Plans to incorporate the Salton Sea into a proposed Southwest Pacific Water Plan are at least as old as this newspaper. WDR first mentioned such a plan in its second issue in February 1965, and three years later, noted, “The Salton Sea is getting too salty; it faces certain death or the oblivion of a great salt lake or dead sea – unless another Bureau of Reclamation study to preserve it as a live sea can reverse present orders.”
Once considered pipe dreams, the concept of saving the Salton Sea by tapping ocean water from Mexico, to keep the accidental salt lake from drying up, will get an official consideration at two meetings in the desert this week. The California Natural Resources Agency will look at three competing proposals at a hearing in Coachella Monday, and in El Centro on Thursday.
Once considered pipe dreams, the concept of saving the Salton Sea by tapping ocean water from Mexico, to keep the accidental salt lake from drying up, will get an official consideration at two meetings in the desert this week. The California Natural Resources Agency will look at three competing proposals at a hearing in Coachella Monday evening, and in El Centro on Thursday. One group of engineers proposes a pumping plant in Mexico to lift the water 100 feet, 130 miles of canals, a four-mile pipe under the U.S.-Mexico border, and a power plant to generate electricity as the water falls 225 feet down to the Salton Sea.
The restoration of the New River has been in the works for decades, addressing an environmental issue and eyesore that affects mainly the west side of Calexico. But through legislation and the activism from residents affected by river pollution, progress has been achieved towards a permanent solution. Starting in Mexico, the river crosses the border in Calexico and snakes about 70 miles before emptying into the Salton Sea. Often saddled with the dubious honor of being the most polluted river in America, its murky water carries numerous pollutants and often produces a foul odor.
San Diego County is a leader in water conservation and management strategies that will become even more critical in coming years, state Sen. Ben Hueso (San Diego) said during an Aug. 1 Legislative Roundtable at the San Diego County Water Authority’s headquarters.
“San Diego is really a model in the state,” Hueso told an audience of about 90 water agency representatives, business and civic leaders and other stakeholders from around the county who attended the morning event. “San Diego leads the state in conservation. How we’re able to manage the system without an increase in the growth of consumption is just amazing. It’s just a testament to the great minds and people that we have managing our system, ensuring that we continue to have water … given the enormous challenges we have in providing for San Diego compared to other parts of the state.”
The Water Authority regularly hosts roundtables to hear from elected officials about water issues and other important developments in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., and to promote collaboration with civic, business and elected leaders in ensuring continued water supply reliability for the region.
“We’re so pleased Senator Hueso could join us today because he plays such an important role in water issues and water plays such a critical role in our region,” said Mark Muir, chair of the Water Authority’s Board of Directors. “Senator Hueso has been a true champion in protecting important independent water supplies for San Diego and has always been willing to work closely with us to balance all the important interests related to those water supplies.”
Hueso has been a leader on water issues since he was elected to the state Senate in 2013. He chairs the Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities and Communications, and he also sits on the Natural Resources and Water Committee. His 40th Senate District includes cities in south San Diego County, the southern portion of the City of San Diego, and all of Imperial County. A former San Diego City Councilmember, Hueso was elected to the state Assembly in 2010 and previously chaired the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee.
Hueso’s commitment to water started as a youngster delivering newspapers. “Every morning when I used to fold those papers I would see ‘Drought,’ ‘Drought,’ ‘Drought.’ ‘Water scarcity.’ ‘Water scarcity,” he said. “If you’re a native San Diegan, that’s something you hear about a lot.”
Drought or no, water remains an important topic in the nation’s largest state, creating a complex challenge for policymakers. “It gets complicated when you consider that our water policy in California started in 1848 before our state was even formed with the Treaty of (Guadalupe) Hidalgo – the treaty with Mexico,” Hueso said. “There was actual language in that treaty that was aimed at protecting property rights and water rights for the people that owned property back then. And those water rights still apply.”
