"Lawsuit challenges first lithium project in California," 22 April 2024

A new lawsuit has asked a Superior Court judge to block an Australian company from extracting lithium from... Salton Sea until more research can be completed on the industry’s environmental impact.

The lawsuit... filed by two advocacy groups, says the environmental review adopted by the county... violates the California Environmental Quality Act...
The lawsuit says the review downplays how much water the project will use... The report also doesn’t include measures that address tribal concerns such as employing tribal monitors to consult during construction in areas near sensitive cultural resources...

The coalition that filed the lawsuit is made up of the Comite Civico del Valle [and] Earthworks... Coalition members say the county approved the report without considering changes they proposed that would address limiting water usage and mitigating air quality concerns.

Rod Colwell, CEO of CTR, told inewsource that despite the lawsuit community members have come out in support of its project plans.

“It’s disappointing to see Comite Civico del Valle file this lawsuit after many years of engagement,” Colwell said. “CEQA is intended to provide decision-making agencies and the public with detailed information about the environmental considerations for any project...”

The county has yet to respond to the lawsuit.