Rep. Jared Huffman (D – San Rafael) recently announced that the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation has awarded Round Valley Indian Tribes and the Sonoma County Water Agency $15 million toward implementing the Two-Basin Solution for water diversions from the Eel River to the Russian River.
In a press release, Huffman explains that “the funds through the Inflation Reduction Act will fund a major Eel River estuary project supported by the tribes, and put a down payment on construction of a new wintertime diversion to the Russian River following the removal of two salmon-blocking dams on the Eel.”
“This funding shows what can be accomplished thanks to the strong partnerships in the Eel and Russian river basins. We’ve now reached a significant milestone in restoring salmon and other aquatic life in the Eel River while protecting a key water supply for communities in Mendocino, Sonoma, and Marin counties,” Huffman is quoted as saying in the release.
Explaining that “the Pacific Gas and Electric Co. plans to remove Scott and Van Arsdale dams that no longer produce electricity but prevent salmon from reaching 200 miles of spawning habitat, Huffman also notes that “Round Valley Indians Tribes and Sonoma Water worked together on the application and are also working with Mendocino Inland Water and Power Commission on a plan that will benefit both basins.”
Also quoted in the release is RVIT President Joseph Parker: “This award is a critical step towards achieving the co-equal goals of the Two-Basin Solution and is needed to begin the process of restoring the Eel River fishery and community healing for our people. I commend the leadership of Congressman Huffman and that of Commissioner Touton and the Reclamation team in working with Round Valley and Sonoma Water to obtain this funding. The even split between basins is a historic first and establishes the precedent of equality that Round Valley, in conjunction with our partners, have been pursuing for many years.”
During a visit to Lake Mendocino last June, Huffman and Touton announced that the group hoping to continue diversions from the Eel River to the Russian River in Mendocino County had received $2 million from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
“Your success is reclamation’s success, and we are committed to that,” Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner at-the-time M. Camille Calimlim Touton told the group gathered at Coyote Valley Dam along Lake Mendocino to hear Huffman announce the award of $2 million to the Eel-Russian River Authority to help the group of regional stakeholders study how best to approach the possible continued diversion of Eel River water to the Russian River once the dams created for the Potter Valley Project have been removed, a plan being called the Two-Basin Solution.
“This is the first iteration of Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration funding, it’s brand-new, and we have $250 million, so I anticipate as we move forward there will be other funding announcements with that which you should all look out for,” Calimlim Touton added when officials were asked: “if infrastructure were built to continue diversions, where will the funding come from to operate and maintain it?”
As for the process of officially decommissioning the Potter Valley Project and removing the dams, Huffman acknowledged that Pacific Gas and Electric, the owner of the hydroelectric facility as well as Scott Dam and Cape Horn Dam, had recently requested a six-month extension to the timeline previously established by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
“This is a decommissioning process that’s moving pretty rapidly, if you compare it to other FERC proceedings, and there was a question, given the demands of that schedule, about whether PG&E would be able to incorporate, and fully collaborate with, the Russian-Eel Authority on their design and construction of a new diversion facility,” Huffman said. “Because PG&E is taking out Cape Horn Dam, and the folks with the authority need some time to finish the design and think about how we’re going to choreograph the removal of that dam with the building of this new, fish-friendly diversion facility.
“Ideally, that stuff should all work together, and there was some question, given the schedule, about whether PG&E would just need to race ahead with decommissioning and allow all the rest to happen separately, without integration,” Huffman continued. “And I don’t often praise delay, but I think the good news with this delay is that it gives the space and the time for that integration, and it should make everything work better.”
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