Romney, others back bill to pump funds into Colorado River salinity programs

A bipartisan congressional effort backed by Utah's U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney could provide needed money and support for programs that reduce salinity in the Colorado River.

Romney, a Republican, joined by co-sponsors Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colorado, and Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyoming, introduced the Colorado River Salinity Control Fix Act on Wednesday, arguing more work needs to be done to lower the high level of salts sometimes recorded in the river, which supplies some 40 million people across seven states and 30 Native American tribes.

A network of federal and local projects work to combat naturally-occurring salts in the river and its tributaries, with funding coming largely from the money made off hydropower projects. Years of ongoing drought have resulted in a drop in revenues, just as the costs of those projects have risen. The new bill proposes an increase in the federal government's share of the costs to combat salinity.

"Unfortunately, decreases in hydropower revenues as a result of our historic drought and increases in the costs of implementing salinity projects have left our states with insufficient funds to meet our current cost share requirement," Romney said in a written statement. "I’m proud to cosponsor this bipartisan legislation, which is a long-sought priority for Utah, to help our state shoulder the costs of desalinizing the Colorado River."

Salinity levels have long been a concern within the river basin, and Congress passed in 1974 the Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Act, which directed the Secretary of the Interior to develop ways to protect water quality riverside. Additional laws passed in 1984 and 1995 gave further direction to develop a basinwide salinity control program.

Higher salinity levels can hurt crop yields, kill trees and compromise ecosystems throughout the river system.

Senators from several other states were original cosponsors of the legislation, including Democrats and Republicans from California, Arizona and Colorado.

"As our population grows and as we face a hotter and drier future, the federal government needs to provide greater support for state and local leaders to protect our water supply," Sen. Bennet said. "This bill supports ongoing efforts to keep water from the Colorado River safe for communities, farmers and ranchers, and water users throughout the entire Basin. I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass this bipartisan legislation."

The Salinity Control Program has been an important tool in Utah, said Gene Shawcroft, the state's Colorado River Commissioner.

"The changes to the Salinity Control Act will shore up the Program’s finances and ensure that needed salinity projects are adequately funded in the future," he said. "I applaud Senators Romney, Lummis, and Bennet for their leadership in bringing important improvements to this Program."

This article originally appeared on St. George Spectrum & Daily News: Romney backs bill to pump funds into Colorado River salinity programs