Press Release
July
31, 2000
LA
QUINTA, CA and WASHIGTON, DC--The Salton Sea Authority and the U.S.
Department of Interior/Bureau of Reclamation have announced that they
expect to select a preferred alternative for the restoration of the
Salton Sea before Congress convenes in January, 2001.
"We
are excited at the prospect of moving to this next level of effort, as
it puts us one step closer to our goal of restoring the Salton Sea,”
said Tom Veysey, board president of the Authority.
"With
the selection of a preferred alternative, we can go to the public and to
our supporters in Washington and Sacramento with a clear plan of
action,” he said. “We will seek public comment on any alternative
selected or developed and then seek the funding needed to initiate and
complete this important project,” said Veysey, a member of the
Imperial County Board of Supervisors.
The
Salton Sea Authority is a joint powers agency made up of the Imperial
and Riverside counties as well as the Imperial Irrigation District and
the Coachella Valley Water Authority. The Authority and the U.S.
Department of Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation have been working in
partnership on restoration alternatives for the Salton Sea.
Selection
of a preferred alternative will allow the discussion about restoring the
lake to move from what to do, to how to pay for it.
"We
are pleased with progress made to date by the Bureau of Reclamation and
Salton Sea Authority and now we need to move beyond the study phase to
one of selecting a preferred alternative and seeing that alternative
fully funded", said Deputy Secretary of Interior David Hayes.
“The
Salton Sea is a critical link in the pacific flyway and of great
economic importance to the agricultural communities around the sea,”
Hayes said. “It has not been easy to find a solution, but public
opinion is acknowledging the importance of this resource and I believe
that the corner has been turned,” he said.
“It’s
very important the Salton Sea be saved,” Hayes said.
The
lead agencies have received 1600 comments and suggestions from the
public on its draft restoration plan that was released in January. These
comments and suggestions are now being reviewed and researched.
"The
public has given us many constructive criticisms of our draft
restoration plan and this criticism will guide us in our next step of
the selection of a preferred alternative ", said Tom Kirk,
executive director of the Salton Sea Authority.
The
Authority and its partner, the Bureau of Reclamation, have been working
on an accelerated basis to gain a comprehensive and scientifically based
understanding of the Salton Sea, California’s largest lake. It is on
this basis of knowledge that present and future alternatives have been
built. Since the release of the draft restoration plan in January, a
number of promising alternatives are being tested.
This
includes alternatives such as enhanced evaporation systems and
evaporation ponds.
Copyright 2000 Salton Sea Authority -
All Rights Reserved
Site Design and Hosting by KG
WebWorks
