The Salton Sea presents one of California’s most pressing ecological and environmental justice crises. The shrinking sea threatens habitat for millions of fish and birds, and as the sea’s shoreline recedes, a pollutant-laced dust spills into nearby communities and threatens the health of 650,000 people living nearby.
Imperial Irrigation District will file its response today to local farmer Michael Abatti’s petition to the state Supreme Court to review an appellate court decision that overturned the majority of a 2017 ruling in his ongoing legal dispute with the district over water rights.
Do you have an idea for how to address the public health and environmental crises around the Salton Sea? Are you concerned the state is far behind on implementing solutions? You can let them know this month.
The California Natural Resources Agency announced it will be hosting a new round of public engagement sessions in September to get input to assist in the development of wildlife habitat restoration and dust suppression projects for the Salton Sea Management Program’s 10-year plan.
After almost 80 years of suckling the proverbial teat that brings fresh water from the Colorado River and Sierra Nevadas to San Diego, the local water manager is hatching a plan to unlatch.
Attorneys for farmer Michael Abatti on Monday filed a petition requesting that the California Supreme Court take up a case against the Imperial Irrigation District, continuing the battle for control over California’s Colorado River water allotment.
This latest filing calls on the court to rule that Imperial Valley farmers have a right to water ownership, which currently resides with the district.
Long-term fixes for the ever-shrinking Salton Sea remain stalled as California Natural Resources Agency officials on Wednesday revealed they have been unable to find an analyst to study proposed solutions to a nearly two decades-old problem.
Eleven different plans, submitted in 2018, suggested methods of importing water from the Sea of Cortez or the Pacific Ocean to decrease salinity and reverse water losses at the Salton Sea, which have exposed a toxic playa laced with pesticides and other pollutants. Although some researchers who study the lake write off the plans as financial and logistical pipe dreams, CNRA still needs to study them as part of the process to determine a long-term solution.
The recent decision regarding Michael Abatti’s appeal of the IID 2013 EDP confirms some most disturbing trends.
My experience has been to closely follow four water battles over the years and watch the courts. In the courts were three, Jordan vs Santa Barbara et al., Morgan QSA, and Abatti vs IID. What shines out is the bias of the courts for the government entities. If you think about the crazy positions of Democratic leadership in California, their long control of the legislative process, and the people they put into the courts — it’s no surprise. I was co-chairman of a water transfer battle in the 1980s in Arizona, that’s a story in itself.
While one Abatti brother reportedly plans to take his long-standing quarrel with Imperial Irrigation District over water rights to the California Supreme Court, another one has prepared a claim against the district for revenue he said his business lost through reduced payouts in its water conservation program.
Tuesday’s IID Board of Directors meeting agenda includes a memorandum from its human resources department regarding a financial damages claim against the district by El Centro farmer Jimmy Abatti’s Madjac Farms Inc.
The Imperial County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office has taken the lead in distributing more than 500,000 face masks to all sectors of the agriculture industry in the Imperial Valley.
“This was a positive result of the state understanding our need,” said Imperial County Agricultural Commissioner Carlos Ortiz. “They heard us.”
Agriculture is one of the essential sectors critical to health and safety in California during the coronavirus pandemic.
A California appellate court on Wednesday denied Imperial Valley farmer Michael Abatti’s request for a rehearing in his long-running legal fight with the Imperial Irrigation District over control of Colorado River water. The decision could likely spell the end to his legal challenges.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
