Local businessman Matt Swanson will take his agricultural expertise to the state level after recently being appointed to the California Water Commission.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced last week that Swanson, 51, has been appointed to a four-year term on the CWC — a position which requires Senate confirmation. Members are generally chosen for their expertise related to the control, storage and beneficial use of water or for their knowledge of the environment. Swanson has served as president and chief executive officer at Associated Feed in Turlock since 1998.
Associated Feed serves the animal feed market, offering product for the dairy, poultry, swine, beef, equine, sheep, ratite and rabbit industries. The company considers itself leaders in sustainable, ethical operation, replacing trucks with new, energy-efficient models, running rail cars using emission-lowering technology and upgrading equipment company-wide to state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies that help production run more efficiently in all aspects.
“It is an honor to be appointed by Governor Newsom to the California Water Commission,” Swanson told the Journal. “I look forward to working on behalf of the Governor and the citizens of California to advance sound water infrastructure and environmental stewardship.”
On the CWC, Swanson will help to provide a public forum for discussing water issues, advise the Department of Water Resources, approve rules and regulations and monitor and report on the construction and operation of the State Water Project. The SWP is the nation’s largest state-built, multi-purpose, user-financed water project which supplies more than 27 million people with water.
The CWC is also responsible for presenting its views to the Congressional appropriations committees on funding for flood control or reclamation projects being planned or constructed in the state, and works closely with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, the State Water Resources Control Board and the Department of Water Resources to regulate water storage projects.
