Lined All-American Canal ends seepage, saving water; San Diego County to gain, Mexican farmers, wetlands to lose

From the San Diego Union Tribune:

It seemed like such a simple idea at the time: Line a porous earthen canal with concrete and ship the saved water to San Diego and other thirsty coastal cities.

But to pull off the Imperial Valley project, it took an urgent act of Congress, court rulings settling cross-border disputes, a seven-state agreement to share the Colorado River and at least $170 million of state taxpayer money. Twenty-one years after its first serious incarnation, a new 23-mile, lined segment of the All-American Canal is being celebrated – and lamented. Top officials with the San Diego County Water Authority attended a dedication ceremony last week outside El Centro.

In addition to the state money, the water authority spent $130 million for an extra 66,000 acre-feet of water annually, or enough to supply about 132,000 households a year. The deal for the water will last 110 years. “Right now, it’s very difficult to find a reliable supply for that long,” said Halla Razak, who oversees Colorado River programs for the authority.

But the project threatens to dry up valuable groundwater used by farmers and wildlife in Mexico. For decades, the seepage from the canal flowed south to irrigate fields and nourish wetlands. “At this stage of the game, I am 50 years old, and I can’t get work elsewhere – all I know is farming,” said Nazario Ortiz, who heads a communal farming group a few miles from the canal that is dependent on seepage.

Read more from the San Diego Union Tribune by clicking here. Here’s also a great slideshow on the canal and the Imperial Valley, also from the U-T.

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