Rep. Ruiz pushes to defend Salton Sea from federal cuts following calls to withhold funding

Congressman Raul Ruiz is calling on the U.S. Department of the Interior to uphold its commitments to the Salton Sea, including millions in federal funds from the Inflation Reduction Act.

According to Ruiz's office, the Inflation Reduction Act includes $4 billion in funding specifically for water management and conservation efforts in the Colorado River Basin and other areas experiencing similar levels of drought. The funding includes $12.5 million to mitigate the effect of drought on Tribes. 

Last week, U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, an Arizona Democrat, wrote a letter calling for the federal government to withhold money for environmental cleanup at the Salton Sea until California agrees to use less of its share of the Colorado River.

Kelly's letter surprised California officials and the community group Alianza Coachella Valley, sai it’s unfair to use communities exposed to environmental harms as a bargaining chip.

“The Colorado River system is in crisis, what we need is less finger pointing and more actual water conserved,” Wade Crowfoot, secretary of California’s Natural Resources Agency, said.

In response, Ruiz wrote a letter to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland citing the environmental and public health crisis at the Salton Sea as well as the disproportionate impact of the region’s historic drought on frontline communities.

Ruiz urged Secretary Haaland to uphold the federal government’s responsibilities to protect the Sea and the region.

“As you work to oversee negotiations over voluntary reductions in the amount of water used by Colorado River stakeholders, I strongly urge you to distribute the drought mitigation funding in a way that upholds the federal government’s responsibilities to protect the Sea and the region,” Ruiz wrote. 

Ruiz continued, “California is a senior water rights holder on the Colorado River, yet California water agencies have already offered substantial water cuts in the spirit of good-faith negotiations…California stakeholders have asked that any Colorado River water cuts come with money to support the Salton Sea. Not only is this a reasonable request, but mitigation funding for the Salton Sea should be a prerequisite for any water cuts to the region.” 

“As a doctor, I am deeply concerned by the effects of the Salton Sea on my constituents’ health,” Ruiz wrote. “Denying the Salton Sea proper mitigation funding would exacerbate the issue and further hurt vulnerable, disadvantaged, and tribal communities.” 

The Salton Sea formed in 1905 when the river overflowed and is mainly fed by runoff from southeast California farms. As it dries, wind kicks up particles that worsen air quality. When the farms use less river water, less excess flows into the sea.

News Channel 3 Morning Anchor Angela Chen has been covering the issues surrounding the Salton Sea for years, including the environmental and health aspects of the looming ecological disaster.

Check out the Emmy award-winning Troubled Waters: The Salton Sea Project

• Part 1: Paradise Lost - Angela looks back at the history of the Salton Sea. Find out its connection to Spanish explorers, and how it went from one of the most popular destinations to abandoned and on the verge of disaster

• Check Out Part 2- Toxic Exposure: Angela goes in-depth on the history of toxic outbreaks at the Salton Sea and its connection to the current health issues of those who live near the lake

• Part 3: A Lake Languished - Angela look at the millions spent over the years to save the Salton Sea and why there is so little progress to show for it

Part 4: Salton Sea Plea - There are massive environmental problems at the Salton Sea, but after decades of neglect, could the lake's unique location be part of the solution in saving it? Angela highlights the movement happening to save the lake