September 14, 2009

Water from the desert?

PODCAST
From KPCC / KUOR
Southern California Public Radio


To meet urban demand for water, Cadiz Inc. is proposing to tap an aquifer in the Mojave Desert. The company could also store water from other sources in the aquifer. Governor Schwarzenegger has praised the project, but environmentalists say it would damage fragile desert ecosystems in nearby wilderness areas and Mojave National Preserve. A similar proposal from Cadiz died seven years ago. Larry talks with supporters and critics of the project.

To hear Scott Slater, General Counsel of Cadiz Inc, Emily Green of Chance of Rain, Elden Hughes of the Sierra Club and Richard Sierra of the San Bernardino Union of Carriers, Building & Construction Laborers, Local 783 discuss the Cadiz groundwater project in the Mojave Desert,

Slater claims that harvesting groundwater from the desert is now a “conservation” project. Green and Hughes don’t buy it. Sierra wants jobs.

Guests:

Scott Slater, Cadiz General Counsel
Richard Sierra, Business Manager, Laborers Local 783
Emily Green, journalist. She writes the Dry Garden column for the Los Angeles Times and blogs on water at ChanceofRain.com
Elden Hughes, past chair of the Sierra Club’s California/Nevada Desert Committee