Imperial Irrigation District calls on state water board to adopt roadmap for Salton Sea restoration

Officials with the Imperial Irrigation District (IID), along with representatives from Imperial County, appeared before the State Water Resources Control Board on Tuesday calling for immediate and definitive action before the end of 2016 for the adoption of a 10-year roadmap for the restoration of the Salton Sea. The meeting was in response to a petition IID filed in November 2014 asking to meet with the state water board. They asked that the roadmap hold the state accountable in meeting its Salton Sea obligations.

At the public workshop with the state water board, IID noted there is currently no concrete program in place for the beginning of 2018 when playa exposure – an area of flat, dried-up land, such as a desert basin, from which water evaporates quickly — is expected to accelerate at exponentially increasing rates.

Kevin Kelley, IID general manager, expressed the district’s frustration saying, “Action is needed now. There is currently no plan in place with goals and objectives, with enforceable metrics and with actionable timelines.” He continued saying, “These are required because already the (Salton Sea) Task Force’s actions are not keeping pace with the rate of expansion of playa exposure.”

Kelley added that with no concrete program in place the sea will face a 150,000-acre-foot shortfall in mitigation water under the state order required by the Quantification Settlement Agreement. Environmental and public health consequences “will begin to spiral out of control in 2018” he said if there is no action plan containing compensating measures.

IID, in conjunction with officials from Imperial County, proposed that the State of California adopt a “roadmap” for the restoration of the Salton Sea that will:

• Identify interim acreages for habitat restoration and/or dust suppression for each year between 2017 and 2025 and timely construct the projects to meet those interim acreage targets.
• Provide the necessary resources to construct those habitat restoration and/or dust suppression projects.
• Include the development of 500 megawatts of geothermal projects, including the 250 megawatts already called for by the federal government, no later than 2025.
• Include in each year’s budget, from FY 2018 through FY 2026, an amount sufficient to construct the projects identified in the roadmap.
• Conduct quarterly oversight hearings, convened jointly by the State Water Resources Control Board and the California Air Resources Board.
• Require all state agencies to streamline permitting processes for habitat restoration and/or dust suppression projects.

IID stated that the failure to adopt such a roadmap would preclude the district’s ability to participate in Drought Contingency Measures now in discussion regarding the Colorado River. “IID’s participation hinges on the adoption of a clear 10-year plan for the Salton Sea, which has far reaching impacts to both Southern and Northern California water agencies,” Kelley said.