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Commentary: Salton Sea’s fate should concern all

Posted by: Maven on January 31, 2010 at 7:58 am

From the North County Times, this commentary/rebuttal by Marion Ashley and Gary Wyatt of the Salton Sea Authority to a recent editorial suggesting the Salton Sea be allowed to dry up:

” … the issues surrounding the Salton Sea require more thought and creativity that just wishing that the sea would go away. Along Highway 395 on the eastern slope of the Sierras, the Owens Lake nearly dried up after the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power diverted the Owens River for use by Los Angeles residents. The resulting exposure of the dry lake bed was catastrophic. Arsenic-infused dust blew up and down the valley, creating an environmental disaster that has still not been fully solved, and associated legal challenges, air quality fines and mitigation costs may approach $1 billion.

If allowed to dry up, the Salton Sea, a lake that is four times the size of Owens Lake, could create an air quality disaster for California, with legal and mitigation costs dwarfing what the Los Angeles water department must pay. By not preserving the sea, which is part of the Pacific Flyway, the state will be in violation of an international Migratory Bird Treaty. … “

Read more from the North County Times by clicking here.

January 31, 2010 · Filed Under Salton Sea

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