MWH appoints two experts to its S. Calif. staff

BROOMFIELD, CO, Sept. 20, 2005 -- MWH, a global environmental engineering and consulting firm, announced today that Jerry A. King has joined the firm as vice president. Joseph E. Tait, the former executive vice president/COO of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD), also has joined MWH as vice president.

King has more than 25 years of experience in strategic planning, project management, and utility-government relations. He served 16 years on the Santa Ana, Calif., Regional Water Quality Control Board and is a former board member of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD), the largest municipal water district in the US. King will direct MWH project teams in delivering management consulting services to municipal governments and utility clients.

MWH president and CEO Robert Uhler stated, "Jerry is a renowned leader in water quality and regulatory policy. His impressive service developing water quality standards with numerous Southern California water agencies will greatly benefit MWH's clients. We know that his contributions and expertise will be valuable in developing solutions for our clients' utility and water management challenges."

King was past chairman and board member of the Orange County Water District and the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority. He has served nearly 20 other agencies and associations as a board member, chairman, or advisor, including more than four years as a member of MWD's board committees on water quality, desalination, environmental oversight, and legislation. He has been a senior manager for private sector consultants and owned a land planning and development consulting firm. He is a lecturer for the University of California-Irvine Graduate School of Management MBA Program and is on the university's Department of Planning, Policy and Design advisory board.

King's contributions to water quality have earned national accolades, including recognition from the California State Assembly for his outstanding community contributions, and acknowledgement from the U.S. House of Representatives for his involvement in water quality issues and environmental concerns regarding the Santa Ana River in Southern California. He holds a master's degree in Urban Regional Planning from UCLA and a bachelor's degree in Social Sciences and Economics from University of California-Irvine, which awarded him the prestigious Distinguished Alumnus award in 1984.

Tait has 25 years of public and private sector expertise in water utility and consulting management. He'll direct MWH project teams in delivering IT solutions and management consulting services to municipal governments and utility clients.

Uhler stated, "Joe's water industry and business management experience combine to offer unique insight into utility management and operational challenges. Joe's perspective will be highly valuable in helping MWH's clients improve their business performance."

Tait's tenure at MWD resulted in effectively restructuring and introducing operational efficiencies for a $2 billion, 2,300-employee agency that serves 26 public agencies and 18 million residents in a 5,200 square mile region. In addition, Tait was Principal-in-Charge for utilities projects for major municipalities throughout Southern California, was Administrative Manager for the Metropolitan Water District of Salt Lake City, and served on the Utah Governor's water committee. Tait previously held Board seats with the American Water Works Association (AWWA) and the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA).

Broomfield, Colorado-based MWH (www.mwhglobal.com) is a private, employee-owned environmental engineering and consulting firm with approximately 6,000 employees in 170 offices worldwide. The firm provides engineering design and remediation, construction, procurement, program management, and technology solutions for the environmental, land, water, wastewater, energy and power markets of the Americas, Europe, Middle East, India, Asia and the Pacific Rim.

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