CHINO BASIN WATERMASTER - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Field Operations Specialist
Alonso Jurado joined Chino Basin Watermaster on October 2, 2018. Alonso has operated in the utilities industry for the past 14 years, starting with his time in the U.S. Navy as an Interior Communications Electrician. Alonso successfully completed three deployments and was part of the electrical maintenance division collaborating with multiple departments to maintain, troubleshoot, and repair electrical equipment onboard naval ships.
After four years of honorable service, Alonso continued his career with the City of Long Beach where he worked alongside the gas and water departments gathering and processing data on gas and water meters. After working as a meter reader for a short period of time, Alonso was promoted to Field Supervisor. During this time, he managed the day to day operations of a successful meter reading project.
As the Field Operations Specialist, Alonso's duties include ground water quality monitoring, retrieving transducer data, water meter reading and various field tasks related to the Watermaster.
Alonso enjoys spending time with family and friends. He also enjoys boating, camping, ziplining and any adventurous activity. Lastly, he is also a big sports fan and enjoys attending live sporting events.
Job Titles:
- Executive Services Director / Board Clerk
Anna Nelson joined Chino Basin Watermaster on December 4, 2013. Prior to joining Watermaster, she worked at HMC Architects providing executive level administrative support and construction administration to the Interior Architecture department. She was the Office Manager for Masco Contractor Services, St. Nicholas School, and Culligan Water.
Anna has a vocational certificate in business administration, has earned the Certified Administrative Professional-Organizational Management-Technology Applications (CAP‑OM‑TA) certificates from the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP), and is a commissioned State of California notary public.
As Executive Services Director, her duties include managing Watermaster's commitments/obligations, contracts administration, and facilities management. She is also responsible for managing all meetings, is the Clerk of the Board, and provides support to the General Manager on day-to-day administrative functions.
Anna enjoys spending time with her family and likes to stay active by running, biking, and occasional hiking.
Bob and his wife have lived in Glendora for over 56 years.
Bob served four years on the City Planning Commission and eight years on the Glendora City Council, three of those years as mayor. As a Council Member, he served on the San Gabriel Valley Association of Cities, Southern California Association of Governments, was a delegate to the League of California Cities and the Los Angeles County Sanitation District. He is a past President of both the Foothill Transit Board and Independent Cities Risk Management Association. He also served on the San Gabriel Valley Planning Committee and as an alternate on the Los Angeles County LAFCO Board.
Currently, he is serving his fifth term on the board of Three Valleys MWD. He is currently the president of the board and has held this position for the past 17 years. He is a past chairman of the San Gabriel Basin Water Quality Authority and currently serving as the Vice Chairman. Also, he is currently a board member of the San Gabriel Economic Partnership and a member of the Board of Directors of Glendora Community Hospital. He is a member of the Glendora Rotary Club and a Mason.
Bob is Semi Retired as the owner of a Glendora based insurance agency.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Advisory Committee
- Pool Committee Chair
Job Titles:
- Field Operations Specialist
David Huynh joined Chino Basin Watermaster on October 2, 2018. Prior to joining Watermaster, he worked for Blaine Tech Services, Inc. as a Field Technician. David was also a Laboratory Intern with Orange County Public Health Water Quality Laboratory and helped conduct bacteriological testing of surface and ground water samples. While attending college, he interned for Orange County Coastkeeper and participated in environmental advocacy projects such as eel grass restoration, beach clean ups, and plastic bag ban implementation.
David graduated from the University of California, Irvine in 2016 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Earth System Science and a specialization in Hydrology.
As a Field Operations Specialist, David's duties include: groundwater quality monitoring, retrieving transducer data, water meter reading and various other field tasks to help Watermaster fulfill the judgement.
David enjoys camping, fishing, and strumming away on his six-string guitar.
A champion of regional water interests across the Inland Empire, Don Galleano has been a public servant in Riverside County for more than 40 years. In 2004, he was elected to the Western Municipal Water District Board of Directors after serving nearly twenty-five years on the Jurupa Community Services District Board. He represents Western's Division #4, which includes the cities of Eastvale, Jurupa Valley and Norco.
