What a day -- a David Nahai twosome.
So under siege over how much water he's using for his 6,000 square-foot mansion in the hills, DWP General Manager David Nahai came clean today in the Daily News -- twice as much water and more than three times as much electricity than the average ratepayer.
So much for his passion for the environment and conservation and piping toilet water treated repeatedly with toxic chemicals to the homes of the little people.
My head is still spinning from all the p.r. spinning Nahai is doing to turn his ostentatious consumption of precious resources into a virtue -- an opportunity to lecture us on what we should be doing to reduce water and power use. Credit Alan Middlestaedt at Witness L.A. for raising the issue.
Call Nahai irresponsible: "Your gardener sets the sprinkler and it goes off at night, you're sleeping, and the bill comes along and you pay it," he said.
But don't call him elitist: "Yes, it may be that I'm blessed with having more assets than some and less than others, but I'm constantly mindful of those people within the city who aren't as able to fend for themselves," he said. "Contrary to the thought that I'm making some kind of elitist statement here, I'm opening up my private life and I'm saying, `Here is what I've discovered and here's what I want to do to reduce both my usage and my expenditures. Can you do the same?'"
Actually, I can and I didn't have the privilege of his supposedly understaffed department sending out a team to audit my lifestyle.
Like Nahai, I have low-flush toilets and I recirculate water in my pool and I have a low-energy, low water consuming washing machiine. Unlike him, I have other low energy appliances as well. You could fit five of my houses inside his so you can bet I don't have anywhere near the amount of light bulbs or air conditioning use.
Here's an idea: Instead of gouging the little people with endless rate hikes, what if we determine the average residential use of water and power and start charging people sharply higher rates when they go above that. And for people like Nahai maybe we should charge five to 10 times the average rate.
So under siege over how much water he's using for his 6,000 square-foot mansion in the hills, DWP General Manager David Nahai came clean today in the Daily News -- twice as much water and more than three times as much electricity than the average ratepayer.So much for his passion for the environment and conservation and piping toilet water treated repeatedly with toxic chemicals to the homes of the little people.
My head is still spinning from all the p.r. spinning Nahai is doing to turn his ostentatious consumption of precious resources into a virtue -- an opportunity to lecture us on what we should be doing to reduce water and power use. Credit Alan Middlestaedt at Witness L.A. for raising the issue.
Call Nahai irresponsible: "Your gardener sets the sprinkler and it goes off at night, you're sleeping, and the bill comes along and you pay it," he said.
But don't call him elitist: "Yes, it may be that I'm blessed with having more assets than some and less than others, but I'm constantly mindful of those people within the city who aren't as able to fend for themselves," he said. "Contrary to the thought that I'm making some kind of elitist statement here, I'm opening up my private life and I'm saying, `Here is what I've discovered and here's what I want to do to reduce both my usage and my expenditures. Can you do the same?'"
Actually, I can and I didn't have the privilege of his supposedly understaffed department sending out a team to audit my lifestyle.
Like Nahai, I have low-flush toilets and I recirculate water in my pool and I have a low-energy, low water consuming washing machiine. Unlike him, I have other low energy appliances as well. You could fit five of my houses inside his so you can bet I don't have anywhere near the amount of light bulbs or air conditioning use.
Here's an idea: Instead of gouging the little people with endless rate hikes, what if we determine the average residential use of water and power and start charging people sharply higher rates when they go above that. And for people like Nahai maybe we should charge five to 10 times the average rate.
Ron Kaye is the former editor of the Los Angeles Daily News where he spent 23 years helping to make the newspaper the voice of the San Fernando Valley and fighting for a city government that serves the people and not special interests.
Twice in recent years, Los Angeles Magazine listed Kaye among the city’s most influential people, specifically in the area of politics. Kaye has been variously described in the media as the “accidental anarchist,” “the Patrick Henry of the San Fernando Valley” and a “passionate populist.” He is now committed to
carrying on his crusade for a greater Los Angeles as an ordinary citizen. Previously, Ron worked at the Los Angeles Herald Examiner,
Associated Press, Cleveland Plain Dealer and The Australian as well as papers
in Fairbanks, Alaska and Yakima, Wash. He also wrote for Newsweek magazine, The Guardian in London and the National Enquirer.
Like I said, the DN story about him is a beaut!
"Your gardener sets the sprinkler and it goes off at night, you're sleeping, and the bill comes along and you pay it," he said.
If this quote from Nahai is him talking for himself or others with gardners, then all of them are not as sharp as a blade of grass.
Any gardener worth his weight in fertalizer knows you don't freakin' water at night. Night watering promotes unwanted mold growth and mega problems for lawns and plants.
The best and only time to water is in the early morning before the sun is to hot to scorch the greenery and there's enough time for the ground to dry out before sunset.
As for the idiots at the DWP who suggest watering at night, they must be getting kickbacks from the fungicide manufacturers.
Clever of Nahai to turn L A Sniper's hounding of him and family to get his private DWP records, into a PR stunt making it look like it was his idea all along. Yes, he should be a much better example -- keeping your pool heated and uncovered even in winter, AC in the whole house instead of in zones, so much poor planning. He should use a drip system instead of wasteful sprinklers which are rotting his yard -- stuff those of us who have to watch out bills do out of necessity.
Plus he should be giving an example of REAL forward-thinking by installing solar panels for that huge pool and house, like the DWP is telling us to. There's allegedly a rebate plan, too, but you have to spend a lot of money on solar panels first -- something he can afford. How about he does all that and shows us his bill next year?
To be fair, though, the DWP and Mayor's office did announce yesterday that they were going to use recycled waste water on municipal golf courses starting in the Valley, and are looking to use as much of that water outdoors. That's what I've been advocating for some time, and LAWA is doing that while conserving potable water for indoors use. I don't know if they'll have to repipe to extent this division further, but it's a good start. He AND Zine in the arid West Valley have too much water-sucking landscaping, while it's conservative Republican Greig Smith who's a good example using solar on his smallish home.
As a matter of principle, it would be wrong for DWP to force everyone to cut their water use by a certain % or get fined -- some people already use less than their neighbors, with appropriate Mediterranean landscaping and other measures. Some people can't cut down more, while the guy who's been watering his huge lawn every night in the rain and cuts that down, looks like a hero.
You're right that union chief D' Arcy is running the show, though. Really bad timing to rehire 1000 DWP workers just after they got homeowners to accept a rate hike allegedly for our much- needed infrastructure. Is he threatening to strike or embarrass Nahai over something? Like blowing the whistle on the Eastside Machine's appointment of Cindy Montenez to that overpaid part=time job, when we need a full time pro in that job for that money?
Go get'em Ron!!
"Yes, it may be that I'm blessed with having more assets than some and less than others, but I'm constantly mindful of those people within the city who aren't as able to fend for themselves..."
What a sanctimonous git. This is right up there with LaBonge's "Let them have barbecues!" from Donna Barstow's blog.
(picture Labonge dressed as Marie Antoinette.)
If Mr. Nahai doesn't get a Clue soon, it's going to be:
Citizens of Los Angeles.
In the conservatory.
With the rope.
hmmm...maybe we can talk LaBonge into dressing up in drag and giving his proclamation at your Bastille Day bash.
I love your tax idea Ron. Call it the Hypocrisy Tax.
Please propose it when you go to City Hall. I can't join you. I gotta work.
Toilet to tap with no testing for pharm products and no need to because they are harmless at those low levels that we won't test for. Right? Expectant moms - good luck with that, but I'm sure the folks who live in the 6000 sq ft houses will reassure you that your baby's reproductive and nervous systems will be just fine.