County Water Authority Board Approves QSA Term Sheet
October 24, 2002
The San Diego County Water Authority board of directors today approved the Quantification Settlement Agreement (QSA) term sheet that includes…
The San Diego County Water Authority board of directors today approved the Quantification Settlement Agreement (QSA) term sheet that includes revisions to the 1998 Imperial Irrigation District – San Diego County Water Authority water transfer agreement. The water transfer agreement will result in a new, more reliable and diversified imported water supply for San Diego with the delivery from IID of one million acre-feet of water to San Diego over the first 15 years of the 75-year agreement.
Representatives of the Water Authority, Imperial Valley Irrigation District, Coachella Valley Water District and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, following two months of negotiations led by Speaker Emeritus Robert Hertzberg, agreed upon the term sheet on October 15. The terms, which provide a framework to execute both the water transfer and the Quantification Settlement Agreement, must still be ratified by the agencies’ boards of directors and translated into signed contracts.
“Today’s board action puts us one step closer to finalizing the QSA and the water transfer with IID,” said Jim Turner, Authority board chairman. “While there is still much work to do, I am confident that come December 31st, we will have the signed contracts in hand and can move forward with the water transfer.”
Implementation of the QSA by Dec. 31, 2002, is a key component of the Colorado River Use Plan – the state’s plan to reduce its use of Colorado River water and live within its annual basic apportionment of 4.4 million acre-feet. The 75-year water transfer agreement between the Authority and IID provides for up to 200,000 acre-feet per year of conserved water to be transferred from Imperial Valley to San Diego county annually.
The San Diego County Water Authority is a public agency serving the San Diego region as a wholesale supplier of water from Northern California and the Colorado River. The Water Authority works through its 23 member agencies to provide a safe, reliable water supply to almost three million county residents.
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