By V. Manuel Pérez, State Assemblymember, Special to The Desert Sun

While the problems plaguing the Salton Sea are well known, finding consensus on a path forward remains a bone of contention.  This was illustrated last week by the numerous community, local government, and state agency voices that testified at the Salton Sea restoration hearing I hosted on November 28, 2011 in North Shore.

The state hearing was held at my request by Assemblymember Rich Gordon, the chair of Assembly Budget Subcommittee 3, which is responsible for allocating funds for Salton Sea Restoration.  Earlier this year, the state proposed cutting all funding to the restoration council, and it was clear to me that we needed to reinvigorate the dialogue on this issue.
The Salton Sea is already saltier than the Pacific Ocean, and the water is receding, further increasing its salinity. This kills off fish and the birds that depend on them, while exposing dry lakebed which worsens air quality, threatens agriculture production, and impedes local economic development.

With our region’s quality of life at stake, we must act swiftly to develop and implement feasible, consensus-driven responses.

We know the State of California does not have $9 billion to fund the preferred Salton Sea Ecosystem Restoration plan proposed by California’s Natural Resources Agency in 2006.  We also know there is at best only tepid support for the current Salton Sea Restoration Council.

While it’s clearly necessary to identify a viable plan, secure sustainable funding sources, and determine the appropriate decision making structure, these matters should not deter our forward progress on projects we can agree on right now, with funding we already have secured through state bond funding.

And in moving forward, we must recognize that a restoration of this magnitude requires a comprehensive framework to establish lines of authority, accountability, and priorities. Given the multiple factors involved – water and air quality, habitat, public health, economic development, the Quantification Settlement Agreement and funding constraints – it is also critical that decision-making is guided by technical expertise and merit, not politics.

Whatever form a restoration partnership takes, it’s clear that the state has a role to ensure that mitigation funds and state bond monies are used in service of the public interest. All Californians benefit from a renewed and healthy Sea.

Yet, because we know long-term state funding is unlikely, and because the restoration ultimately affects our region most directly, we must also be actively evaluating and exploring local revenue streams and strengthening the local voice in these processes.

For that reason, it is imperative that local residents, community leaders and organizations, business leaders, elected officials and all other local stakeholders must work together and present a unified voice related to restoration. I have introduced AB 939 that will serve as a vehicle for these agreements.

Unless we move forward as a unified voice, the challenges will be greater in Sacramento, possibly undermining the desire for local leadership on this issue.

The Salton Sea is part of our local identity – its magnificent vistas are a highlight of our desert landscape.  In my own lifetime it has changed dramatically. I vividly remember fishing for Corvina with my family near Bombay Beach. Though my own children have not been able to swim and fish the Sea, I hope that in the not-so-distant future a new generation of kids will play on its shores as I once did.

V. Manuel Pérez is the state Assemblymember representing eastern Riverside and Imperial Counties.  He is the author of AB 939 related to Salton Sea Restoration. He invites you to contact him through his Indio office at 760-342-8047.