County, IID to partner for water treatment pilot program
As a measure to help residents who rely on raw canal water, the Imperial County Public Health Department and Imperial Irrigation District will work together to ensure they have access to proper filtration systems.
During Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, Deputy Director of Environmental Health Jeff Lamoure presented the project, which involves a collaborative e ort between IID and the health department to help 200 low-income residents to fund the purchase, installation and monitoring of point-of-entry water-filtration systems.
Both agencies are expected to contribute $200,000 to the two-year pilot program, sharing the cost of the outreach and enrollment activities.
The Environmental Health Division will be responsible for assessment to determine the proper point-of-entry system and overseeing installation and design.
“The data collected over the twoyear period will provide us with a better understanding of the true cost associated with construction of the system, the annual maintenance and monitoring cost,” Lamoure said.
The end goal of the pilot project is to assess the feasibility of implementing a larger program in the future that would be available to all 2,750 rural homes under IID’s alternative water delivery service program.
Lamoure expressed confidence the State Water Resources Control Board would be supportive of the effort and could potentially be a source of funding.
“We want to get through the pilot (program) to put a comprehensive plan to assess what type of technology will be ideal for most commons systems out there,” Lamoure said.
The board approved the program by a unanimous vote.
Air monitors
Also during Tuesday’s meeting, acting as the Air Pollution Control Board, the supervisors unanimously approved the acceptance of a $30, 873 grant from the California Air Resources Board that will be allocated to Comite Civico del Valle to expand and enhance its current air-monitoring network. The grant is part of the state’s efforts under Assembly Bill 617 to help low-income areas disproportionately affected by air pollution.
Air Pollution Control Officer Matt Dessert said one of the potential enhancements that will be accomplished through the grant is to install at least two monitors near the Quechan tribe reservation in eastern Imperial County. Dessert said the tribe has expressed concerns with lack of air monitoring in their area.
“We are trying to move forward in a logical manner and show that true partnership effort,” Dessert said.
Loans
County Counsel Katherine Turner also updated the board on the status of the two loan extensions the board had authorized for Silverdale Cheese and Pacificland International after the repayment deadlines were extended back in November.
Pacificland International, the company investing in development of Imperial Center in Heber secured a $2 million loan from the Community Benefit Program last year. According to Turner, the county and the private company are finalizing details to have the company repay the full amount later this month, while Silverdale Cheese made its first payment in full and on time. Silverdale secured a $490,000 loan under the Agricultural Benefit Program. The Public Benefit Program is funded through voluntary fees collected from solar projects throughout the county that don’t pay property taxes. Those funds in turn are applied to Agricultural Benefit and Community Benefit programs.
Solar companies that develop on agricultural land pay a voluntary fee that goes into the agricultural program, which is then used to help businesses create jobs in the agricultural sector, while all other local solar projects pay into the pool of funds earmarked to benefit the communityoriented projects.