The Southern California Water Committee (SCWC) announced today that it presented Kevin Wattier, general manager of the Long Beach Water Department (LBWD), with the Honorable Harriett Wieder Leadership Award.

The award was presented to Wattier for making great strides in water conservation, the SCWC said in a statement, adding that he helped lower the city’s water consumption between July and August 2014 to its lowest levels since 1958, despite a 45% population increase.

Wattier has also overseen Long Beach’s turf buyback program, which has converted more than 1,400 yards and more than 1.5M sq. ft. of grass to drought-friendly lawns.

“We congratulate Kevin Wattier on his extraordinary achievements in water conservation,” said SCWC Chairman Charles Wilson. “Kevin recognized the importance of water use efficiency years ago, not just during this current record drought, and has been steadily driving meaningful change and making significant progress in how residents and businesses use water in Long Beach.”