As Western's sole representative on the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Board, Don Galleano is responsible for acting on behalf of the interests of the nearly one million customers who receive their water both directly and indirectly from Western. Currently, he serves on Metropolitan's Engineering & Operations, Agriculture and Industry Relations, Communications and Legislation and Integrated Resources Planning committees. His leadership role in the greater watershed also includes a seat on the Chino Basin Watermaster Board, which is charged with managing the Chino groundwater basin, one of the largest in Southern California.
Don Galleano is a third-generation winegrower at the Historic Cantu-Galleano Ranch, home to Galleano Winery, a highly-acclaimed dry farming operation.
Galleano is past president of the Western Riverside County Businessman's Association and the Jurupa Chamber of Commerce. He is currently serving on the National Orange Show Foundation Board, the Los Angeles County Fair Association Board and is the Chairman of the Pacific Rim Wine Competition.
Job Titles:
- Senior Environmental Engineer
- Water Resources Management and Planning Director
Edgar Tellez Foster joined Chino Basin Watermaster on November 8, 2016. Mr. Tellez Foster has devoted his time to conducting research relating to the economics of groundwater and energy subsidies. He has several academic publications involving economic modeling of aquifers in California and Mexico.
Mr. Tellez Foster has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, a Master of Science in Environmental Sciences from the University of California, Riverside and a Doctorate degree in Environmental and Natural Resources Economics and Policy from the University of California, Riverside.
As the Water Resources Management and Planning Director, Edgar is in charge of analysis of the various projects overseen by Chino Basin Watermaster. He provides analytic expertise in issues related to groundwater quality, management and economics of groundwater.
Edgar is a passionate former rower, and also enjoys traveling and skiing.
Job Titles:
- Resources Management and Planning Director
Job Titles:
- Water Resources Senior Associate
- Water Resources Sr. Associate ( GIS & Database Specialist )
Frank Yoo joined Watermaster in February 2005. Before joining Watermaster, he worked for Wildermuth Environmental Inc. as a Field Technician. Prior to his career in the water field, he operated his family business as the Owner, Assistant Manager, Accounting, Logistics, and IT Support.
Frank has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Geographic Information Systems from the California Polytechnic University, Pomona.
As a Water Resources Senior Associate, some of his duties include preparing the annual assessment package, processing water production data, validating land use conversion and voluntary agreement requests, managing geographic data to be used in maps and analysis, maintaining Watermaster's website, programming and maintaining relational databases for record keeping and analysis, and fulfilling data requests from parties outside of Watermaster.
Frank enjoys working with his hands, whether it's improving his home, tending to his yard, building computers, or working in his garage. He also enjoys various outdoor activities such as fishing.
James V. Curatalo, Jr. was elected to the Cucamonga Valley Water District Board of Directors in November 1999. He represents Division 5 and currently serves on the Water Resources Committee and the Human Resources/Risk Management Committee. Director Curatalo represents CVWD as the regular special district member for the County of San Bernardino, Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), where he serves as Vice-Chairman of the Commission. Director Curatalo also serves as the Chairman of the Fontana Union Water Company, a mutual water agency in which CVWD is the majority shareholder. As a representative of the Fontana Union Water Company, he was appointed to the Chino Basin Watermaster and currently serves as Vice-Chair.
President Curatalo is a retired battalion chief from the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District. His background and experience include fire safety, technical rescue, hazardous material incident management, and he has served as a training officer for his department. Prior to his employment with the Fire District, he was a contractor operating his own business in the San Gabriel Valley.
Janine Wilson has worked for Watermaster since June 2000.
Ms. Wilson graduated from Chaffey Community College in May 2000 with an Associates Degree in Computer Information Systems and Basic Education. In June 2014, she earned the certificate of Certified Administrative Professional - Organizational Management (CAP-OM) from the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP).
As the Sr. Accountant, Ms. Wilson is responsible for the day-to-day routine activities of the accounting department including accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, financial reporting, insurances, annual budget, annual financial audit, and the annual assessment package preparation. She is responsible for maintaining the records contained within Watermaster's document management system, as well as filing legal documents with the Court.
