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Leading by Example

Leading by Example

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By Dennis Heiman ~

I came to the State Board in 1975, rescued after a year in the desert (Region 7) by Planning and Research Division chief Michael Campos and assigned to work under James on the completion of the individual Regional Board Water Quality Control Plans (Basin Plans). I spent the next five years working with and learning from James before the urge to move north took me to the Region 5 Redding office. We were a close group in the Basin Plan unit, James, myself, Merry Benard, Peter Lee, Tess Smith.

James was not a stickler for agency policy or protocol, his focus was on important problems and issues and getting them addressed. He expected his staff to approach their work assignments in a professional manner and led by example.

James and I discussed the concept of ‘stream health’ as a more holistic approach to beneficial water use protection/enhancement, as opposed to a single minded focus on numerical standards for individual water quality constituents. In that regard, he was a ‘man before his time’.

I will always remember James as an imaginative and intuitive thinker and not just a supervisor concerned only that the required work got done and on time. He was often a person of few words but they were always meaningful. After leaving the State Board Sacramento office, I was fortunate enough to have another 30 years of what turned out to be a very enjoyable and rewarding career with the Water Board, and I honestly believe much of that is due to the time I spent with James and what I learned from him.

James at the SWRCB

James at the SWRCB

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By Allan Patton ~

James had 20 years experience with the Board before I started working with him.  He worked on the Clean Water Grants program, Operator Certification, the Border Program including the New River and Salton Sea, and probably every other program at the Board except Water Rights.

MtBE – James was the leader in getting MtBE removed from gasoline in California.

Underground Storage Tank Cleanup Program – James challenged the basis for this program by asking “Where is the problem?”  His questioning of the need for investing so much time and money in the cleanup of petroleum led to the “Plumathon,” wherein the Board’s contractor Lawrence Livermore National Lab concluded that benzene never moved far from the leak source and sites could be closed after the leak was stopped and some of the worst stuff was cleaned up.  He fought the Regions for most of the rest of his career to instill some sense into this program.  The addition of MtBE to gasoline was a major setback to this effort.

Geotracker – James was the major force in making the State Board’s online cleanup site database, Geotracker, a reality.  It was cutting edge at the time.

Site Cleanup Program – In the early 1990s, it was James who came up with the idea of using the Cleanup and Abatement Account to provide cash flow for staffing at the Regions to oversee the investigation and cleanup of sites where the responsible party wanted to pursue cleanup but there was no money for staff to direct the work.  For the State Board it really became a reimbursement program where we billed the owners.  Still going as far as I know.  Important but boring!

Toxic Pits Cleanup Act – James inherited this program after it had languished somewhat for four or five years.  In true form James challenged the Regional Boards to close many of the minor non-cases that had been included in this program and focus on the cases that posed a real risk to water quality.  I don’t think this one exists anymore.

DoD/GAMA/Land Disposal.  All groundwater programs.

The Garden

The Garden

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By Steve Morse ~ One of my remembrances on this early and warm September day…

I still remember James visiting my garden one Saturday in August maybe 15 plus years ago. The occasion was when I invited my Regional Board Division (many had worked on projects with James) to a backyard BBQ here in Martinez… Ravi was the BBQ master… I don’t think Carole came, but somewhere I seem to remember a teen-age niece. It was late summer and one of my better tomato years… I think even James was impressed… not knowing that was what was in my backyard garden… times do change though and no more tomatoes this year as I didn’t prune my trees back enough to get enough sunlight into my now much smaller garden… if he knew, I’m sure James would not let me forget for next year…

Editor’s comment by Carole: Despite his declining health, James grew his best tomato garden ever this year. When I brought him home from the hospital the Saturday before he died, he asked to have tomatoes with dinner that night.  They were delicious!

The JGG Tree

The JGG Tree

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By Ravi Arulanantham, PhD ~

I like to share a story that will explain the nature of James and how much he liked and cared for his coworkers. Sometimes back in 1998-1999 time period I was working with James on some amendments to a policy document (SWRCB Resolution 92-49). One day he sent me a recommendation suggested by a staff member from another region and asked me to give my feedback on the 3-4 page suggested language. After reading the document, I simply wrote back to James saying that the content did not have any salt and lime juice to it. He called me the same day and asked what did I mean by “no salt and lime juice” (of course in the context of a State groundwater policy document). I told him that my grandmother used to say that if you did not add salt and lime juice to a curry and in the right proportion, the curry will not taste good and no one will eat it.

Several months had passed and one weekend we had a party at our house and James and Carole were among the invitees. James walked in the front door with a five pound bag of salt in one hand and holding a lime tree (in a five gallon size container) in the other hand and with his famous smile on his face. We planted the tree next to our deck and named the lime tree “The JGG Tree”.  Even today the JGG tree is  very healthy and bears abundant fruits each year for us to enjoy.

The JGG Tree

One bad winter, I wrapped the tree with my mother’s saree to protect from the frost. I used to send James regularly pictures of his tree with full of fruits and he enjoyed seeing them.

Recently a humming bird built a nest in the JGG tree and you can see the two young ones in the nest waiting for their mother to come and feed them.  Of course, We did not buy salt for our cooking for many months at our house as well.

Hummingbird Nest in the JGG Tree

In Memory of James

In Memory of James

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By Bart Christensen ~

I worked for James Giannopoulos for many years at the State Water Resources Control Board.  Many people have wondered what exactly I did there all those years.  James (usually) knew, and always encouraged me to take my assignments to wherever they might lead.

I consider it an honor to have worked for James.  I learned so much from him.  James was an outstanding engineer, leader, communicator, public servant and friend.  He changed my life for the better.  I will never forget him, and I suspect I am not alone. A complete list of the important aspects of James’s character would be a long one, and would differ from other people’s perspective.  My list includes:

•    Wisdom  James always seemed to know what to do, and the most effective way to do it.  James could see both the forest and the trees.

•    Loyalty  James was always loyal to the goals of the State Water Resources Control Board, even if the goals were not always remembered by others, and even if his actions were not always popular.  James was loyal to those who worked for him, and his staff were loyal to him

•    High Standards  James had high personal standards as an engineer and a public servant, and he expected similar standards from the scientists and engineers who worked under his supervision

•    Mentor  James’s character and standards served as a model for those lucky enough to have known him

•    Always Had Your Back   If his staff had done their homework, James always “had their back” when there was push back from the agencies that were challenged by his staff, and upper managers that would have preferred to take an easier, less effective position.

•    Respected  In meetings with Federal, State and local agency representatives, James’s presence always demanded and received respect.

•    Aggressive  James always expected his staff to complete their assignments, regardless of how well their recommendations were received by others, and he had a personal ‘fighting spirit” that encouraged others to follow through with their assignments.

•    Strong Moral Code  James always stood for what was right over what was wrong, and never seemed to waiver in his defense of strong environmental public policy.