The Imperial Irrigation District (IID) today announced its transition from the Salton Sea Authority to the State of California’s newly established Salton Sea Conservancy.

IID’s transition in participation from the Salton Sea Authority to the Conservancy will strengthen alignment among state and federal agencies and facilitate project operations and management.

This next step reflects a natural evolution of IID’s long-standing leadership in Salton Sea progress that has led from studies to planning to on-the-ground projects, along with ongoing efforts to restore habitat and address regional air quality concerns.

A Legacy of Leadership

For more than 30 years, IID has played a central role in efforts to stabilize and restore the Salton Sea, including as a founding member of the Salton Sea Authority in 1993. The District has worked to bring together local governments and water agencies to craft a shared vision for the Sea’s future and has advanced key initiatives that form the foundation of the headway seen today, including:

• Air quality and habitat projects: Implementation of large-scale air-quality mitigation programs and collaboration on the state’s Species Conservation Habitat (SCH) Project, a landmark 8,000+ acre wetland and dust-control project on the Sea’s southern shoreline.
• California’s restoration framework: Through IID’s early negotiations with state representatives while developing the Quantification Settlement Agreement (QSA) and the District’s 2014 petition to the California State Water Resources Control Board demanding Salton Sea action as pledged in that QSA legislation, IID helped ensure the State’s formal assumption of restoration responsibilities — laying the groundwork for today’s coordinated, State-led Salton Sea Management Program.
• Federal partnership and funding: In 2022, IID helped secure $250 million in federal funding, the largest single federal investment in the Sea’s history, to expand the SCH and accelerate habitat and dust-suppression projects now underway.

A New Chapter of Partnership

The Salton Sea Conservancy, established through Senate Bill 583, will serve as the central coordinating agency for the long-term management of restoration projects and community engagement at the Sea. The Conservancy brings together State, local, federal, and tribal representatives to ensure sustained attention to the region’s environmental and public health needs.

“This new partnership marks a turning point,” said IID General Manager Jamie Asbury. “The Conservancy brings everyone – local, State, and federal representatives and stakeholders – under one umbrella. It’s the most effective way to continue and expand Salton Sea progress and long-term planning responsibilities.”

Continuing the Commitment

IID’s appointment of its Board Chairwoman, Gina Dockstader, to serve as the District’s representative on the Salton Sea Conservancy Board underscores IID’s commitment to continued strong local leadership and advocacy for the Salton Sea within the State’s new framework.

“IID’s dedication to the Salton Sea remains unwavering,” said Chairwoman Dockstader. “We’re proud of our progress and deeply appreciative of the Salton Sea Authority’s decades of involvement. As IID’s representative on the Conservancy board, I look forward to building on that foundation with the State and the recent momentum toward real project delivery at the Sea and our communities.”

As the State prepares to launch the Conservancy, IID will continue implementing its comprehensive, science-based Salton Sea Air Quality Mitigation Program, while working alongside State partners to shape the Conservancy’s priorities.

IID has played a central role in efforts to stabilize and restore the Salton Sea, implementing large-scale air-quality mitigation programs while collaborating with the State on its Species Conservation Habitat Project along the Sea’s southern shoreline.

The State's Species Conservation Habitat Project is part of a plan to implement projects around the Sea to develop an environment with suitable habitat for maintaining aquatic and avian wildlife, and create areas to minimize fine particle dust emissions.