Imperial County Supervisor Gary Wyatt, whose tenure ends in December, is considering applying to the Salton Sea Authority to become its next executive director, Wyatt said Friday.
“I‘ve been very much engaged in the Salton Sea for 12 years,” said Wyatt, a former member of the Salton Sea Authority board.
“It’s been a passion of mine and I’m a big believer the Salton Sea is one of the greatest resources we will ever know in our area,” Wyatt said after noting he’s been interested in the position for about a month after being encouraged to apply by people he respects.
In preparation for this application, Wyatt resigned from the board last week to avoid creating any conflicts when the process on how best to choose an executive director is made, he said.
The Salton Sea Authority, a joint powers authority made up of Riverside and Imperial counties, the Imperial Irrigation District, Coachella Valley Water District and the Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians, has been running with an interim executive director since Michael O’Conner resigned for personal reasons in March.
The Salton Sea Authority’s main role is to come up with revenue solutions for restoring the shrinking Salton Sea and coordinate mitigation efforts through parties involved in the Quantification Settlement Agreement, to name a few.
“This is a full-time position that is going to be very demanding because the Salton Sea is an extremely demanding issue,” Wyatt said. Whoever fills this position has to be very committed, he said “and I think I could bring that.”
But Wyatt, who decided not to run for re-election for the supervisorial seat of District 4, said he’s considering other possibilities of employment aside from the Salton Sea Authority.
Still, Wyatt feels that becoming an executive director would be beneficial for the county as most, if not all, previous executive directors have been based in the Coachella Valley.
“With the Imperial County and IID having so much at stake I think it would be really a great thing to have that kind of representation,” he said.
Timing and the specific process on choosing an executive director is yet to be decided by a Salton Sea Authority committee.
Staff Writer Alejandro Davila can be reached at 760-337-3445 or adavila@ivpressonline.com
“I‘ve been very much engaged in the Salton Sea for 12 years,” said Wyatt, a former member of the Salton Sea Authority board.
“It’s been a passion of mine and I’m a big believer the Salton Sea is one of the greatest resources we will ever know in our area,” Wyatt said after noting he’s been interested in the position for about a month after being encouraged to apply by people he respects.
In preparation for this application, Wyatt resigned from the board last week to avoid creating any conflicts when the process on how best to choose an executive director is made, he said.
The Salton Sea Authority, a joint powers authority made up of Riverside and Imperial counties, the Imperial Irrigation District, Coachella Valley Water District and the Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians, has been running with an interim executive director since Michael O’Conner resigned for personal reasons in March.
The Salton Sea Authority’s main role is to come up with revenue solutions for restoring the shrinking Salton Sea and coordinate mitigation efforts through parties involved in the Quantification Settlement Agreement, to name a few.
“This is a full-time position that is going to be very demanding because the Salton Sea is an extremely demanding issue,” Wyatt said. Whoever fills this position has to be very committed, he said “and I think I could bring that.”
But Wyatt, who decided not to run for re-election for the supervisorial seat of District 4, said he’s considering other possibilities of employment aside from the Salton Sea Authority.
Still, Wyatt feels that becoming an executive director would be beneficial for the county as most, if not all, previous executive directors have been based in the Coachella Valley.
“With the Imperial County and IID having so much at stake I think it would be really a great thing to have that kind of representation,” he said.
Timing and the specific process on choosing an executive director is yet to be decided by a Salton Sea Authority committee.
Staff Writer Alejandro Davila can be reached at 760-337-3445 or adavila@ivpressonline.com
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