Integrated Water Management                                         (Cont. from page 1)

Riverside County Supervisor and Salton Sea Authority Board Member Roy Wilson noted that, "We have reviewed countless studies and proposals, now we have something we can move forward on. The Integrated Water Management Plan comes closest to any that we have seen to meet wildlife and recreation objectives plus helping to satisfy Southern California water supply needs."

The endorsed plan involves creating and managing a lake with ocean-like salinity in the North basin of the Sea by constructing a dam mid-way across the current Sea. In the South, extensive shallow water habitat for shorebirds and waterbirds would be preserved and created using terraced ponds. In fact, the amount of shallow water habitat in the region would actually double or more under the concept.

Ted Decker, a local resident, said that while he would still like to save the whole Sea, "this plan involves compromises among all of the interests and for many of us, a smaller but healthier lake is an acceptable trade-off."

Because water transfers from the region, whether through this integrated plan or through pending transfers, will reduce flows to the Sea, this plan is designed to make the most use of flows by treatment and multiple use/reuse (see diagram on page 1 and map on page 3). While product water from the desalination process plant is "sold" to urban water users through an exchange, the slightly salty effluent is scrubbed of nutrients and sent to the North Lake. Outflow from the lake is sent southward to provide the endangered pupfish with habitat connectivity along the shoreline. The outflow then moves through thousands of acres of shallow water ponds in the south end of the Sea. From there, water is then gravity fed into evaporation ponds to create a salt "cap" to reduce potential dust emissions from exposed soils. 

The plan also provides the opportunity to greatly increase energy production from a very green source: geothermal. By allowing the Sea to recede from over the Geothermal Resource Area, production of clean energy could double, triple or more. Recent estimates by the local energy producer suggest that the field could support up to ¼ of California's residential electricity demands. 

The Authority Board and staff noted that additional work is necessary to both refine the proposed plan and consider other alternatives through the environmental compliance process. 

"This is an important first step in selecting a preferred project," remarked Authority Board member and Imperial County Supervisor Gary Wyatt after the vote. 

"Our next challenge will be working with many others to ensure that we do not trip along the way," he said.

The two biggest concerns with the plan are the feasibility of constructing an 8 mile long, 40 foot high dam in earthquake country and selenium toxicity. Geotechnical teams are already preparing plans to test Seabed sediments to help design the dam's foundation and gauge its risk potential. Unfortunately, just about any transfer of water from the Imperial Valley will result in increased Selenium concentrations in rivers, and, potentially, the Sea. Some of the West's best Selenium experts were recently assembled to help the Salton Sea Science Office determine the nature of the potential Selenium problems and potential solutions. Selenium toxicity has plagued managed water systems in the San Joaquin Valley and elsewhere in the western United States. While even under the worst scenarios, Selenium levels would not approach the levels in those areas, but the restoration team plans on taking the Selenium risk seriously. 

An engineering/management company will be retained in the next couple of months to help the Authority and its partners in refining the concept and achieving consensus among legislators, state and federal government, environmentalists, and the local community on a detailed restoration plan. Extensive environmental analysis of the refined plan and any alternatives would follow. 

In early March, the Salton Sea Authority hosted members of the Salton Sea Coalition for a tour of the Sea. The Coalition is a group of environmental, wildlife and sporting organizations as well as two local Indian tribes who have been working together to protect and restore the Sea. 

Tom Kirk, the Authority's Executive Director, briefed the Coalition members on the current status of the Restoration Project to begin the tour. After lunch and a tour of the Kent SeaTech Controlled Eutrophication Project, the group was able to view the Sea and the proposed Torres-Martinez Wetlands from kayaks.

The group began the following day with a tour at of the Solar Ponds Pilot Project in Niland, then boarded the ERS (Environmental Recovery Systems) pontoon boat and traveled to the deltas of the Alamo and New Rivers and to Mullet Island. After lunch at the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, the refuge manager, Sylvia Pelizza, provided an overview of the Sea's wildlife and the work the Fish and Wildlife Service is doing at the Sea.

One of those on the tour, Karen Douglas, Natural Resources Director at the Planning and Conservation League said, "I've been to the Salton Sea many times and it never fails to inspire me to keep up the fight for its restoration. I especially enjoyed having the opportunity for some of my board members, who had not been to the Sea, to see first hand the resource we are working so hard to protect." 

Another member of the Coalition, Julia Levin, State Policy Director for the National Audubon Society, added, “Seeing the Sea and hearing staff presentations really impressed me with the importance of restoring the Sea. By providing increasingly rare habitat for hundreds of migratory bird species, the Sea is truly an international treasure that must be restored and protected."