Press Release
Jan. 13, 2000
The release of a draft environmental
impact statement/environmental impact report along with a companion
overview and summation by the Department of Interior marks the “end of
the beginning,” say officials at the Salton Sea Authority.
“We have made tremendous strides over
the past 18 months and have truly broken new ground when it comes to the
work already underway at the Salton Sea,” said Salton Sea Authority
Board President Tom Veysey, a member of the Imperial County Board of
Supervisors.
Veysey noted that a pilot wildlife
disease eradication study is ongoing and additional pilot projects are
to begin shortly. They include fish harvesting to lower the massive fish
populations; shoreline cleanup to remove dead fish and enhanced
evaporation experiments to lower salinity.
“The construction and operation of a
series of pilot projects this year will enable us to move from planning
for restoration to actually beginning restoration. It really is the end
of the beginning,” Veysey said
The Department of Interior has
recommended that timely actions be taken to save the Sea.
“This is an important step forward to
ensure that we preserve the rich biodiversity and recreational values at
the Salton Sea,” said Secretary of Interior Bruce Babbitt.
The just-released documents affirmed
the work already underway by recommending several immediate actions
including recreational facilities enhancements, a shoreline cleanup
program, a fish-harvesting program and an integrated wildlife disease
study.
The report also stresses the need for
continued scientific investigation.
“The Salton Sea Science Subcommittee
came up with some thrilling research results and put to rest a number of
myths about the sea,” said Salton Sea Authority Board Member Roy
Wilson, a member of the Riverside County Board of Supervisors. “That
work must continue,” Wilson added.
“The
scientific and engineering work in the report provides a sound base for
moving forward to restoring the Sea,” said Wilson.
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