2081.7
. (a) Notwithstanding Sections 3511, 4700, 5050, and 5515,
and contingent upon the fulfillment of the conditions listed in
subdivisions (b), (c), and (d), the department may authorize, under
Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 2050) or Chapter 10 (commencing
with Section 2800), the take of species resulting from impacts
attributable to the implementation of the Quantification Settlement
Agreement, as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 1 of Chapter 617
of the Statutes of 2002, on all of the following:
(1) The salinity, elevation, shoreline habitat, or water quality
of the Salton Sea.
(2) The quantity and quality of water flowing in the All American
Canal, the Coachella Canal, the Imperial Valley and Coachella Valley
drains, the New and Alamo Rivers, the Coachella Valley Stormwater
Channel, and the habitat sustained by those flows.
(3) Agricultural lands in the Imperial Valley.
(4) The quantity and quality of water flowing in the Colorado
River, the habitat sustained by those flows, and the collection of
that water for delivery to authorized users.
(b) The Quantification Settlement Agreement is executed by the
appropriate parties on or before October 12, 2003.
(c) The department has determined that the appropriate agreements
have been executed to address environmental impacts at the Salton Sea
that include enforceable commitments requiring all of the following:
(1) Imperial Irrigation District to transfer 800,000 acre-feet of
conserved water, by conservation methods selected by the Imperial
Irrigation District, to the Department of Water Resources on a
mutually agreed-upon schedule in exchange for payment of one hundred
seventy-five dollars ($175) per acre-foot. The price shall be
adjusted for inflation on an annual basis.
(2) Imperial Irrigation District to transfer up to 800,000
additional acre-feet of conserved water, by conservation methods
selected by the Imperial Irrigation District, to the Department of
Water Resources during the first 15 years of the Quantification
Settlement Agreement on the schedule established for the mitigation
water that was previously to be transferred to the San Diego Water
Authority, or on a mutually agreed-upon schedule, at no cost for the
water in addition to the payment for the water from the mitigation
fund described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of
Chapter 613 of the Statutes of 2003.
(3) As a condition to acquisition of the water described in
paragraph (1), the Department of Water Resources shall be responsible
for any environmental impacts, including Salton Sea salinity,
related to use or transfer of that water. As a condition to
acquisition of the water described in paragraph (2), the Department
of Water Resources shall be responsible for environmental impacts
related to Salton Sea salinity that are related to the use or
transfer of that water.
(4) The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD)
to purchase up to 1.6 million acre-feet of the water provided in
accordance with paragraphs (1) and (2) from the Department of Water
Resources at a price of not less than two hundred fifty dollars
($250) per acre-foot on a mutually agreed-upon schedule. The price
shall be adjusted for inflation on an annual basis. The Department of
Water Resources shall deposit all proceeds from the sale of water
pursuant to this paragraph, after deducting costs and reasonable
administrative expenses, into the Salton Sea Restoration Fund
established in Section 2932.
(5) The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California to pay
not less than twenty dollars ($20) per acre-foot for all special
surplus water received by MWD as a result of reinstatement of access
to that water under the Interim Surplus Guidelines by the United
States Department of Interior subtracting any water delivered to
Arizona as a result of a shortage. The money shall be paid into the
Salton Sea Restoration Fund. The price shall be adjusted for
inflation on an annual basis. Metropolitan Water District of Southern
California shall receive a credit against future mitigation
obligations under the Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation
Plan for any funds provided under this paragraph to the extent that
those funds are spent on projects that contribute to the conservation
or mitigation for species identified in the Lower Colorado River
Multi-Species Conservation Plan and that are consistent with the
preferred alternative for Salton Sea restoration.
(6) Coachella Valley Water District, Imperial Irrigation District,
and San Diego County Water Authority to pay a total of thirty
million dollars ($30,000,000) to the Salton Sea Restoration Fund as
provided in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Chapter
613 of the Statutes of 2003.
(d) All of the following conditions are met:
(1) The requirements of subdivision (b) and (c) of Section 2081
are satisfied as to the species for which take is authorized.
(2) The take authorization provides for the development and
implementation, in cooperation with federal and state agencies, of an
adaptive management process for monitoring the effectiveness of, and
adjusting as necessary, the measures to minimize and fully mitigate
the impacts of the authorized take. The adjusted measures are subject
to Section 2052.1.
(3) The take authorization provides for the development and
implementation in cooperation with state and federal agencies of an
adaptive management process that substantially contributes to the
long-term conservation of the species for which take is authorized.
Preparation of the adaptive management program and implementation of
the program is the responsibility of the department. The department's
obligation to prepare and implement the adaptive management program
is conditioned upon the availability of funds pursuant to the Water
Security, Clean Drinking Water, Coastal and Beach Protection Act of
2002, if it is approved by the voters at the statewide general
election to be held November 5, 2002 (Proposition 50), or other funds
that may be appropriated by the Legislature or approved by the
voters for that purpose. The failure to appropriate funds does not
relieve the applicant of the obligations of paragraphs (1) and (2).
