News Release
February 25, 1998
Contact: Stephanie Boyd
(619) 594-8761 or
(619) 594-8762
San Diego State University Forms Consortium to Help Restore Salton Sea
SAN DIEGO, CA . . .New legislation was introduced today in Washington, D.C to honor former congressman Sonny Bono, which promises to restore the troubled Salton Sea through the efforts of San Diego State University and two other Southern California universities. The Salton Sea University Research Consortium was formed by San Diego State University, the University of Redlands, and the University of California, Riverside, in an effort to address the complex environmental problems at the Salton Sea.
"As part of the Consortium, SDSU will bring 20 years of experience and research at the Salton Sea to restore the aquatic ecosystem for the people and wildlife of the region." Said Stephen L. Weber, president, SDSU. "Our main focus will be on environmental analysis of the watershed and ecological studies relating to the Sea’s saline and eutrophic problems. These activities will provide critical information for restoration efforts," he said.
As institutions in close proximity to the Salton Sea, the three members of the Consortium have made a commitment to revitalize California’s largest body of water. "The Consortium was developed at the urging of the Salton Sea Congressional Task Force, particularly Congressmen Jerry Lewis of Redlands and George Brown on San Bernardino," said Harry Albers, general manager of SDSU Foundation. "Members of the Task Force recognized the damaging challenges choking the Sea, as well as the expertise available through our research efforts in Southern California and in the Middle East," said Albers.
SDSU’s Center for Inland Waters includes more than 20 faculty and researchers who already have conducted long-term studies at the Salton Sea and the surrounding basin. "These studies provide the basic understanding of the water quality, limnology and biology of the Salton Sea," said Dr. Stuart H. Hurlbert, professor of biology at SDSU and director, Center for Inland Waters. Many SDSU faculty members are engaged in collaborative projects with scientists and scholars at the leading research institutions in Mexico on border environmental issues in the Imperial Valley-Mexicali Valley region.
Approximately 25 faculty members at the University of California, Riverside, have expertise bearing on the many problems facing the Salton Sea and the University of Redlands recently received authorization for the first half of a $2 million appropriation to establish a Salton Sea Bioregional Geographic Information Systems Database.
Objectives of the Consortium include:
· Coordinating research efforts to integrate priorities across disciplines.
· Collecting, maintaining and updating information through a Salton Sea clearinghouse.
· Developing and conducting research in a coordinated manner, including economic impact reports.
· Advising and reporting to the congressional Task Force and the Congress the progress on the Salton Sea clean-up.
· Providing long-term management and monitoring to ensure that biological, hydrological, and economic impacts are positive.
In carrying out these objectives, the University Research Consortium will work closely with federal and state agencies, the Salton Sea Authority, and other stakeholders in moving forward with development and implementation of successful solutions to address the critical environmental problems at the Salton Sea.
###