IID enters water conservation agreement
IMPERIAL COUNTY, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - The Imperial Irrigation District (IID) reached an agreement with the federal government to preserve more water in Lake Mead for the next three years.
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will provide funding for the implementation of conservation programs through 2026.
That will leave up to 700,000 acre-feet of water in Lake Mead.
"And protect our families from these near terms of drought or other consequences and will provide some water supply resilience for the imperial valley," said IID Water Department Manager Tina Shields.
To reach that goal the IID will expand the existing on-farm efficiency conservation program that includes field-level conservation measures, and the new deficit irrigation program that will pay farmers to temporarily not grow their crops including alfalfa, Bermuda grass and Klein grass.
"So these activities will conserve 250,000 acre-feet of water a year and that water will be left at lake mead and add elevation so the impact of drought is less likely to cause long term problems," explained Shields.
Those conservation measures will provide a balance of $250 million in federal funds for Salton Sea restoration.
"To accelerate projects in the playa and address some of the challenges of the Salton Sea and that was one of the conditions of us on doing this additional conservation," said Shields.
The IID Water Department manager says they are confident they will meet their obligation for the next three years and avoid a negative impact in the long term.
