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Mammoth Is Interesting

H. David Nahai, an environmental activist attorney who on Monday, Oct. 29 was nominated to run the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, will keynote Andrea Lawrence's ALIMAR Awards Dinner on Nov. 9, Lawrence announced.

Nahai, 54, is an ally of L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

In making the nomination, Villaraigosa is banking on the city making good its vow to make renewable energy sources 20% of its portfolio by 2010.

According to a report in the L.A. Times, Nahai's nomination has the backing of several key environmentalists, who have lobbied the mayor's office and at least two city council members for his appointment. The council must confirm the move before it is official.

Nahai, who was born in Tehran and raised in England, has spent a decade on the Regional Water Quality Control Board. He was named by Villaraigosa just days after Ron Deaton, the former DWP general manager, announced he was retiring for medical reasons.

Nahai resigned as DWP board president three weeks ago to seek Deaton's job if the post became vacant, the Times reported.

Nahai is a member of the Environmental Advisory Committee for Assembly member Paul Koretz (D-Los Angeles) and has served on the Environmental Task Force for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

He is a member of the California League of Conservation Voters, sits on its Board of Directors and executive committee and is chair of its development committee. He was elected to the Boards of numerous philanthropic organizations, including the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles, the Iranian American Jewish Federation, the Jewish Community Foundation, and the Magbit Foundation.

Additionally, Nahai is a member of the Board of Directors and Executive Committee for Security Pacific Bank.

In a speech to the General Electric "Green is Universal" press conference last May, Nahai characterized his work as a varied potpourri.

"My life is split between the private sector, the public sector, and environmental involvements," he said. "I have seen this revolution -- this merger between entrepreneurship and environmentalism -- developing."

Speaking alongside Los Angeles business leaders at a press conference on May 25, Nahai said,

"As I listen to these captains of industry, I sigh just a little, because it's clear that they are not so much going green as they are seeing green -- the green of the dollar. But their motivation for being here is less important than the fact that they are here. And if we can put them in a position in which they can produce their profits and protect our planet, all at the same time, then that's just fine by me. After all, it's doing green that matters."

Nahai's remarks were printed on the influential blog HuffingtonPost.com.

Nahai has been the recipient of numerous awards and commendations, including the 2003 Environmental Champion Award given by the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters.

"I'm excited to hearing David Nahai's vision for the future relationship between Los Angeles and our Eastern Sierra counties," Lawrence said.

Also featured will be presentation of the Andrea Mead Lawrence Award for "Passionate Engagement in Community and the Land" to Friends of the Inyo.

"This is a chance to recognize good work being done on the ground here in the Eastern Sierra," Lawrence said.

"The Friends of the Inyo deserves recognition for their outstanding stewardship efforts in both Mono and Inyo counties through meaningful work projects that connect people to the land."

The dinner is at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area's Main Lodge, in the third-floor Mountainside Conference Center.

Tickets for the event are $50.

More information is available by calling 760-914-9092. RSVP via e-mail is at events@alimar.org.

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