Office of the Secretary

For Immediate Release: October 18, 1999

Contact: Noel Gerson 202/208-6291
Steve Adamske 202/208-5205

CALIFORNIA WATER PLAN NEGOTIATIONS COMPLETE

Washington DC - Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt today commended the leadership of California's largest water agencies for publicly releasing the terms of a proposed Colorado River quantification agreement among the water Districts. The three Boards took action today, making good on the promise of an agreement that they had announced in August.

Babbitt said, "I would like to congratulate the leadership of the Imperial Irrigation District, the Coachella Valley Irrigation District and the Metropolitan Water District. All Californians will benefit from your joint commitment to conserve limited Colorado River water supplies."

The agreement resolves long-standing water quantification and use disputes that date back to the 1930's. These disputes have blocked progress in distributing and utilizing Southern California's essential water supply. This agreement should enable California to better utilize and manage its use of Colorado River water.

Negotiations were facilitated by Acting Deputy Secretary of the Interior David J. Hayes -- the second highest ranking official at Interior, and by Tom Hannigan, Director of the State of California's Department of Water Resources. Deputy Secretary Hayes said, "Approval of this agreement sets the stage for historic changes in water distribution patterns in Southern California. Looking 75 years into the future is not easy, but the parties are committed to resolving these important issues. Today they have taken a key step forward in reaching this goal". Hayes also noted, "In the coming weeks the next step in the process is to develop a series of legally binding documents. The parties will need to continue to work hard and remain focused to meet that goal."

The quantification agreement, among other things, opens the way for proposed water transfer from the Imperial Water District to San Diego. The agreement also establishes the basis for petitioning the Secretary of Interior to issue surplus guidelines to assist California through a period of transition of reducing its over-reliance on Colorado River water.

-DOI-