Janine enjoys being outdoors and spending time with her grandchildren.
Joseph S. Joswiak joined Chino Basin Watermaster as the Chief Financial Officer on April 5, 2010. Mr. Joswiak has worked in both the public and private sectors and has a diversified career in finance and administration with more than 35+ years in the manufacturing, transportation, banking, professional services and hospital management industries. Prior to joining Chino Basin Watermaster, Mr. Joswiak was the Financial Services Manager/Assistant Treasurer for Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc., a former Fortune 500 company and the nation's leading producer of manufactured housing and recreational vehicles. He was also the Vice President of Finance and Administration for Cofiroute USA, formerly California Private Transportation Company (CPTC), which owned and operated the highly acclaimed 91 Express Lanes - the world's first fully automated toll highway. Mr. Joswiak's past professional affiliations include management positions with Notting America, Inc.; CU Cooperative Systems, Inc.; California Credit Union League; Care Enterprises, Inc.; and Sony Corporation. Additionally, he served four years in the United States Navy assigned to the Naval Support Force Antarctica, which included deployments "on the ice" at McMurdo Station, Antarctica.
Mr. Joswiak earned an MBA from the University of Redlands, and received his Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration/Accounting from California State University, Fullerton.
As the Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Joswiak provides leadership, coordination and administration of all functional activities and policies related to running the day-to-day business of Watermaster which includes accounting, finance, treasury, payroll, budgeting, financial reporting, auditing, human resources, risk management, IT services, and administrative functions.
Mr. Joswiak enjoys spending time with his family and grandchildren on their camping trips, fishing and boating activities at Lake Tahoe, adventures to Disneyland, and being a member of SoCal Patriot Guard Riders.
Joseph S. Joswiak joined Chino Basin Watermaster as the Chief Financial Officer on April 5, 2010. Mr. Joswiak has worked in both the public and private sectors and has a diversified career in finance and administration with more than 35+ years in the manufacturing, transportation, banking, professional services and hospital management industries. Prior to joining Chino Basin Watermaster, Mr. Joswiak was the Financial Services Manager/Assistant Treasurer for Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc., a former Fortune 500 company and the nation's leading producer of manufactured housing and recreational vehicles. He was also the Vice President of Finance and Administration for Cofiroute USA, formerly California Private Transportation Company (CPTC), which owned and operated the highly acclaimed 91 Express Lanes - the world's first fully automated toll highway. Mr. Joswiak's past professional affiliations include management positions with Notting America, Inc.; CU Cooperative Systems, Inc.; California Credit Union League; Care Enterprises, Inc.; and Sony Corporation. Additionally, he served four years in the United States Navy assigned to the Naval Support Force Antarctica, which included deployments "on the ice" at McMurdo Station, Antarctica.
Mr. Joswiak earned an MBA from the University of Redlands, and received his Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration/Accounting from California State University, Fullerton.
As the Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Joswiak provides leadership, coordination and administration of all functional activities and policies related to running the day-to-day business of Watermaster which includes accounting, finance, treasury, payroll, budgeting, financial reporting, auditing, human resources, risk management, IT services, and administrative functions.
Mr. Joswiak enjoys spending time with his family and grandchildren on their camping trips, fishing and boating activities at Lake Tahoe, adventures to Disneyland, and being a member of SoCal Patriot Guard Riders.
Job Titles:
- Water Resources Senior Associate
- Water Resources Technical Manager
Justin Nakano has been with Chino Basin Watermaster since February 14, 2005.
Justin graduated from the University of California, Irvine in 2003, with a Bachelor's Degree in Environmental Analysis and Design and a Minor in Japanese Language and Literature. In 2010 he received his Masters in Public Administration from Cal State Northridge. Since 2016, Justin has served on the Water Commission for the City of Glendora, advising the City Council on policies and programs related to the City's water.
