Aquafornia exclusive: Cadiz answers it’s critics: “At Cadiz, we are focused on finding sustainable solutions to California’s water and energy needs — and doing so in an environmentally friendly manner”

Submitted directly to Aquafornia:

“I want to thank Aquafornia for the opportunity to clear up some misconceptions that have been posted here regarding the Cadiz water conservation and storage project.

If anything, the headlines on your blog reveal a consistent theme nearly every single day: The State of California is in the midst of a severe long-term water supply crisis. Governor Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in February, and deliveries to local agencies have been drained to forty percent of capacity. Meanwhile, the state’s largest public utility has moved to impose mandatory rationing on its customers. With an ongoing drought, the growing reality of climate change and local water agencies facing further cutbacks from the San Francisco Bay Delta, the message couldn’t be more urgent. It’s time to get serious about water conservation in California.

That begins by recognizing what leading hydrologists have long maintained. Especially in dry regions like Southern California, we have to begin making smarter use of local groundwater basins, using them to “bank” surplus water in “wet” years. With local surface reservoirs annually losing up to 25 percent of their contents to the hot California sun, underground storage offers numerous advantages, including minimal habitat disturbance, close to no evaporative loss and protection from airborne contaminants.

At Cadiz, we are focused on finding sustainable solutions to California’s water and energy needs — and doing so in an environmentally friendly manner. We own roughly 45,000 acres of land in eastern San Bernardino County where we are working on a combination of solar, organic farming and water supply and storage projects. Our property sits on top of a large groundwater reservoir. The underlying alluvial aquifer system contains a clean, fresh and renewable water supply, offering sustainable annual delivery to hundreds of thousands of Californians and evaporation-free storage of approximately one million acre-feet.

Since Cadiz was founded in 1983, we have focused on managing our resources holistically and sustainably. We have designed the water conservation and storage project to bank and market native groundwater conserved by reducing controllable losses from the aquifer system. Additionally, water will be imported from outside the property and stored in the aquifer system. The withdrawal and recharge of native and imported water will be conducted in a manner that achieves and then maintains optimal, long-term, safe (sustainable) yield and conjunctive use of water. We are committed to ensuring that the management of the groundwater levels will not result in harm to the aquifer system, or cause material adverse changes in the environment. …”

To make our environmental commitment real, we’ve partnered with the Natural Heritage Institute (NHI), a recognized global environmental organization with a proven track record restoring and protecting water-dependent ecosystems. In a wide ranging “Green Compact” developed in partnership with NHI, Cadiz has pledged to pursue a series of model initiatives, including the permanent preservation of lands, a commitment to solar power development, stringent plans for groundwater management and habitat conservation, and the creation of a water bank that will be used in part to restore one or more endangered aquatic ecosystems in California and the Colorado River basin. A copy of the “Green Compact” is available on our website at: http://www.cadizinc.com/sites/default/files/cadiz/uploads/NHI%20MOU%20Original(1).pdf

Contrary to what’s been suggested, NHI is not on our payroll. NHI’s role is to advise, monitor and report on Cadiz’s compliance with the environmental sustainability principles set forth in the “Green Compact”. In that role, it maintains complete independence of judgment and action from Cadiz and has no financial interest in any of the Cadiz development projects.

Allow me to clear up some of the other misconceptions that have been raised:

Environmental approval and process: The inference has been suggested that the Cadiz Project had been previously rejected on environmental grounds. This is false. The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the project was approved by the U.S. Department of the Interior in 2001, (the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) portion was finalized but not certified). Because of changes made to the project since that time, Cadiz is now pursuing a new EIR.

Scope of the project: The project would have the capacity to deliver up to 150,000 acre-feet in a dry year. Not every year. In wet years, the project would also have the capacity to store up to 150,000 acre-feet. The project is designed to operate as a traditional groundwater bank. In some years, more water will be put into the bank than extracted (wetter years), and, in some years, more water will be extracted than recharged (drier years). That is the nature and utility of a groundwater bank. Over the 50-year project term, we believe the project can deliver between 30,000 and 50,000 acre-feet of indigenous groundwater per year on average.

Recharge rate: Our estimates of recharge have been validated by numerous experts and will be subject to further scientific review and a prudent management plan patterned after successful programs already being administered throughout Southern California. While the USGS initially disagreed with our estimates of recharge, they did assume the role of a Participating Agency in the original project’s Groundwater Monitoring and Management Plan and approved of and were a signatory to the Final EIS. Cadiz is committed to limiting groundwater withdrawals on a long-term sustainable basis with the benefit of the best and the most recent scientific and technical information.

Need for storage: There appears to be considerable misunderstanding about the need for storage and how it would be utilized. The project is not designed solely to meet the needs of Colorado River contractors such as MWD. Any agency with water to store in a wet year could utilize storage at Cadiz by way of trades.

Impact on surrounding areas: A number of serious misunderstandings continue to be perpetuated about the Project’s environmental impact, including the charge that drawing water from the aquifer system will result in adverse impacts to the Mojave National Preserve and local mountain springs. There is absolutely no scientific evidence to support any of these claims. On the contrary, the original EIR/EIS documentation for Project found and all qualified experts agree that there are no native plants, habitat, or wildlife within the project area that are reliant on the aquifer system. The project area lies at the bottom of a 1,300-mile watershed and the minimum depth of the water table underlying the project area is approximately 200 feet below the land surface. The closest boundary of the Preserve is approximately 20 miles and 2,500 feet up gradient from the Project. On the face of it, it would be absurd to suggest any groundwater related impacts on the Preserve or local springs since they would need to run a half a mile uphill.

Project participants: We presently have five water providers signed up. Golden State Water Company and City of Anaheim have identified themselves. The other three providers will be identified once we finalize cost-sharing arrangements for the environmental review process.

Solar: We are considering utilizing portions of our property for solar energy development, but any solar project will be conducted in consideration of our water project and agricultural needs. We will conduct all analysis of our solar plans through the BLM right-of-way process. It will also be consistent with the commitment to sustainability that we have made to NHI.

One final point bears emphasis. In the coming months, our project will be subject to rigorous scientific and public review, and, as previously stated, a new EIR will be completed in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act. We anticipate this review will begin once we’ve worked out a cost-sharing arrangement with the participating water agencies. Following the EIR’s release, there will be ample opportunity for any party to comment on our proposal, and to do so in the full light of scientific facts rather than innuendo.

We look forward to this discussion. With California already feeling the undeniable effects of climate change, we can’t afford to keep throwing cold water on new ideas. The Cadiz Project is not only an important new (and renewable) water resource for Southern California — it represents the mindset we have to adopt across the West, using local resources to meet local needs while conserving every drop we can.

Scott Slater is general counsel of Cadiz, Inc. A partner with the firm of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, Slater is an internationally recognized expert in water resource and environmental law and is the author of California Water Law and Policy, a two volume treatise on the subject

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