To: Board of Supervisors
From: Supervisor Estelle Fennell
SUBJECT:
title
Resolution Adopting the County of Humboldt's Position Regarding the Future of the Potter Valley Project on the Eel River
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RECOMMENDATION(S):
Recommendation
That the Board of Supervisors adopt the attached resolution stating the County of Humboldt's position regarding the future of the Potter Valley Project.
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SOURCE OF FUNDING:
N/A
DISCUSSION:
On May 15, 2018, the Board of Supervisors approved a motion for Supervisors Estelle Fennell and Rex Bohn, the County's representative and alternate to the Eel-Russian River Commission ("ERRC"), to create a policy on the County's position regarding the future of the Potter Valley Project and bring it back to the Board before the ERRC meeting on June 8, 2018, in Ukiah.
The ERRC is a joint powers authority with directors from Humboldt County, Mendocino County, Lake County, and Sonoma County. The ERRC was established in 1978 to support regional coordination on watershed conservation, flood control, and economic stimulus and development within the two watersheds. The Potter Valley Project has been a primary focus of discussion for the ERRC since its creation.
The Potter Valley Project is a hydropower facility, owned by Pacific Gas & Electric ("PG&E") and located in Mendocino County that diverts water from the Eel River into the Russian River (Attachment 1). Impacts from the Potter Valley Project on Eel River fisheries, water supply, water quality, and recreation have been a longstanding concern.
PG&E's license from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") expires in 2022. In 2017, PG&E initiated actions to renew the FERC license. Also in 2017, Congressman Jared Huffman convened an ad hoc committee to address the issues and concerns in the Eel River and Russian River watersheds with the goal of identifying a "two-basin solution" that could be advanced in the re-licensing process.
In May 2018, PG&E announced its int...
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