The Alta Springs Nation filed for a 90-day extension before public release of the updated geothermal survey data from beneath Lake Noeta’s eastern basin.
SANTA NOETA — September 12, 2026
The Alta Springs Nation filed a formal request with the Santa Noeta Regional Water Authority on Wednesday asking for a 90-day extension before any public release of the updated geothermal survey data from beneath Lake Noeta’s eastern basin.
Chairwoman Loretta Sandoval, in a letter to the Authority’s board, cited the Nation’s right to review any data collected on or adjacent to lands covered by its federal water rights agreement before that data enters the public record.
“The survey was conducted properly and with our knowledge,” Sandoval wrote. “What we are asking for is time to understand what it says and what it means for our water before the press conference happens.”
The Water Authority’s chair confirmed receipt of the request and said the board would take it up at its October meeting. The Shoreline Band of Lake Noeta, which holds a contested geothermal claim on the eastern margin, did not comment.
The updated survey, commissioned in 2025 to refine earlier estimates of the thermal gradient beneath the lake bed, has been anticipated by clean energy investors and regional planning officials as a potential catalyst for a larger development proposal. The timeline for any such proposal is now uncertain pending the review outcome.
Consortium Director of Innovations Chloe Chen, whose team has been tracking the data implications for the FlyForward initiative, said the extension was not unexpected. “Community review isn’t a delay,” she said. “It’s what we said we were going to do.”