The Bureau of Reclamation Did Not Effectively Manage the San Luis Demonstration Treatment Plant

We evaluated the Bureau of Reclamation’s (BOR’s) management of the San Luis Demonstration Treatment Plant (Demo-Plant). The Demo-Plant did not provide the agricultural drainage services mandated by statute and presented in the San Luis Unit drainage planning documents and, as of the beginning of 2018, did not consistently meet operational performance goals referenced in the cooperative agreement. In addition, the BOR did not effectively oversee the cooperative agreement. We, therefore, concluded that the BOR did not effectively manage the Demo-Plant, spending a reported $67.8 million as of May 18, 2018, for a plant that did not provide the salt disposal critical to agricultural drainage services and did not consistently meet its operational performance goals. In addition, the drainage needs, environmental reviews, and cost estimates for the San Luis Unit area are out-of-date; thus, years of additional planning will be needed for any future drainage activities. This is the final in a series of three reports about the Demo-Plant. We make seven recommendations to address the weaknesses in the BOR’s management of the Demo-Plant. The BOR responded to our draft report on May 17, 2019. Based on the response, we consider Recommendation 1 resolved but not implemented and Recommendations 2 – 7 unresolved. We will refer Recommendation 1 to the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget to track implementation and Recommendations 2 – 7 for resolution and to track implementation.