As a Water Resources Technical Manager, Justin's duties include: coordinating the planning and construction of capital improvement projects, monitoring and maintenance of recharge basins, gathering and processing of transducer data, water level updates to the production database, water quality sampling, and providing direct supervision to the Field Operations Specialists with various duties. Justin also represents Watermaster at various conservation efforts such as the Santa Ana River Sucker Task Force and the Landscape Water Conservation Fair.
Justin enjoys spending time with family, travel, playing basketball, and obstacle course races.
Job Titles:
- Resources Technical Manager
Mr. Jeffrey Pierson has been involved in both the Dairy and Farming industries within the Inland Empire Region for over three decades. He has participated as an officer of the Overlying Agricultural Pool and Advisory Committee throughout this period and has been involved with the evolution of Watermaster to its present-day configuration.
Mr. Pierson represents one of the largest property owners in the Chino Basin. Over the course of his career, he has been responsible for supervising and coordinating the production aspects of large scale real estate development, including land entitlements, engineering studies and documentation, land planning and architecture, construction management and general contracting, along with the acquisition and disposition of raw and finished product. He serves as the Principle-in-Charge of individual development projects controlled or managed by Unitex Management Corp., the Intex family of corporations and partnerships, and Eastvale Development Company.
Mr. Pierson is a graduate of the University of Southern California in Civil Engineering and the University of California, Irvine, in the Graduate School of Business, Executive Management Program.
Mr. Robert Bowcock has been appointed to serve on several Watermaster Boards by California Superior Courts since 1990. He currently represents municipal, industrial and commercial parties in the Chino, San Gabriel, Raymond, Mojave, Central and West Los Angeles, Upper Los Angeles River, Santa Clara and San Diego River Basin Judgments in California. Mr. Bowcock founded Integrated Resource Management, Inc. in 1997 after serving as a Water Utility Manager in Azusa (1991-97) and Huntington Park (1987-91), California. Prior to that, Mr. Bowcock worked for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (1982-87), and as a United States Army Civil Affairs Team Leader designed and constructed water treatment and distribution systems for various federal branches of government in Southeast Asia and South America. Mr. Bowcock is also a founder and strategic advisor to Aqua Capital Management LP and AquaTecture, LLC. He is a licensed California Grade V Water Treatment Operator and maintains various other water industry licenses and certifications. He routinely provides expert witness testimony to both state and federal courts and conducts research and writes reports for legal firms in the specific area of water resource management.
Paul Hofer represents the Agricultural Pool on the Watermaster Board. He currently also serves on the Board of Directors for the Inland Empire Utilities Agency, District 2. Mr. Hofer has previously served on the Chino Basin Water Conservation District Board of Directors for over 20 years as both President and Vice President. Mr. Hofer is a resident of Ontario where he has spent his lifetime career as a farmer.
Peter Kavounas has served as the General Manager of Chino Basin Watermaster since 2012. Mr. Kavounas has over 30 years of experience and has worked for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power as the Eastern Sierra Environmental Issues Manager, and for the City of Glendale's Water and Power Department as the Assistant General Manager-Water Services. Mr. Kavounas was elected to the Castaic Lake Water Agency Board of Directors in 1998 and served for fifteen years holding various positions including the office of Board President.
Mr. Kavounas has a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Minnesota, a Master of Engineering-Structural from UC Berkeley, and a Master of Science-Water Resources from USC. He is also a graduate of Leadership Southern California Class XII, and is a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of California.
As the General Manager Mr. Kavounas oversees all aspects of the organization: meeting obligations to the Judgment and other Court Orders, implementation of the Optimum Basin Management Program, compliance with all regulatory requirements, and business practices.
Mr. Kavounas enjoys running, nature, and reading.
Job Titles:
- Council Member
- Chairman of the Chino Hills Community Foundation
Council Member Peter Rogers was elected to the Chino Hills City Council in 2006, and was re-elected in 2010, 2014, and 2018. He has served three terms as Mayor. He began his public service on the City's Parks and Recreation Commission in 1998 after interacting with the Commission for many years as President of Canyon Hills Little League.
