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Election Results: Imperial Irrigation District Board Candidates Vie for Two Open Seats

The Imperial Irrigation District recently saw its power cemented, as the state court system declared it the rightful holder of huge water rights on the Colorado River. Now, candidates are facing off for two open seats on its five-member board of directors.

In addition to being the single largest water user on the river, the district delivers electricity to Imperial Valley and the eastern half of the Coachella Valley. Its board, which is elected only by its water ratepayers, continues to fend off attempts to add members from Riverside County.

California Supreme Court Refuses to Review Farmer Michael Abatti’s Case Against IID

The tumultuous, years-long legal fight between farmer Michael Abatti and the Imperial Irrigation District — two of Southern California’s powerbrokers — is now finished.

On Wednesday, the California Supreme Court declined Abatti’s petition for review, leaving in place an appellate court’s decision that declared IID the rightful owner of a massive allotment of Colorado River water.

Opinion: An Agreement to Sell Water is Not About Selling Water?

One of Belgian surrealist painter Rene Magritte’s most famous paintings depicts a tobacco pipe with cursive script below it reading, “Ceci n’est pas une pipe,” which translated from French means, “This is not a pipe.”

Election 2020: Imperial Irrigation District has Two Seats on November Ballot

Four candidates are vying for two seats on the Imperial Irrigation District’s five-member board of directors on Nov. 3. The election will be the culmination of contentious races that already eliminated one incumbent in the primary.

Regional Conveyance Study-RCS-Water Supply

Water Authority to Host Public Session on Economics of Regional Conveyance Study

The San Diego County Water Authority will host an online public information session on Oct. 27 about economic considerations related to the proposed Regional Conveyance System. The virtual event will run from 10 a.m. to noon. To reserve a spot, email .

Meeting participants can:

  • Learn about alternatives the Water Authority Board of Directors is studying to secure San Diego County’s future water supplies
  • Ask the experts about key issues
  • Understand the feasibility and costs of building a conveyance system to deliver San Diego County’s Colorado River supplies
  • Discuss potential next steps

In June of 2019, the Water Authority’s Board of Directors approved a study of the viability of a new regional conveyance system that would deliver water from the Colorado River to San Diego County and could provide multiple benefits across the Southwest.

Regional Conveyance Study

The Phase A report, released in August 2020, found that building a new conveyance system to transport the region’s supplies from the Quantification Settlement Agreement is cost-competitive with other long-term strategies for meeting the region’s water needs.

At its August 2020 meeting, the Water Authority’s Board decided to continue the regional discussion about the study until November 19, at which time the Board is expected to decide whether to move ahead with Phase B of the study.

To learn more about the Regional Conveyance System Study or to read the executive summary and the full report, go to sdcwa.org/colorado-river-supplies-management.

Potential pipeline routes

Regional Conveyance Study-RCS-Economics-Water Supply

A study of a new regional water conveyance system to deliver high-priority Colorado River supplies from the Imperial Valley shows three potential routes to move the water. Graphic: San Diego County Water Authority

Each of the potential conveyance routes would connect to the tail end of the All-American Canal where it meets the Westside Main Canal in the southwest corner of Imperial Valley.

Protecting Our Water Rights – IID Candidates Discuss Their Critical Mission

Access to water, and water rights in general, are critical to life in the Desert Southwest. That’s why two candidates for the Imperial Irrigation District Area 2, which includes El Centro and western Imperial County, say they take that mission very seriously.

Opinion: An Aqueduct to San Diego is Worth Studying

Fresh on the water scene in Imperial County is a proposal from the IID’s neighbor agency San Diego County Water Authority. The SDCWA is an umbrella organization that comprises 24 members including all the cities and water districts in San Diego County.

IID Div. 2: Candidates Childers, Hamby Square Off in Forum

Who owns the water from the Colorado River that comes into the Imperial Valley?

It’s a question that divided the Imperial Irrigation District Division 2 runoff candidates in a forum hosted by the San Diego State University-Imperial Valley Borderlands Institute on Sept 26.

Locals Discuss Water Sources and Delivery to the Memorial Gardens Cemetery

The cry for help to deliver water to Memorial Gardens Cemetery is being answered by grassroots volunteers determined to beautify the burial grounds.  Through the years, volunteers removed debris, pulled weeds, resurfaced headstones, planted trees, and hauled water to irrigate the plants.

IID Files Opposition in California Supreme Court Battle With Farmer Michael Abatti

The years-long fight between the Imperial Irrigation District and farmer Michael Abatti over control of Colorado River water could be nearing its grand finale in the California Supreme Court. After Abatti requested last month that the state’s highest judicial body take up his case, the water district filed its opposition on Monday.