Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Loving Yosemite means many things ... like loving reliable water deliveries as well

For many of us, loving Yosemite means loving the whole park and therefore restoring Hetch Hetchy Valley to its former glory. And restoring Hetch Hetchy Valley means developing a practical water system solution for San Francisco and its Bay Area customers. So Restore Hetch Hetchy loves a reliable water system as well.

We have always emphasized that San Francisco can and should continue diversions of high quality Tuolumne River water. We just don't want the city to store the water within the boundaries of Yosemite. Analysis shows that 95% of the Tuolumne River supplies now diverted to San Francisco would still be available after Hetch Hetchy Valley is restored.  

So we are scratching our heads over the recent news that another critical piece of San Francisco's infrastructure is at risk. As the SF Examiner reports, the Mountain Tunnel could collapse and is in need of a $M 628 repair. The Mountain Tunnel is just one of five principal tunnels through which Tuolumne River diversions flow enroute from the Sierra to the Bay Area (see diagram). 

Restore Hetch Hetchy supports repair of this critical infrastructure - as we did a decade ago when the Irvington Tunnel was shown to be at risk.  But we also question whether this latest revelation is yet another reason why San Francisco (as well as other urban communities) should question the wisdom of relying on a single remote source for the majority of its water. Last summer's "Rim Fire" made us ask the same question.

Diversity is reliability. Water systems of the future will increasingly develop local supplies - by better managing groundwater, recycling wastewater, capturing storm water and storing supplies closer to their customers.

We hope San Francisco will soon support restoration of Yosemite's Hetch Hetchy Valley, and will diversify its system as well to increase reliability. But meanwhile, we support a timely and cost-effective solution to the problems with the Mountain Tunnel.


Spreck Rosekrans is Executive Director of Restore Hetch Hetchy   

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Day hikes into the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne?

Yesterday’s Water Law Symposium at UC Hastings in San Francisco included a session titled “The Hetch Hetchy Controversy”. The session included good questions and a few strong opinions on both sides from the audience, as well as some of the usual repartee between Restore Hetch Hetchy and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC).

One young man asked whether we wanted to create “another Yosemite Valley”. By the way he asked the question, he was asking if we envisioned a restoration plan with the infrastructure, crowds and traffic jams that can be overwhelming in Yosemite Valley.

I responded that Restore Hetch Hetchy does not have a definitive plan for how the valley should be managed once it is restored – that is something for the public and National Park Service to work out. I pointed out, however, that the Park Service has allowed little development in Denali, a more recently established national park.

I did say that I could imagine a Hetch Hetchy Valley that did not allow the private automobile, but which included an efficient shuttle system (light rail, bus, or tram) that would transport visitors to the upper end of the valley. I explained that such a shuttle system would allow day hikes into the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne – a spectacular area that lies upstream of the current reservoir. Presently the only way to see the Tuolumne’s “Grand Canyon” is to do a multi-day backpack trip.

The SFPUC representative opined that allowing day use of the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne would ruin it. (He further opined that the reservoir is protecting the valley – something we have heard before.)

What do supporters of restoration think about how the Park Service should manage a restored valley? How should people get to the upstream end of the valley? Should there be roads? If so, what about the private automobile? How about paved paths for bicycles and wheelchairs?

And should a restored valley include campgrounds or other lodging? Where should these be?

If Yosemite Valley accommodates 4,000,000 people a year, what is the right vision for Hetch Hetchy Valley? Bear in mind that both are about nine miles long but Yosemite Valley is wider.

How do we restore a valley so it can be loved but not loved to death?

Please share any thought you have on these matters below. Right now the discussion is just for fun. It will be more serious, and more exciting, once plans to remove the reservoir are in place.