In the three years Adel Hagekhalil has led California’s largest urban water company, the general manager has been working to adapt to climate change, in part by reducing reliance on distant water sources and investing in local supplies. .
his efforts helped change priorities The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California has traditionally focused on delivering imported water to the region, and the plan has won praise from environmental advocates who want to reduce their reliance on the Colorado River and Northern California water supplies.
However, now Hag Khalil is under investigation over harassment claims and has been take a vacation On the MWD board, some of his supporters said they worried his marginalization could interfere with the policies he helped advance.
“I hope this doesn’t mean we’re undoing the progress we’ve made since Adel took office,” said Conner Everts, executive director of the Southern California Watershed Alliance, which supports Hag-Khalil’s policies.
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The allegations against Hag Khalil surfaced on Thursday while he was attending a water conference in Singapore.
Treasurer Katano Kasaine made the allegations in a confidential letter to the board of directors, which was leaked to the media. She said HaqKhalil harassed, belittled and marginalized her and created a hostile work environment.
Hag Khalil denied the accusations and said he had always treated employees with respect and professionalism and that the allegations amounted to “a disagreement over management decisions.”
The MWD board voted to place Hagekhalil on administrative leave for 90 days while Kasaine’s complaint and other allegations are investigated. The board appointed Assistant General Manager Deven Upadhyay, who has been with the agency for 29 years, to replace him on an interim basis as interim general manager.
For more than three decades, Everts has advocated for Southern California to reduce its reliance on imported water supplies by increasing local supplies. He said he was pleased to see Hagekhalil and MWD move forward with plans for the country Largest wastewater recycling facility in Carson and working on developing climate change adaptation plan.
Everts said he hopes that regardless of the outcome of the investigation, the agency will not return to its outdated focus on imported water, which he believes some “conservative” leaders at MWD still favor.
Everts, like many others who spoke at Thursday’s board meeting, said the allegations demand a fair and impartial investigation.
“Hopefully Adel can come back and continue to lead in this direction. If not, whoever steps in will do so,” Everts said. “Does the culture change at this institution continue to make progress? That’s my question.
MWD is the largest wholesale supplier of drinking water in the United States, serving cities and institutions serving 19 million people in Southern California.
MWD Board Chairman Adán Ortega Jr. said that while the board made a “difficult decision” regarding the allegations against Hag Khalil, “we remain committed to the organization’s policies and direction.
Ortega said he doesn’t expect any changes to the district’s “current policy approach.”
“Our current mission is to fight climate change,” Ortega said in an interview with The Times. “Anyone who wants to challenge this is faced with a very embedded policy framework for dealing with climate change.”
Ortega was involved in the selection of Hag Khalil, who previously Worked for the City of Los Angeles and who is hired after hard fight Among the 2021 Board of Directors members.
As for the accusations against Hag Khalil, Ortega said he was disturbed by the leak of confidential letters.
“I believe whoever leaked this information was trying to frame the board. But we’re not going to let them do that and I don’t think it’s going to work,” Ortega said.
He said that all initiatives being carried out by Hag Khalil will continue under Upadhyay’s leadership while the matter is investigated.
“The board drives the agenda,” he said. “I think the board is aligned on the things that Adel and I share.”
Hag Khalil led the agency during major initiatives, including those aimed at Addressing Colorado River Water Shortageplans to build a water reclamation plant in Carson, and the MWD board’s consideration of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan Building a $20 billion water tunnel Located in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
Some supporters of Hag Khalil questioned why the matter was brought to the board while he was traveling and said the public display of displeasure appeared to be an effort to oust a leading advocate for changing the district’s priorities.
But Ortega said any speculation that placing Hag Khalil on leave could undermine MWD’s current policy agenda is unfounded.
“The board is fully organized to support this agenda,” Ortega said. “So I’m not nervous or skeptical about our continued policy direction.”
“It’s a mistake to think that the fate of our policy agenda depends on one person’s ideas,” he added. “There are no changes in terms of the organization of the board or the composition of the projects or committees that we are considering in the coming months. All of that is intact. So nothing has changed.
Still, some environmental advocates say they worry about potential links between the surfacing of the allegations against Hag Khalil and efforts by some within the agency to push the proposed bill. Delta Transportation Project, a 45-mile-long tunnel that would create a second route that would bring water from the Sacramento River into the state Water Project’s aqueduct. They noted that Kassain currently serves as treasurer of the Delta Transportation Design and Construction Authority, the agency created to fund the tunnel plan.
“I think this was a planned ambush to get the tunnel approved over the objections of other members of the Met’s board,” said Patricia Schifferle, director of environmental consultancy Pacific Advocates.
At Monday’s MWD Commission meeting, supporters and opponents of the proposed tunnel debated the costs and benefits of the project.
State Water Resources Minister Karla Nemeth told board members the program is critical to improving the reliability of water supplies in the face of climate change, rising sea levels and major earthquakes.
Other proponents have made similar arguments, while opponents argue that building the tunnels would harm the Delta’s deteriorating ecosystem and be more expensive than other water supply alternatives.
The cost will be paid by cities and agricultural water districts that decide to participate. The country recently released Cost-benefit analysis The purpose is to provide local water agencies with information for consideration.
MWD will receive a significant portion of the water, and the board’s final decision on whether to participate is expected to be critical in determining whether the state’s plan goes forward.
In 2020, the MWD board agreed to donate $160.8 million for planning and pre-construction costs. District officials said the board could consider whether to provide additional funding for planning and pre-construction costs by the end of the year, and it could take several years before a decision on long-term financial involvement is made.
“The question is, how does this plan work and what assurances can we make about the resiliency it will provide for the future of the Delta and our water supply,” Hag Khalil said when the state’s cost-benefit analysis was released last month. , and how much does it cost?
Leaders of several environmental groups said they were disappointed that Hag Khalil was placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into the allegations against him.
“It is critical and appropriate that MWD takes these allegations seriously, and we applaud the agency’s decision to investigate these allegations so that the board can understand exactly what happened among the organization’s senior leadership,” said Bruce Reznik, Los Angeles. Executive Director of Water Guardian Group. “That said, the public needs more information to ensure the full independence of this review.”
He said any action against Hag Khalil should follow an independent investigation.
Reznik called Hag Khalil a “visionary, inclusive and transparent leader” who is helping the agency reform its approach to adapt to the impacts of climate change.
“He has been outspoken about his vision and plans to transform the agency,” Reznick said. “MWD must continue to focus on that focus.”
