The Environment and Water Needs
- Share via
The column by Marc Reisner (“Planting Seeds for a Water Harvest,” Op-Ed Page, Oct. 3) concerning the availability of water in Southern California is correct in every respect, and yet it proves again that when water is discussed, everything else is set aside.
In this case Reisner considers Metropolitan Water District’s water purchase from Imperial Irrigation District as an “. . . all-carrot and no-stick approach . . .” to the water problem, where MWD gets at least 100,000 acre-feet of water, up to a possible 420,000 acre-feet of water in the future. The 100,000 acre-feet water has, supposedly, been conserved over the past number of years by IID, and the additional water is to be conserved by IID over the next number of years. But where is that water now going, and what effect will its loss have on the environment?
The overflow from IID’s antiquated irrigation system has been maintaining what is now California’s largest inland body of water, the Salton Sea. And now it is suffering. The Salton Sea will shrink in size because that water will be conserved, and the flow to the sea will be cut back, since water for human consumption always wins out over the environment. But that does not mean the Salton Sea has to die.
There are a number of programs available that can help keep the Salton Sea at a livable salinity while the inflow is cut back and the body of water shrinks, but even with coordinated local, state and federal efforts in the form of the Salton Sea Task Force in Sacramento, things aren’t moving fast enough to save it. The Salton Sea is shrinking, and the salinity is increasing at an astounding rate.
The unfortunate thing about all this is that California law demands that action be taken . . . and it is not being taken. Under CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act), the ongoing destruction of this most unique and magnificent ecosystem must be mitigated.
But who should pick up the mitigation tab? Does IID pay the bill to save Salton Sea because it is conserving the water which is killing it? Does MWD pay the bill, because it intends to sell the water to users in and around Los Angeles? Or do the people pay the bill, because they are the ultimate users of that water?
Apparently these questions are going unanswered. But even worse . . . nobody seems to be looking for the answer.
BILL KARR
Associate Editor
Western Outdoors Publications
Costa Mesa
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
More From the Los Angeles Times
Podcasts
John Orr was a renowned fire investigator who was also a prolific arsonist, and whose thinly veiled novel helped to convict him. In this episode we hear from the fire captain who first suspected him—and from Orr himself.
Tom Girardi was a legal legend—until he was found guilty of stealing millions from his own clients. Host Madison McGhee and pop culture commentator Kiki Monique unpack how his downfall became a Real Housewives scandal, and what Erika Jayne may or may not have known. Plus, L.A. Times reporter Harriet Ryan joins to share how she helped bring Girardi’s crimes to light.
Sammy Roth visits America’s second-largest nuclear plant, Arizona’s Palo Verde Generating Station, and sits down with three experts to explore the pros and cons of atomic energy.
