovative construction solutions were implemented.

The projects have also been recognized through industry awards at the state and national level, with Tujunga receiving two awards in Excellence in Environmental Engineering and Science from the American Academy of Environmental Engineers and Sciences (AAEES) in April 2019 and Beacon being chosen as the American Society of Civil Engineer (ASCE) Region 9 “Outstanding Energy Project” for 2018.

LADWP’s Water Resources division is supporting the Tujunga Spreading Grounds Enhancement Project, which will be completed in late 2020. Learn more about the project by visiting www.ladwp.com/TSG or watching the following video.

LADWP’s Beacon Solar & Battery Energy Storage System has been operational since October 2018. You can learn more by reading our project profile here on Intake.

We extend sincere congratulations to all the employees who, after many years of dedicated service, are joining the ranks of LADWP retirees. For a complete archive  and the latest month of retirement listings, visit the Water and Power Employees Retirement Plan website.