However, the applicant shall not be required to fund any program
pursuant to this paragraph.
(4) The requirements of paragraph (1) may be satisfied if the take
is authorized under Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 2800).
(e) (1) The Secretary of the Resources Agency, in consultation
with the department, the Department of Water Resources, the Salton
Sea Authority, appropriate air quality districts, and the Salton Sea
Advisory Committee, shall undertake a restoration study to determine
a preferred alternative for the restoration of the Salton Sea
ecosystem and the protection of wildlife dependent on that ecosystem.
The Secretary of the Resources Agency shall extend an invitation to
the United States Geological Survey Salton Sea Science Office to also
participate in the restoration study, and the office may participate
if it accepts the invitation. The restoration study shall be
conducted pursuant to a process with deadlines for release of the
report and programmatic environmental documents established by the
secretary, in consultation with the department, the Department of
Water Resources, the Salton Sea Authority, and the Salton Sea
Advisory Committee, and the United States Geological Survey Salton
Sea Science Office, if it is a participant. The secretary shall use
all available authority to enter into a memorandum of understanding
(MOU) with the Secretary of the Interior, as provided in Section 101
(b)(1)(B)(i) of the Salton Sea Reclamation Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-372)
for the purpose of obtaining federal participation in the
restoration of the Salton Sea.
(2) The restoration study shall establish all of the following:
(A) An evaluation of alternatives for the restoration of the
Salton Sea that includes consideration of strategies for salinity
control, habitation creation and restoration, and different shoreline
elevations and surface area configurations. The alternatives shall
consider the range of possible inflow conditions. The evaluation
established pursuant to this subparagraph shall also include
suggested criteria for selecting and evaluating alternatives
consistent with Chapter 13 (commencing with Section 2930), including,
but not limited to, at least one most cost-effective, technically
feasible, alternative.
(B) An evaluation of the magnitude and practicability of costs of
construction, operation, and maintenance of each alternative
evaluated.
(C) A recommended plan for the use or transfer of water provided
by paragraph (2) of subdivision (c). No water may be transferred
pursuant to that subdivision unless the secretary finds that transfer
is consistent with the preferred alternative for Salton Sea
restoration.
(D) The selection of a preferred alternative consistent with
Section 2931, including a proposed funding plan to implement the
preferred alternative. The proposed funding plan shall include a
determination of the moneys that are, or may be, available to
construct and operate the preferred project, including, but not
limited to, all of the following moneys:
(i) Moneys in the Salton Sea Restoration Fund established by
Section 2932.
(ii) State water and environmental bond moneys.
(iii) Federal authorizations and appropriations.
(iv) Moneys available through a Salton Sea Infrastructure
Financing District established pursuant to Section 53395.9 of the
Government Code and local assessments by the Salton Sea Authority or
its member agencies.
(v) Moneys derived from user or other fees.
(3) The study identifying the preferred alternative shall be
submitted to the Legislature on or before December 31, 2006.
(4) The Secretary of the Resources Agency shall establish an
advisory committee for purposes of this subdivision as follows:
(A) The advisory committee shall be selected to provide balanced
representation of the following interests:
(i) Agriculture.
(ii) Local governments.
(iii) Conservation groups.
(iv) Tribal governments.
(v) Recreational users.
(vi) Water agencies.
(vii) Air pollution control districts.
(viii) Geothermal energy development.
(B) Appropriate federal agency representatives may be asked to
serve in an ex officio capacity.
(C) The Resources Agency shall consult with the advisory committee
throughout all stages of the alternative selection process.
(D) The advisory committee shall meet no fewer than six times
annually.
(E) The secretary shall appoint a vice chair of the advisory
committee from the committee membership. The vice chair shall work
with the secretary to develop advisory committee agendas and to
schedule meetings of the committee. The secretary and vice chair
shall appoint an agenda subcommittee to assist in the preparation of
advisory committee agendas.
(F) The advisory committee shall submit to the Resources Agency
recommendations to assist the agency in preparation of its
restoration plan. The Resources Agency shall develop a schedule for
the completion of these recommendations to ensure that these
recommendations will be considered by the agency in a timely and
meaningful manner as the restoration plan is developed. These
recommendations may include, but are not limited to:
(i) The specific goals and objectives of the restoration plan.
(ii) The range of alternative restoration actions that must be
developed and analyzed.
(iii) The no action alternative.
(iv) The criteria for determining economic and technical
feasibility of the alternatives.
(v) The range of options for funding the restoration plan.
(vi) The selection of a preferred alternative for a restoration
plan.
(G) The Resources Agency shall periodically provide an update to
the advisory committee of the current work plan and schedule for the
development of the restoration plan.
(f) This section shall not be construed to exempt from any other
provision of law the Quantification Settlement Agreement and the
Agreement for Transfer of Conserved Water by and between the Imperial
Irrigation District and the San Diego County Water Authority, dated
April 29, 1998.