City of LA and Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District Reach Historic Comprehensive Agreement on Owens Lake Dust Mitigation

LOS ANGELES and BISHOP, CA – Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, LA City Attorney Mike Feuer, DWP Commission President Mel Levine and Owens Valley air pollution control representatives Ron Hames, Linda Arcularius and Matt Kingsley announced today that the City of Los Angeles and the Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District (Great Basin) have reached an historic agreement over the implementation of dust control measures on Owens Lake.

The successes achieved at controlling dust at Owens Lake have come at a real cost to Angelenos. Currently, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) uses about 25 billion gallons of water annually and has spent $1.3 billion since 2000 to control dust at Owens Lake. The equivalent of nearly two months out of every Los Angeles ratepayer’s annual water bill is spent on Owens Lake dust mitigation, including the cost of replacing the water used there.

Today’s agreement will allow the LADWP to use waterless dust control methods, including tillage, at Owens Lake, resulting in significant water and monetary savings for Los Angeles. The agreement also provides Los Angeles with the certainty of knowing the full extent of its liability for dust mitigation at Owens Lake. Great Basin will also maintain its full regulatory authority with the assurance that LADWP will continue to meet its obligations to control dust on Owens Lake.

“After years of conflict, we finally have an agreement that will save billions of gallons of water and millions of dollars for LADWP ratepayers and will address environmental issues at Owens Lake,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. “With this agreement, Los Angeles is taking its responsibility seriously at Owens Lake, while saving money and allowing more water to flow to Los Angeles to help our city respond to our record drought. This is a significant win for ratepayers and our environment in both Los Angeles and the Owens Valley.”

“Today is a victory for LA’s ratepayers and for Owens Valley residents,” said City Attorney Mike Feuer. “By collaborating rather than fighting, we will reduce water usage, contain costs and improve air quality near Owens Lake.” (Full story at LAmayor)