DOI rolls back environment protections for Mojave water project

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 16, 2017
Contact: Frazier Haney, Conservation Director, Mojave Desert Land Trust
Phone: 760-366-5440 x 229
frazier@mdlt.org

DOI rolls back environment protections for Mojave water project

Joshua Tree, CA - The Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) is troubled to learn of a Department of Interior decision that weakens environmental protections around a controversial water project in the Mojave Desert.

MDLT strongly disagrees with the Bureau of Land Management ruling made public Monday stating Cadiz Inc does not need a federal permit to build a 43-mile pipeline along a railroad right-of-way situated on public lands in the Mojave.

The pipeline would transport billions of gallons of water every year from an aquifer in the Mojave Trails National Monument for use in coastal communities. A federal permit for use of the railroad right-of-way would have required environmental studies before the pipeline could be built.

However, Cadiz's project continues to face a hurdle in the shape of a lease that would be required by the State of California for a one-mile stretch of the proposed pipeline where it crosses state land. The California State Lands Commission has asked Cadiz to fill out an application for a lease permit.

"This latest decision by the Department of the Interior makes clear that the federal government is intent on rolling back environmental protections on public lands in the California desert. It is more important than ever that the state of California take a strong position as a champion to protect precious groundwater and other public resources. It is clear that the State Lands Commission lease issue must be addressed before the Cadiz project can move forward," said Frazier Haney, conservation director, MDLT.

The Cadiz project has faced numerous obstacles over its years-long campaign to extract water from the desert. It had all but ground to a halt until it was named one of the Trump administration's priority infrastructure projects earlier this year.

David Bernhardt was appointed the Deputy Interior Secretary in July. Bernhardt was previously a partner at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, a law firm that lobbied for Cadiz. As second in command at DOI, he now has the power to ease regulations on the same interests he was formerly paid to represent.

"It is troubling that the Department of the Interior is intently focused on advancing the Cadiz project by weakening protections on public lands related to the project," noted Haney.

Cadiz wants to transport up to 16.3 billion gallons of groundwater per year on land surrounded by Mojave Trails National Monument – one of the monuments under threat of being scaled back as part of a DOI review.

"Water is a precious resource in the desert. This project is a direct threat to springs in the area – the only water source of their kind within 1,000 square miles. The project relies on widely contested science as a basis for its claim that local communities and wildlife won't be jeopardized," Haney said.

MDLT will continue to monitor DOI decisions that impact the health and well-being of the Mojave Desert and surrounding communities.

The Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with the mission to protect and care for lands with natural, scenic and cultural value within the Mojave Desert. For more information, visit www.mdlt.org