Noted ‘Eco-Pioneeer’ S. David Freeman, twice appointed by U.S. presidents to help guide energy policy for the federal government, has stepped in to serve as keynote speaker at the Second International Emerging Technology Symposium after Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was forced to withdraw due to scheduling conflicts.
Co-convened by the International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials (IAPMO) and the World Plumbing Council, the symposium of highly interactive presentations and engaging panel discussions will be held May 11-12 at the DoubleTree Hotel Ontario Airport in Ontario, Calif.
“We feel extremely fortunate and grateful that someone as influential as Mr. Freeman was available on such short notice,” said Russ Chaney, IAPMO executive director. “We are disappointed that the Mayor cannot participate, but truly believe we’ve found a perfect replacement with Mr. Freeman and his considerable legacy of stewardship toward energy and environmental conservation.”
As the recently appointed Interim General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), Freeman oversees the largest municipal utility in the United States, managing more than 8,500 employees and an annual budget of more than $4 billion.
At the appointment of President Johnson in 1967, Freeman became the first person with responsibility for energy policy in the federal government. He served as an energy advisor to President Nixon and in 1977 President Carter appointed him Chairman of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), where he cut sulfur oxide emissions in half, stopped construction of eight nuclear power plants and pioneered a massive energy conservation program. Freeman also assisted in the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Nicknamed the “Green Cowboy,” Freeman has long supported a “non-political, non-ideological” approach to efficiency and conservation. In a 2004 interview with the University of California, Berkeley, he said, “When I was nominated to the TVA board, Senator (John) Stennis (D-Miss.) held up my nomination because he’d heard that I was a radical environmentalist. I met with him and I said, ‘Senator, I’m just a practical environmentalist.’ He says, ‘Practical environmentalist? I think we can live with that, Dave.’ And so he confirmed me. A lot of times, the magic is in the use of the right word. I think I am practical.”
The two-day symposium will allow participants to view presentations and engage in lively discussions on how the water utility, manufacturing, engineering and trade industries have devised solutions to challenges in the water efficiency, plumbing and mechanical industries.
Registration to attend the event is $395 ($295 for IAPMO members) and includes breakfast, lunch and refreshment breaks. Hotel reservations can be made directly with the DoubleTree Hotel Ontario Airport. Mention the IAPMO event for a special room rate of $105 per night plus tax.
For more information, visit http://www.iapmo.org/Pages/EmergingTechnologiesSymposium_NoPics.aspx.
For sponsorship opportunities or any other information about the event, please contact Maria Sol Alba at (708) 995-3005 or Career.Services@iapmo.org.www.iapmo.org
Sponsor of the Uniform Codes, IAPMO – The International Association of Plumbing and Mechanical Officials – works in concert with government and industry for safe, sanitary plumbing and mechanical systems. Learn more about IAPMO at www.iapmo.org.
The mission of the World Plumbing Council is to unite the world plumbing industry to safeguard and protect the environment and the health of nations, for the benefit of all.
Last modified: April 13, 2010