SSA gets an update on long-term Salton Sea plans

EL CENTRO — There is still a long way to go before the state of California commits to any water import proposal, but some there are steps being taken to get at least part of the process moving.

On Thursday morning, the assistant secretary for Salton Sea policy for the state’s Natural Resources Agency, Bruce Wilcox, provided the Salton Sea Authority an update on the workshop Imperial County held earlier in the week.

Despite the big interest the workshop drew, Wilcox reminded everyone the state is slowly looking at the options, and there is no guarantee any of them will materialize.

“Just as a reminder there is no funding for water import projects right now. There is no funding to study water import projects right now,” he told the members of the SSA.

The next step in the process is for the state to begin to evaluate the proposals submitted to the state in March.

The evaluation will allow CNRA to determine which of the proposals are reasonable to move forward with.

Wilcox said the initial evaluations are expected to take place in the next two to three weeks.

Those proposals that make the initial cut will form part of the longrange plan but will be further evaluated as funding becomes available.

Theoretically, components from multiple plans could be incorporated into a larger plan, but that will be determined at a later time.

SSA Board President Patrick O’Dowd asked Wilcox what types of additional studies and research the state would have to go through to determine what the best course of action is.

Wilcox replied the state would look into such things as preliminary engineering and feasibility costs.

It would also need to assess the most feasible avenue to get water from Mexico and best method to handle water quality.

Answering a question as to where could the state would obtain funding to move forward with water import proposals, Wilcox said that at least to do the initial analysis the state may tap into Proposition 68 funds, which include $200 million for the Salton Sea if it passes on June 5, or the water bond expected to be on the ballot in November.

Last month, Wilcox had told legislators the first project likely to get underway is the Species Conservation Habitat Project on the southwestern edge of the Salton Sea. It is expected to start in December.

He said the main obstacle to moving forward with the project is finalizing an easement with the Imperial Irrigation District, which owns land around the lake’s shoreline. At the time, Wilcox said the IID would like to have liability coverage for the projects and for the already exposed playa. He said the state doesn’t have a problem with providing liability for the projects, but it is not enthusiastic about being liable for the already exposed shoreline.

On Thursday morning, he provides an update to the SSA. He said that issue was near to being resolved after a meeting on Friday. This would allow the state to seek out bid proposals in the summer.

In addition to the latest update from the state, the SSA heard a presentation from Gerald Meral on the effort he is leading regarding the $8.8 billion water bond slated to appear on the November ballot. It includes $200 million for the Salton Sea.

Meral previously made similar presentations to the Imperial Irrigation District Board of Directors in January and the county earlier this month. As IID and county had done previously, SSA voted unanimously to endorse the bond.

The water bond initiative focuses on water infrastructure and investments needed across the state. It is a different proposal than the $4.1 billion park bond approved by the Legislature last fall, which would also secure $200 million for the Salton Sea.

Last year, the California Natural Resources Agency unveiled a 10-year plan to manage the Salton Sea and mitigate the health impacts caused by exposed dust coming from the shoreline by building shallow ponds for habitat and other dust-suppression projects to cover nearly 30,000 acres.

The price tag to achieve that goal is $383 million, yet only $80 million in funding has been received to date. If both bonds are approved by voters, the entire Salton Sea management program would be funded.