Santa Monica, CA – Cadiz Inc. (Nasdaq: CLCI) announced today that the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (Metropolitan) and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) have published a Supplement to the previously released Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (DEIR/EIS) for the Cadiz Groundwater Storage and Dry-Year Supply Program (Cadiz Program).

The Supplement includes a comprehensive Groundwater Monitoring and Management Plan (Management Plan) that is designed to ensure the safe operation of the aquifer system underlying Cadiz’ agricultural property and to protect surrounding environmental resources – during and after the life of Cadiz Program operations. Prepared collaboratively by Metropolitan, the BLM, the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Park Service, the County of San Bernardino and Cadiz Inc., the Management Plan addresses key water resource and related air quality issues that were raised during circulation of draft environmental documentation for the Cadiz Program. The Supplement will be circulated for 45 days for public review and comment.

"The publication of this groundwater monitoring and management plan reflects many months of diligent work and a cooperative effort by a broad coalition of local, state, and federal officials," said Marvin Shaw, vice president of resource management for Cadiz Inc. "Through this collaborative process, we are proud to have developed an environmental protection plan that is unrivaled within California’s water industry."

The Cadiz Program, a public/private partnership between Cadiz and Metropolitan, will assist Metropolitan in maximizing the efficiency of its Colorado River Aqueduct and providing a reliable, high quality water supply for the 17 million Southern Californians it serves. The Cadiz Program is cited as a key component in California’s official plan to reduce its draw on the Colorado River. The 50-year partnership will store surplus Colorado River water supplies, up to one million acre-feet at any one time, beneath the Company’s agricultural landholdings in the eastern Mojave Desert. During dry years, the stored Colorado River water and indigenous groundwater will be extracted, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Management Plan, and returned for use within Metropolitan’s service area.

The Management Plan is the cornerstone of the Cadiz Program, governing all water use in the area. A comprehensive network, including more than two dozen different types of monitoring features, will form a protective perimeter around the Cadiz Program area. When combined with specific action or trigger levels, this unprecedented "early warning" system will ensure that transferring water into and out of the aquifer system has no adverse impact on the aquifer system itself or the surrounding natural resources. Resources that will be monitored and protected include the aquifer system beneath and surrounding the program area, natural springs in the Mojave National Preserve and in BLM managed lands, brine resources at nearby dry lakes and regional air quality.

All told, the Management Plan will be one of the most technologically advanced and comprehensive environmental protection plans ever developed for a water project in California.

Oversight will be provided by a panel of representatives from the U.S. Department of the Interior, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the County of San Bernardino and Cadiz Inc., who will perform ongoing reviews of the monitoring data and may recommend whether changes should be made in program operations to ensure the continued protection of the surrounding natural resources. All scientific data, including annual reports, will be made available to the public.

After the close of the public comment period for this Supplement, a final environmental impact report/environmental impact statement will be compiled and published by Metropolitan and the BLM.

Founded in 1983, Cadiz Inc., is a publicly held water resource management and agricultural firm. With its subsidiary, Sun World International, Inc., Cadiz is one of the largest vertically integrated agricultural companies in California. The Company owns significant landholdings with substantial water resources throughout California. Further information on the Company can be obtained by visiting its corporate web site at www.cadizinc.com.

This release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, including statements related to the future operating and financial performance of the Company. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in its forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those reflected in the Company’s forward-looking statements include price and yield fluctuations in the agricultural operations, seasonality, timing and terms of various approvals required to complete the Program, and other factors and considerations detailed in the Company’s Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

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