In February 2018, LADWP asked the ranchers to sign waterless grazing leases and after Mono County and the Sierra Club sued them for not going through CEQA first, they provided a minimum amount of water that year. It was too little, too late in the year. The irrigation water the ranchers use for their cattle has maintained wetlands critical to the Bi-state Sage Grouse and other wildlife. In 2019 LADWP provided the usual amount of water to the ranchers because they had a surplus that their infrastructure could not handle. In May, Mel Levine wrote to Mono County confirming that LADWP would provide 15,000 AF of water to the ranchers this year, but would not retract their NOPA for waterless leases. In earlier conversations, LADWP said they would prepare a land management plan. The May letter indicated that is no longer the case. A hearing date for the CEQA lawsuit has been set for January 24. More information and to contribute.