For years, the possibility of PG&E officials tearing out the infrastructure they own that currently diverts water from the Eel River to the Russian River — which in turn fills the Lake Mendocino reservoir, Healdsburg’s main water source — has been looming over our community, along with the many other towns who get their water from the Russian. Not to mention the fish and other wildlife who need at least some water to keep flowing in the Russian River, in order to survive. (And river tubers like me!)
Anyway, some tentative good news on that front: U.S. Congressman Jared Huffman, a Democrat representing the entire North Coast, says he just secured $15 million in federal money toward implementing what he’s calling “the two-basin solution.” Sounds like it would be a win for both civilization and the ecosystem. From the congressman’s press release, issued on Jan. 17:
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.
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,” said Rep. Jared Huffman.
(Note: A few days after the Huffman’s announcement, the Trump administration halted the dispersement of Inflation Reduction Act funds to an untold number of projects. I’ve reached out to the congressman’s press team, asking if this project will be affected. I’ll keep you posted.)
Basically, PG&E owns two dams and a water diversion system along the Eel River, collectively called the Potter Valley Project. It no longer produces electricity, so it’s just a burden at this point for PG&E. Almost everyone else involved is interested in removing the dams, too — in hopes of an ecological renaissance like the one taking place along the newly dam-less Klamath. The only problem with tearing out the dams, though, is that they’re somehow connected to the Russian River diversion system. So this “two-basin solution” would appear to be a win-win, if the many cooks in this kitchen can pull it off.
Here’s some more analysis from KRCB news radio:
The new federal funding offers a kind of “down payment” on a reformed Potter Valley Project; one that will allow salmon and steelhead unimpeded access to upper reaches of the Eel River, while continuing water diversions to support Russian River flows and water levels in Lake Mendocino.
Also, random but sort of related: Scientists up in Oregon reportedly just discovered a massive, 21-trillion-gallon “aquifer,” or rock layer that stores water, in the Cascade mountain range just north of the California border. Wild! SF Gate writes: “The big questions, of course, are how long the colossal amount of water stored in the aquifer might remain useful to the people of Oregon, and who else might be able to benefit.”
