State Water Resources Control Board Chairwoman Felicia Marcus comments on the progress of the State Salton Sea Management Program during a workshop held by the Water Board in Sacramento on March 16.

The State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board) spoke of the need to work collaboratively and think creatively to address the challenges ahead at the Salton Sea during the Water Board’s first review of the Salton Sea Management Program (SSMP) Phase 1 progress since approving the Stipulated Order in November. The Stipulated Order set annual milestones for the State’s phased approach to Salton Sea restoration being implemented as the SSMP. Phase 1 of the SSMP is a 10-year plan, which includes creation of 30,000 acres of habitat and dust control projects. During the review held Tuesday, March 20, in Sacramento, the Water Board declared it would review the State’s progress on

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Imperial Irrigation District Board Chairman James Hanks addresses a gathering of local business, farming and civic leaders at the annual COLAB breakfast held Friday, March 16, at Stockmen’s Club in Brawley.

The Imperial County and Imperial Irrigation District (IID)’s message was hopeful and focused on progress in the Imperial Valley at the 2018 Coalition of Labor, Agriculture and Business (COLAB) breakfast event held at Stockmen’s Club in Brawley on Friday, March 16. It also highlighted the host of challenges faced by the county and IID, some of which—like the Salton Sea—are common to both agencies.

Imperial County Supervisors Chairman Ray Castillo was the first to speak. In his opening remarks, he reported that the county’s unemployment rate has dropped to 17 percent, down from prior months and years when unemployment has lingered over 20 percent in the county. For those

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Bruce Wilcox, California Natural Resources Agency Assistant Secretary in charge of Salton Sea policy, talks to a standing-room-only crowd at the Imperial Irrigation District auditorium in El Centro on March 1 regarding the latest progress on the State’s Salton Sea Management Program.

A standing-room-only audience gathered Wednesday evening, March 1, at the Imperial Irrigation District auditorium to hear an update on the latest developments at the Salton Sea. The workshop was the first of two organized by IID, the San Diego County Water Authority, Imperial County and the California Natural Resources Agency. The second will be March 7, in Riverside County at the Coachella City Hall, from 5:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Both workshops are meant to keep the public informed on the State’s restoration efforts at the Sea under the Stipulated Order, an amendment to the original water order approving

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