Press Release

Dec. 28, 1999

Contact Tom Kirk (760) 564-4888
Or Bill Gay (760) 337-1700

LA QUINTA--January’s Salton Sea Symposium will resemble a legislative hearing as members of Congress join with Department of Interior officials, state and local lawmakers for the first major discussion of a restoration plan for California’s largest inland body of water.

The two-day event—Jan.13 and 14—will be held at the same time a draft environmental impact statement is to be released that will explore various options.

Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt plans to issue an accompanying narrative statement that lays out several potential approaches to address Salton Sea issues.

The EIS and the Interior Department’s response will be the top agenda items at the symposium, sponsored by the Salton Sea Authority. It will be held in the Miracle Springs Hotel and Spa at Desert Hot Springs.

The highlight of the first morning will be formal delivery of the environmental findings to the Congressional Salton Sea Task Force, state legislators, the authority’s board of directors and other regional and local officials.

The Congressional task force is chaired by Rep. Mary Bono (R-44th) and consists of Reps. Duncan Hunter (R-52nd), Ken Calvert (R-43rd) and Jerry Lewis (R-40th).

Making the presentations will be Deputy Interior Secretary David Hayes; Salton Sea Authority Executive Director Tom Kirk; Bill Steel, Salton Sea program manager, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Dr. Milton Friend, executive director of the Salton Sea Science Subcommittee for the Department of Interior.  

“This report is the centerpiece around which actual restoration projects can be built,” said Authority Board President Tom Veysey, chairman of the Imperial County Board of Supervisors. “In fact, we have begun the restoration process with the scientific research that has been conducted,” he added.

Research results will be reported on the second day of the symposium.

California Sen. Dianne Feinstein is scheduled to be keynote luncheon speaker Jan. 13 and Congresswoman Bono will be keynote speaker at dinner that night.      

Babbitt set the stage for the release of the environmental impact statement Dec. 17 during a speech to the Colorado River Water Users Association in Las Vegas.

He reaffirmed his commitment to restoration of the Sea, noting, “The Salton Sea is an important national and international resource for migrating and resident birds and a significant fishery.

“It is, among other things, the site of a national wildlife refuge, and is of special concern because of the loss of wetlands we have experienced both in California and Mexico. I am committed to assuring that the Sea’s unique values do not slip away from us by inaction or inattention,” Babbitt said.

The secretary said that “while we are not yet in a position to identify the best long-term solution for the Salton Sea, our draft EIS will identify some of the steps that can and should be taken now.”

Some of the steps under review include “periodically harvesting fish to prevent the massive die offs caused by lack of balance in the sea and protecting the refuge as a top priority, with evaporation ponds, some diking and some desalination activity.”

Other confirmed symposium presenters include Assemblyman Jim Battin; Mike Bracken, executive director, Coachella Valley Economic Partnership; Steve Horvitz, park superintendent, Salton Sea State Park; Mike Spear, manager, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Brad Luckey, chief executive officer, Imperial Irrigation District.

The symposium is dedicated to the memory of the late Congressman George Brown who also belonged to the Congressional Salton Sea Task Force. His wife Marta Brown will be on hand for a tribute.

The conference cost is $80 for both days or $50 for one day.

The Salton Sea Authority is a joint powers agency formed in 1993 by the Coachella Valley Water District, the Imperial Irrigation District, Riverside County and Imperial County. The Authority’s Board of Directors is comprised of elected officials from each of these member agencies. The Authority was formed to bring together the many stakeholders interested in understanding and addressing the Sea’s challenges and making the most of the Sea’s opportunities.

The Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indian Tribe and Federal, State and regional agencies are also represented within the Authority.

Registration forms or additional information on the symposium may be obtained by calling the Salton Sea Authority at (760) 564-4888.

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