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<br />~eenWire <br /> <br />'jIG <br /> <br />Page 1 of2 <br /> <br /> <br />Thursday, March 13,2003 <br /> <br />WATER <br /> <br />Calif. agencies present sharing plan <br /> <br />California officials presented Assistant Interior Secretary Bennett Raley yesterday with a water-sharing <br />proposal aimed at restoring the state's supply of the Colorado River. <br /> <br />The proposed "peace treaty" is the product of weeks of closed-door talks led by Gov. Gray Davis' (D) office. <br />Officials from the Imperial Irrigation District, the San Diego County Water Authority, the Coachella Valley <br />Water District and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California participated in the talks. <br /> <br />The Department of Interior reduced the state's Colorado River water supply on New Year's Day after the <br />water districts failed to reach an agreement. The Imperial Irrigation District -- the state's biggest user of <br />Colorado River water -- failed to sign a proposed deal in December 2002 in which San Diego would have <br />paid it $250 per acre foot for a water transfer. The liD said it must be protected from financial responsibility <br />of Salton Sea environmental problems. (Greenwire, Dec. 10,2002). <br /> <br />The proposal outlined yesterday would finance water management projects in the San Diego and Los <br />Angeles regions with $200 million in bond money and allocate $50 million in bond money for Salton Sea <br />restoration projects. The San Diego County Water Authority and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern <br />California would also put $200 million in a trust fund to finance Salton Sea environmental projects, with local <br />governments contributing an additional $43 million to the interest-bearing account. The liD would have to <br />drop its lawsuit against the Interior Department under the proposal (Seth Hettena, AP/San Dieao Union- <br />Tribune). <br /> <br />Davis: "I think this is a major milestone in the history of California water. ... This is an enormously important <br />step" (Keith Rogers, Las Veaas Review-JournaD. <br /> <br />Davis spokesman Byron Tucker said Raley was receptive to the presentation. "We are confident that the <br />revised agreement in principle will please the Interior Department." <br /> <br />Raley said he would review the plan but warned it may be hard to reverse the Colorado River cuts. <br />"Sometimes it's very difficult to get the genie back in the bottle, and that's what we're struggling with," Raley <br />said (Chuck Squatriglia, San Francisco Chronicle). <br /> <br />Critics of the proposal said it would rely too much on bond money approved by last year's Proposition 50. "I <br />think we'll have a difficult time going for this in the Legislature," said state Sen. Mike Machado (D) (Steve <br />Hymon, Los Anaeles Times). (All cites March 13 unless noted.) -- LM <br /> <br />ENVIRONMENT & ENERGY DAILY * GREENWIRE * LAND LETTER * E&E PUBLISHING, LLC <br /> <br />\ <br />\ <br /> <br />http://www.eenews.net/Greenwire/Backissues/031303/03130301.htm <br /> <br />3/13/2003 <br />