County officials urges Water Board action for Salton Sea

Imperial Irrigation District and Imperial County representatives appeared before the State Water Resources Control Board in Sacramento on Thursday morning urging the board to take action on the Draft Stipulated Order.

In a continued effort to hold the state accountable if it fails to meet the goals that have been set by the Salton Sea Management Program, county officials asked the water board to move forward with the plan as early as possible.

The Draft Order is based on information that was presented to the State Water Board in a petition filed by IID in November 2014, subsequent State Water Board workshops on the Salton Sea, information and documents related to the Salton Sea and the Quantification Settlement Agreement as well as information contained in the Salton Sea Action Plan and Salton Sea Management Program that have been proposed by the Brown Administration.

The State Water Board is expected to consider a resolution to adopt the Draft Stipulated Order at a later date.

During workshop testimony, representatives from IID, Imperial County and the San Diego County Water Authority urged the State Water Resources Control Board to adopt the Draft Stipulated Order.

“We have worked closely with the Brown Administration and key stakeholders to develop the Draft Order and we believe it represents the most significant advance to date at the Salton Sea,” said IID General Manager Kevin Kelley in a press release from the IID.

The draft stipulated order set the same 29,800 acres of exposed lakebed to be covered by 2029, but it also sets yearly objectives starting with 500 acres by Jan. 1, 2019, and rises incrementally to 4,000 acres or more to be covered in the final three years.

In March, the CNRA unveiled its 10year plan which intends to implement a variety of dust suppression and habitat projects to cover nearly 30,000 acres of exposed lakebed in the next 10 years. The total price tag for the full 10-year plan is $383 million and to date, only $80 million of that amount has been allocated.

The Draft Stipulated Order also has a provision which if the implementation of the 10-year plan falls more than 20 percent behind the annual goal, then the CNRA would have to develop a plan to make up the deficiency.

Another important commitment in the order includes a requirement for the state to develop a phase II plan at the Salton Sea that will outline the next 10 years of activities and projects to be undertaken, that plan should be finalized no later than by the end of 2022.

The Draft Stipulated Order represents the consensus of the Agencies, the California Natural Resources Agency, and certain environmental groups as to the best course forward for the Salton Sea.

“The Draft Order states that if the plan falls more than 20 percent behind in its obligations, the state is required to develop a cure for the deficiency. In this way, unlike the experience of the past 15 years, there will be a process for accountability as the parties implement the 10-year plan,” said Kelley.

For more information on the Draft Stipulated Order, please visit http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/salton_sea/