Thread: Critics of Canal Project Sue--Fear Illegals Might Drown

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Canal project's critics file lawsuit

Imperial Valley fight is over design

By Sandra Dibble
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

April 19, 2006

With construction just weeks away, opponents of a plan to line the All-American Canal in Imperial County filed suit yesterday to stop the project, alleging its design presents a peril to humans and animals.

The lawsuit in Imperial County Superior Court opens a legal front against the multimillion-dollar project, which involves replacing a leaky 23-mile stretch of the canal and transferring the saved water to San Diego County.

The complaint was filed against the Imperial Irrigation District by the Imperial Valley-based group called Protect Our Water and Environmental Rights, and two of its members, brothers Mike and Jimmy Abatti, both Imperial Valley growers.

They allege the design of the canal approved in January by the irrigation district does not include “escape ridges,” continuous steps that would allow humans or animals trapped in the canal to climb out. The suit states that the feature was in the canal's original design approved 12 years ago, and the modification violates the California Environmental Quality Act.

Instead, the new plan would rely on the installation of steel ladders every 750 feet. “The problem with the ladders is that animals can't climb ladders and a human can't see them in the dark,” Jim Abatti said.

The suit also states that the canal's walls are steeper than the original plan, and will “among other things, cause the water to flow faster than originally designed, causing more human and large mammal deaths than previously considered.”

Craig Morgan, a consultant hired by the Abattis, said in a statement submitted to the court that the design does not take into account changed circumstances since the original plan was approved in 1994.

A major change, Morgan said, is the shift in illegal immigration from the San Diego area eastward to Imperial County and Arizona as the result of the federal government's regional border crackdown Operation Gatekeeper. With more crossers attempting to swim across the canal, the potential for drownings increases, he said.

The lawsuit also names the San Diego County Water Authority, the Los Angeles-based Metropolitan Water District, and the U.S. Department of Interior, which owns the canal.

Spokesmen for the irrigation district and the U.S. Department of Interior said they had not seen the lawsuit and could not comment.

Construction on the lining project is scheduled to begin in June, said John Liarakos, spokesman for the San Diego County Water Authority. Bids are expected to be awarded this month.

The All-American Canal conveys Colorado River water to the Imperial and Coachella valleys. The plan would replace an unlined stretch of the canal with an adjacent lined segment, saving an estimated 67,700 acre-feet of water per year – enough to supply 134,000 households in San Diego County.

The lining project is key to a complex agreement reducing California's overuse of the Colorado River. The water carried by the All-American Canal is part of the annual 4.4 million acre-feet allotted to California under a 1922 accord among seven Western states.

The lining project also faces a legal challenge in federal court in Las Vegas. Last year, a Mexican economic development group and two U.S. environmental groups filed suit alleging the project would harm wildlife on both sides of the border by drying up wetlands fed by canal seepage. The lawsuit states that Mexicali Valley farmers who have relied on the seepage to water their fields would also be harmed.

Attorneys say the issues in the latter case could come to a head next week, when Judge Philip Pro is expected to hear arguments on whether he should issue an injunction to stop the project.

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Sandra Dibble: (619) 293-1716; sandra.dibble@uniontrib.com

Hmmmm lets see, don't try and cross the border in the middle of the night with a 50lb backpack on , you won't drown.

My thought - an old adage - you reap what you sow.

If you're going to commit a crime, sneak into a country, you place yourself in harm's way. Don't sneak in and you won't have to wonder if you'll sink or swim.

Perhaps the recent rallies and show of defiance and arrogance, the waving of Mexican flags, the anti-American sentiment, the claims of "stolen land" etc. have hardened my heart to any sympathy for their "plight."

"swim at your own risk" ,"no lifeguard on duty", "tresspassing"