Water has been a part of Jim Abercrombie's life since he graduated from Santa Clara University.

“I went there to learn how a water system works and then I went back to college to learn how to pay for it,” Abercrombie joked.

Born and raised in Fresno, Abercrombie has been general manager of the El Dorado Irrigation District since 2009. He previously worked with PG&E and the Amador Water District.

For Abercrombie, running EID has been much smoother than what previous general mangers faced. In the early 2000s meetings could be contentious to the point of having the police called.

“My goal is to try and anticipate questions and to always get to a 5-0 vote on board actions,” Abercrombie said, adding it was a change in philosophy by the district in the mid 2000s that the system should be int

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