The CEMEX Soledad Canyon mine status has moved to “on hold” by the State Water Resources Control Board due to ongoing litigation, officials said Tuesday. 

On Sept. 11, Senator Scott Wilk, R-Santa Clarita, sent a letter to the water board to raise concerns about the handling of the CEMEX mine application, according to Eileen Sobeck, executive director for the water board. 

“We’ve been dogging this issue since I was first elected into office in 2012,” Wilk said. “This has also been an ongoing fight for three decades.”

Current Status 

The state water board notified CEMEX on Nov. 20 that its water right application has been moved from a pending status to a hold status until a final decision is reached on CEMEX’s contracts for mineral materials, due to the “uncertainty of the project’s viability and the State Water Board’s limited staff resources,” according to the letter. 

“This means that the state water board is suspending all staff processing efforts, including review or generation of work products until the CEMEX litigation against the federal government has been fully resolved by the courts,” Sobeck said. 

While state water board staff may continue to provide guidance to the applicant as they prepare materials, staff are not expected to review or approve those materials until the project is released from this hold, according to the executive director. 

“The decision to pause the processing of CEMEX’s application is due to the ongoing litigation initiated by CEMEX challenging the federal government’s decision canceling CEMEX’s mining contracts,” Sobeck said.

If the decision stands, there is unlikely to be a viable project to support CEMEX’s application for a water right, and the state water board is likely to reject the application, according to the head of the board.  

Related: CEMEX Must Pay Over $25 Million Or Lose Soledad Canyon Contract, BLM Says

If the ongoing litigation is resolved in a manner that allows CEMEX to pursue its proposed mining project, state water board staff is set to recommend to the board that it conduct an evidentiary hearing on the merits of the project given the significant public interest involved, according to the letter.

“An evidentiary hearing would provide all interested stakeholders the opportunity to challenge the basis and need for a water right in a public and transparent setting,” Sobeck said.

The state water board staff have paused further processing of the application until pending litigation between CEMEX and the federal government is resolved, according to Sobeck.

“Given the significant public interest, state water board staff will recommend to the Board that it hold a public hearing on the application if the application moves forward,” Sobeck said. “A public hearing would give members of the public and stakeholders, regardless of whether they are formal protestants, an opportunity to express their views and share evidence of anticipated impact.”

If the litigation is resolved in a manner that allows CEMEX to continue to pursue its proposed mining project, the processing hold is set to be lifted and the application will be subject to a public review process before the state water board makes a decision, according to the letter.

“This is larger than the mine in Irwindale, so the fact that they would have to hold a public hearing after never committing to a public hearing before is outstanding,” said Wilk.

Concerns Raised 

Wilk raised questions regarding a situation in which a federal agency would not provide Bella Vista Water District with access to facilities required for beneficial use of water as described in the district’s application, according to the letter. 

“This lack of access jeopardized the feasibility of the application. The state water board provided an opportunity for the district to obtain access either by agreement with the federal agency or by means of a judicial determination to compel such access,” Sobeck said.

The state water board denied the application because the district did not complete either of the options within the time provided. 

In contrast, CEMEX has a pending lawsuit to obtain a judicial determination to compel reinstatement of the mining contracts, according to the letter. 

The state water board is not expected to consider a denial of CEMEX’s application based on the cancellation of the mining contracts unless and until the CEMEX litigation reaches a final conclusion, according to the executive director. 

“We need to remain vigilant on this,” Wilk said. “I know our city leaders are. I know I am, and we’re going to keep working to put this thing to bed.”

Ed. Note: Michael Brown contributed to this story.

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