While those complexities can create division, they also create opportunity for bipartisan solutions. “The most important things that we’ve done in the state of California have been bipartisan,” Hueso said. “And that has taken effort. It has taken effort on both sides to come to a common ground and say we’re going to agree to do what’s in the best interest of the state in general. And when there has been an urgent matter facing the people of California, both sides have come together to forge relations and form solutions that truly help everyone.”
How that will play out in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta is still unclear, even as the state pursues a $17 billion project called California WaterFix that involves routing water underneath the Bay-Delta in twin tunnels.
Salton Sea restoration – a legislatively mandated responsibility of the State of California – is another priority for Hueso.
“My focus is set on how do we solve this problem, what’s the best vehicle, and how can we do it in a way that still takes care of the public funds,” he said. “We have to be mindful of how to spend this money because we don’t have a lot of it. We have to stretch every penny, stretch every dime, and there’s really little room for error. And that’s how I think we need to proceed.”
Then he added: “I really believe in creating an agency that is going to focus on solving this problem. We really need an agency that has a sense of urgency.”
Water experts from across Southern California will convene in Cabazon today to discuss the next steps in resolving issues surrounding the Salton Sea’s receding shoreline, which is causing environmental and public health concerns for both residents and wildlife living in and around the lake. The noontime event at the Morongo Casino Convention Center is one of four major annual events concerning state water issues hosted by the Southern California Water Coalition.
Momentum for Salton Sea restoration is growing quickly these days and the effort could amass $600 million in state funding by the end of 2018 – a huge increase from just a few months ago.
On June 5, California voters supported Proposition 68, the $4.1 billion water bond that specifically included $200 million for Salton Sea restoration. During a recent press conference, state Senator Ben Hueso, who represents portions of San Diego and Imperial counties, thanked voters for passing Proposition 68 and said the State of California is committed to funding restoration efforts at the sea.
Momentum for Salton Sea restoration is growing quickly these days and the effort could amass $600 million in state funding by the end of 2018 – a huge increase from just a few months ago.
On June 5, California voters supported Proposition 68, the $4.1 billion water bond that specifically included $200 million for Salton Sea restoration. During a recent press conference, state Senator Ben Hueso, who represents portions of San Diego and Imperial counties, thanked voters for passing Proposition 68 and said the State of California is committed to funding restoration efforts at the sea.
Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia, who represents parts of Riverside and Imperial counties, said $170 million of that funding is for the state to implement its phased restoration program, called the Salton Sea Management Program, and $30 million is for the Salton Sea Authority, which is working with the state on restoration. Of the $30 million portion, $10 million is destined for improving the New River, a main tributary that flows from Mexico into the Salton Sea.
Garcia also said that if other projects funded by Proposition 68 do not materialize, the Salton Sea could benefit from up to $200 million more. And he highlighted additional money that could help: In November, California voters will be asked to support another water bond that would provide an additional $200 million for the sea.
Garcia said it is realistic to think that by year’s end, the sea could have up to a total of almost $600 million in state funding to implement the management plan.
Hueso spoke about legislation he introduced to create a local authority to restore the sea and about public-private partnerships that could further advance Salton Sea restoration. “The area around the sea can be a very healthy place to live,” Hueso said. “That is our goal.”
Garcia said the first 10 years of the state’s management plan for the sea includes two focused goals — addressing public health and the ecological system. He is also working with legislation to advance the development of geothermal energy in California with the intent that geothermal development can be a piece of the restoration program at the Salton Sea.
“The ball is moving down the court,” Garcia said, adding: “The idea nothing is happening is not factual.”
Bruce Wilcox, assistant secretary of California Natural Resources in charge of Salton Sea policy, said with the passage of Prop. 68, he is more optimistic about the sea than he has been in years. He said Salton Sea Management Program projects are moving ahead and that in September there will be a new round of public meetings to share information and receive input on the program.
