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<br />~ignOnSanDiego.com > News> State/The West -- California drafts agreement on Colorado... Page 2 of3 <br /> <br />The governor said that he was "confident and optimistic the coalition will hold." <br /> <br />Sen. Mike Machado, a Linden Democrat and chairman of Senate Agriculture and Water Resources Committee, <br />downplayed the importance of the agreement. <br /> <br />"I've seen the process go to escrow several times," Machado said. "What it's been missing in the past and what <br />it's missing today is a nonrefundable deposit." <br /> <br />The deal fell apart in December when Imperial's water board rejected the transfer to San Diego. The board said <br />the deal failed to address environmental concerns over the Salton Sea, a huge sump that would quickly become <br />too salty for fish and birds if it weren't for water running off Imperial's farm fields. The board feared the district <br />could be held financially liable for environmental harm. <br /> <br />Changes were made to the deal to help alleviate those concerns: <br /> <br />-The California Legislature would be asked to authorize about $200 million in funds from Proposition 50, a <br />water quality bond measure, for water management projects for the San Diego County Water Authority and the <br />Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the giant Los Angeles-based water wholesaler serving 18 <br />million people. <br /> <br />-San Diego and Metropolitan will place $200 million in an interest-bearing account to cover potential Salton <br />Sea environmental costs over the 75-year life of the deal. Local entities will contribute an additional $43 million <br />to the account. <br /> <br />-An additional $50 million in Proposition 50 funds would be applied to directly help restore the Salton Sea to <br />health. <br /> <br />Revisions were also made to address concerns from the Interior Department that there were too many "outs" in <br />the deal that would allow parties to walk away: <br /> <br />- Imperial Valley would relinquish its right to terminate the deal if the Interior Department does not approve an <br />environmental management plan for the Salton Sea. However, Imperial could still walk away if all money set <br />aside for environmental mitigation has been spent. <br /> <br />-The San Diego County Water Authority was given the right to back out of the deal after 35 years if it doesn't <br />want to pay the transportation cost to ship water from Imperial to San Diego through the Colorado River <br />Aqueduct. The 242-mile aqueduct is owned by the Metropolitan Water District. <br /> <br />-If the deal concludes early, the Imperial Irrigation District will be allowed to collect up to $150 million in state <br />loan guarantees to cover outlays for any investments in conservation, such as lining canals to prevent seepage. <br />That money could, if necessary, go to cover environmental problems with the Salton Sea. <br /> <br />As part of the proposed agreement, Imperial would drop its lawsuit against the Interior Department. The <br />region's water board has asked a federal judge to restore its share of Colorado River, which the interior secretary <br />ordered cut by 11 percent this year. A hearing is set for March 18 in U.S. District Court in San Diego. <br /> <br />Members of Imperial's water board say they were "disinvited" from Wednesday's meeting in Los Angeles <br />because of the lawsuit. <br /> <br />Find this article at: <br />http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/state/20030312-1817-wst-californiawater.html <br /> <br />http://signonsandiego.printthis.c1ickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&expire=&urlID=5680 111 &... 3/13/2003 <br />