Federal feasibility study advances as state and partners report Salton Sea restoration gains

State and federal officials on May 20 updated the State Water Resources Control Board and the public on progress toward restoring the Salton Sea, and on a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers feasibility study that will shape which large‑scale restoration projects the federal government may fund.

The workshop opened with California Natural Resources Agency Secretary Wade Crawford, who credited state and local partners for recent work and recalled the governor and legislature’s investments in habitat and dust suppression. “We’ve been investing about $140 million to accelerate habitat restoration and reduce airborne dust,” he said, noting the work relies on federal cooperation for larger‑scale action.

Why it matters: the Corps’ feasibility study is the central federal process for identifying projects that could be recommended to Congress for construction funding. U.S. Army Corps staff told the board they had screened 13 restoration concepts and eliminated many for legal, technical or cost reasons (temporary supply constraints, construction risk, or very long time‑to‑benefit). Corps staff said a combined alternative that draws the “best measures” from other plans — described in the presentation as Alternative 15 — is likely to form the basis of a recommendation to Congress. Corps staff said a draft feasibility report will be released for public review and comment.

State program updates: program staff and partners summarized accomplishments through 2025. Presenters reported site‑level accomplishments including newly flooded ponds in the East site, tens of thousands of acres of project planning and monitoring, and the establishment of wetland demonstration projects such as Bamb (Bombay) Beach and a North Lake pilot. The team said the program’s first‑phase footprint (described internally as about 47 square miles) remains the organizing target for near‑term work.

Monitoring and safeguards: State Water Board and program staff described ongoing water‑quality and air‑quality monitoring. Staff said the project data portal and project tracker are publicly accessible and are updated when new monitoring arrives; project monitoring includes continuous sensors for temperature and salinity and site‑level air monitors for project performance metrics. “We update the data as we receive it,” one presenter said, adding that USGS sampling supports the work.

Cost shares and timing: presenters reiterated typical federal/non‑federal cost‑share patterns used by the Corps (50/50 for feasibility studies; commonly 65% federal share for construction in many Corps projects, with local sponsors covering the remainder and long‑term operations and maintenance). Corps and state presenters said they were working to accelerate analysis where possible but that environmental review and design phases would still be required before construction can begin.

Next steps: the Corps plans to publish a draft feasibility study for public comment, and state and federal partners said they will continue coordinating on adaptive monitoring, permitting, and ways to bring forward early increments of work that yield near‑term benefits.

The workshop offered few formal decisions; instead, it set expectations for public review of the Corps draft and asked agencies to continue to align monitoring, data access and grant/contracting steps that will move projects into implementation.