Bill promises end to Soboba water dispute
The Press-Enterprise
A decades-old dispute between the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians and several Southern California water agencies that the tribe accused of improperly draining water from beneath its reservation is on the verge of settlement.
Rep. Mary Bono said the legislation she introduced would ratify an earlier settlement that would provide millions of dollars for economic development and billions of gallons of water that would help revitalize and expand the tribe's agricultural and commercial endeavors.
Surrounding communities in the San Jacinto Valley would benefit from assured water supplies as well as money and land to recharge the local aquifer and to protect endangered-species habitat.
The bill, called The Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians Settlement Act, is co-sponsored by Reps. Joe Baca, D-Rialto, and Jerry Lewis, R-Redlands, and seeks congressional blessing of an agreement signed in June between the tribe, whose reservation is east of San Jacinto, and the Metropolitan, Eastern Municipal and Lake Hemet water districts.
"I'm very proud that we've reached this," Bono, R-Palm Springs, said of the bill, which she said enjoys bipartisan support. "I know I'll do my very best to have it passed this year.
"This legislation takes the critical step to put into place a long-term plan that ensures the future water supply of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians and all of the San Jacinto Valley," she added.
Bono said the legislation still needs to go through the Congress and to the president, but she expects it to be approved by the end of this year.
Ratification of the pact would bring to a close nearly 150 years of conflict over the limited resources of the San Jacinto River groundwater basin. That conflict at various times has pitted the Soboba Band against the federal government, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and the Eastern Municipal Water District.
Last year's settlement stems from a federal lawsuit filed in 2000 against the water agencies, alleging that an underground tunnel built in the 1930s to bring water through the San Jacinto Mountains has drained much of the water supply to the Soboba Reservation. The agreement terminated that lawsuit.
The settlement also calls for the tribe to not move its gambling operations from its reservation to a highly visible site near Diamond Valley Lake.
Robert Salgado, chairman of the Soboba Band, said tribal members and San Jacinto Valley residents would see improved water supplies with passage of the legislation.
"It's not just the tribe, but the whole valley that would benefit from this," said Salgado. He said the tribe is pleased to put the dispute behind it.
"It's been, what, 70 years that we've been trying to put this to rest," he said.
The settlement also has pleased officials of the water agencies.
"The settlement provides both for a guaranteed water right to the tribe and a way to effectively manage the San Jacinto River groundwater basin," said Jeff Kightlinger, general manager of MWD.
Bono said the legislation culminates years of negotiations and would help assure a better future for the region.
"The significance of this legislation is impossible to measure because it secures the future of our growing population and agriculture industry," she said.
Reach Herbert Atienza at 951-763-3464 or hatienza@PE.com
Soboba Act
If approved by Congress and signed by the president, The Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians Settlement Act will provide the tribe with:
Rights to construct an aqueduct and an annual water supply of 9,000 acre-feet
128 acres of land near Diamond Valley Lake for commercial development
$18 million from local water districts for economic development
$11 million from the federal government for water development
The legislation would mandate an annual delivery of 7,500 acre-feet of water to Eastern and Lake Hemet water districts as part of an effort to recharge the San Jacinto groundwater basin. It also would provide cities with $10 million in federal funds to help recharge the aquifer with the imported water.
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