Regarding 11 proposals submitted to the state for importing water to the sea, Wilcox said a committee will be reviewing them to determine which ones will move forward to another phase of consideration. The proposals involve importing water from the Sea of Cortez to the Salton Sea, which state officials say could represent a long-term solution. While that process moves forward, the state remains focused on addressing the immediate air quality and habitat needs at the sea and surrounding communities.
The Comite Civico del Valle, an organization providing services to disadvantaged communities in the Imperial Valley, has received a $500,000 grant from the California Air Resource Board to expand its air monitoring program. With the grant, the organization is planning to expand their network of air monitors to the eastern Coachella Valley by adding 15 new monitors, in an effort to span the entirety of the Salton Sea Air Basin, which includes the Coachella Valley and parts of Imperial County.
In a vote that was as important for its message as the funding it appropriates, California voters on June 5 supported Proposition 68, the $4.1 billion water bond that specifically included $200 million for Salton Sea restoration. That funding will support the ten-year phase one list of projects under the state’s Salton Sea restoration plan known as the Salton Sea Management Program (SSMP).
Coupled with $80 million for the sea from a previous bond, the $200 million moves the state closer to achieving its ten-year target of addressing 30,000 acres of exposed playa. Another water bond scheduled for the November election includes an additional $200 million for the sea to completely fund phase one of the SSMP.
Passage of Proposition 68, which voters in San Diego and Imperial County both supported, advances the SSMP at a time when there is growing concern on the state’s ability to build air quality and habitat projects to meet annual targets for playa coverage. In fact, the state has acknowledged the 2018 target of 500 acres will not be met. However, that delay is mainly due to finalizing land liability issues rather than a lack of funding. State officials working on the sea have indicated they are close to settling those issues and anticipate progress will be expedited once the necessary legal agreements are resolved. The passage of Proposition 68 means the state will be in an even better position to make up for lost time so targets can be achieved going forward.
The “yes” vote by California voters also sends an important message to the state that since additional resources have been allocated for restoration at the sea, better progress on meeting the established milestones is expected more than ever. Voters have armed the state with funding to push the SSMP forward, and it now falls upon the state to meet its responsibilities. According to the state’s SSMP ten-year planning committee meeting last week, there is a solid list of projects ready to move forward toward meeting annual targets. Those projects include ones that have been touted before, plus new projects state officials have added, at least one of which they say can be accomplished at a faster rate. Long heralded projects include the state’s Species Conservation Habitat (SCH) project. Phase one of that project, which is already funded, will address 640 acres, but with the funding from Proposition 68, additional phases of the SCH are expected to move forward. At total build-out, the SCH would address nearly 4,000 acres along the southern shore of the sea. Another project set to move forward by the year’s end is the 500-acre wetlands at Red Hill Marina on the southern shore.
According to state officials, a new 290-acre project on the southern shore will be developed as wetlands on the site of a planned geothermal project. Additional projects are planned for the northern shore under a perimeter lake proposal from Riverside County, and at least one project is under development near the communities closest to the sea.
The passage of Proposition 68 also comes as the state has begun the effort to consider longer term projects as well. Part of that effort has included a request for proposals for importing a new source of water supply to the Salton Sea. As many as 11 conceptual proposals were submitted, most of which involve importing water from Mexico, and were introduced during a recent public forum in Imperial County. Proposition 68 funding is not expected to go toward water importation projects. While the state plans to evaluate water importation proposals as a possible long-term effort, the current focus is on implementing the first ten years of the SSMP and getting projects on the ground to address air quality and habitat.
While it is likely concerns about the state’s progress will continue, thanks to California voters, the state now has the opportunity to prove the delays of the past will not continue and that there will be real headway toward addressing restoration. Additionally, state officials indicated at last week’s SSMP ten-year planning committee meeting that they intend to apply lessons learned thus far to other projects to help expedite implementation of the SSMP, understanding though, that each project is distinct as well. Now is the time for stakeholders to remain even more vigilant to make sure the pendulum swings toward greater progress.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
