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ent By: Bill Swan Consulting Servicesj 480 941 8658' 'Greens' crimp water deal - 12120/02 - NCTimes.net ' Dec-23-02 12:26PMj Page 4 raslW J. VI. M .lI\I EDmON or I'OftKcaJIIT' 'IlM!B ~lf}~ I H l'l H '\,1\ '1 j \, r' '" ", :..... . T...,.. ........ 6daeek'fte :w~ PLAY UVE ';\,:.. ~.;::c:t~~...~ Our Best Links 1'Nh8tVi~DO II 'r0Ci.,. .....' '0' '. ':~'';';'':':''L.,..,.. . .:....':'....~~. " '. j, .' ,. ,.,...,.. ..".'...' '.,..." 'Greens' crimp water deal TED HILLOCK Commentary California has been taking more than its allotted share Otthe Colorado River water for years, so a few years ago the federal government ~ that by Dec. 31, 2002. California had to cut back on its use of the river. Keyword Search I . ,. . .h" . _Mvanced P1:~yi9YS StQry II tleadlines II Next SwY Grot-or l.\1c newN?~~on ofthi~.~ Southern California households, particularly in San Di~ County, still need water from the Colorado River. After yeam of negotiating with the Imperial Irrigation District in Imperial Count, a deal was struck for the lID to supply the San,Di;ego County Wat<< Authority with 200,000 acre-feet of water a year. This would be enough:.water for about 400,000 households. The deal was a win-win for Southern California familie$:and the Imperial Valley fanners. We get w8ter~ the lID would get about $50 mimon ~8ti a year in paymen~ IIld the amount sold was considered expendable. Imperial Valley"uses nearly 7S pen-.ent of the entire state's allotment of the Colorado River water ~y. This is used for irrigation of their approximately 500,000 acres under cultivation..Ii ii:estimated that about 30 percent of that amount is lost through evaporation or unlined irrigation canals. The 200,000 acre-feet being sold was only about 6.6 percent of their allotment. But the deal was never approved by the lID's board of Q1rectorS, failing by a 3-2 vote. The reason it was not approved was due to a $1. S billion finimcialliability shot tired across their bow by an environmentAl group. The environmentalists are claiming that is their idea of the financial cost in damage to the sea iftbe inigation runotTinto the sea is reduced by less than 5 percent (after the 30 percent loss). The Salton Sea is a landlocked body of water that is SuStained only by irrigation water runoff. Environmental groups like the Center for Biolojical Diversity claim that by depriving the Salton Sea of this inigation runoff', it will kill the sea. Just the faa that an environmental group has identified a potential hanD and has put a $1,500 million price tag to it was enough for the lID to say, ~o deal. n http://www.nctimes.net/news/2002/20021220IS4301.btml : 12/23/2002