An injunction has been blocking the lining of the All-American Canal in Imperial Valley — a project for providing water to arid San Diego County. But, it was on Friday, a federal court has eventually lifted the injunction to help California learn to live on a so-called ‘water diet.’
To block the $200-million-plus project on the grounds, both environmentalists and business interests on the border’s both sides had sued claiming that it will lead to devastating farmers in the Mexicali Valley. It is where the aquifer is replenished by seepage from the canal.
But, a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals panel in San Francisco has rejected the arguments of the litigants, stating that a law has been signed by President Bush in December, which orders the Bureau of Reclamation to begin the project without delay.
Suing on numerous grounds, the environmentalists and business interests, worry that the project would violate various agreements with Mexico. It is also racially discriminatory as most of the farmers — who would have their water reduced — are Latino.
The plaintiffs alleged that the project would harm about 76,000 acres of farmland in the Mexicali Valley.