Council Member Rogers served on the Chino Basin Watermaster Board in 2012 and 2013. He has also served as Chair, Vice Chair, and Board Member of the Chino Desalter Authority (CDA), and the Water Facilities Authority (WFA). He represents Chino Hills on the Policy Committee of the Inland Empire Utilities Agency (IEUA).
He is a member and Past President of the Rancho Del Chino Rotary Club. Council Member Rogers is the Chair of the Chino Hills Community Foundation, which was founded in 2008. He founded chARTS, the Arts Committee of the Foundation in 2013. Council Member Rogers and his wife Merry have lived in Chino Hills since 1986. He is a small business owner. His Chino Hills-based company, Peter Rogers Photography, serves the advertising and public relations needs of many major corporations.
Mr. Elie was first appointed as the Inland Empire Utilities Agency's representative to the Watermaster Board and has served continuously since January, 2011. Mr. Elie previously served as Vice Chair (2014) and Chair (2015-16) of the Watermaster Board.
In November, 2010 and 2014, Mr. Elie was elected as the representative of IEUA Division 3, representing the Cities of Chino and Chino Hills, and currently serves as IEUA's President. He previously served as Secretary/Treasurer (2011-2016). Mr. Elie also serves as the Chair of IEUA's Community and Legislative Affairs Committee and as a member of IEUA's Audit Committee, as IEUA's representative to the San Bernardino County Association of Special Districts, and as an alternate on the Chino Basin Desalter Authority.
Mr. Elie is an attorney who has practiced for almost 30 years and regularly represents public entities and public utility regulated entities in complex, multiparty litigation and administrative matters, including soil and groundwater contamination.
Vanessa Aldaz joined Watermaster in February 2020. Prior to Watermaster, Vanessa worked at The Lewis Group of Companies providing administrative support for the Land Development and Planned Communities department.
Vanessa holds Associate Degrees in Business Administration, Biological and Physical Mathematics, Social and Behavioral Sciences, and Liberal Arts from Citrus College. She is currently enrolled at California Polytechnic University, Pomona pursing a Bachelors Degree in Finance, Real Estate, & Law with an emphasis in Real Estate.
As Administrative Assistant, Vanessa is responsible for providing each team member with active support in various tasks and projects and specifically assisting the Executive Services Director with day-to-day clerical functions such as document preparation and meeting coordination. She is also a commissioned State of California Notary Public.
When she isn't studying, Vanessa enjoys going to the movies, seeing live music with her husband, and binging TV with her two dogs. She is also an avid reader and a fanatical supporter of independent bookstores.
Councilmember Victor Preciado represents Pomona's District 2 and is committed to fostering partnerships to create an inclusive Pomona. Along with his parents, Victor immigrated to Pomona at an early age and is the eldest child of three, with two sisters. Victor inherited a dedicated, blue-collar work ethic from his parents and started working in the supermarket industry at the age of 15. At 19, after receiving a cancer diagnosis, and successfully beating his cancer, Victor was inspired to live a life serving his community. In his first term, Councilmember Preciado is concentrating on:
Community Engagement
Economic Development
Affordable Housing, and
Youth Mentorship
Through his involvement in the community, Victor has worked with several community-based organizations, including:
Latino/a Roundtable
The dA Center for the Arts
DayOne
Pomona Valley Democrats
Pomona's Promise
Pomona Valley Runners
College for All Coalition
Pomona Leadership Network
Parent Teacher Association
Victor has also helped organize and coordinate events such as:
The Pomona 5K
Pomona Beautification Day
The Pomona Children's Festival
The Cesar Chavez Pilgrimage
As a Councilmember, Victor wants to help protect our natural resources. He is currently serving on a number of boards, including:
The Spadra Basin Watermaster
Pomona Valley Protection Agency
Pomona Walnut Rowland JPA
Six Basins Watermaster
The Chino Basin Watermaster
Victor also serves on the board of the Downtown Pomona Owners Association. With this appointment, he focuses on enriching the Downtown Arts Colony, creating a family oriented experience, and making Downtown Pomona a regional destination for everyone.
In addition to his responsibilities as a Councilmember, he plans to continue to volunteer in his community along with his wife, Marisol Ramirez.