Southwest Hydrology: The Resource of Semi-Arid Hydrology Volume 4 Number 2

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/ COUNTERPOINT: Hetch Hetchy Yalley Restoration Restore a National Treasure, contined from previous page Water Quality SFPUC's diversions from the upper Tuolumne River have a rare filtration avoidance granted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Department of Health Services. Under our plan, some of these supplies would be diverted lower in the watershed and the entire supply would be filtered. Preliminary analysis by our consultants, Eisenberg, Olivieri and Associates (EOA), indicates that filtration would reduce certain constituents of concern, including Cryptosporidium and Giardia. EOA also found that "there does not appear to be any technical reason that the SFPUC Hetch Hetchy water supply system could not be operated without the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir" and made recommendations for further analyses that should be pursued as part of a final plan. Hydropower Restoring Hetch Hetchy Valley would reduce generation from two of the SFPUC's three Tuolumne River powerhouses. TREWSSIM modeling estimates an average annual reduction of between 339 and 690 million kilowatt-hours per year (20 to 40 percent of average annual generation), depending on whether the uppermost power tunnel would be modified to accommodate run -of -river diversions within Yosemite National Park. Several options are available to replacer eliminate the need for —the lost energy. Demand -side measures, such as increased investments in energy efficiency and expansion of dynamic pricing programs, offer cost - effective means of displacing both the energy and capacity needs currently met by the SFPUC's hydropower facilities. Renewable energy, especially solar and wind power, are the greenest new supply -side resources. New highly efficient gas -fired plants are the best available fossil - fueled alternative. We address not only the state -of -the -art pollution controls that are required for new gas - powered power plants but also how to offset all emissions of concern, including greenhouse gases, by finding ways to cut an equivalent amount of pollution from other sources. Costs of replacing water and power The total estimated cost (capital costs plus present value of operating costs) of replacing the water and power services provided by O'Shaughnessy Dam ranges from $500 million to $1.65 billion. Key factors affecting the range include decisions about hydropower and filtration, as well as a standard range of uncertainty for engineering costs. We understand that additional studies are needed and must take place in a public forum that addresses the concerns of all communities that rely on the Tuolumne River for water and hydropower. We are pleased that the Schwarzenegger administration has committed to review "Paradise Regained" and other studies, and also will undertake analysis of the benefits that a restored valley would provide to the American people. We encourage people to read our report, and to decide for See National Treasure, page 33 Hetch Hetchy a Vital Part, contined from previous page Removing 360,000 acre -feet of storage from California's water system would greatly impact the water supply for Bay Area customers and Central Valley farmers. 2. In California, the politics of water have too often been a "zero sum" game: one person or region's gain comes at a price to another. Proponents of draining Hetch Hetchy suggest that the Tuolumne River system is somehow exempt from this equation. In fact, California needs millions of acre -feet of new storage elsewhere to meet water supply needs for people, food, and fish. 3. Water from Hetch Hetchy is of the highest quality and comes unfiltered from the reservoir. Replacing this high - quality source would require the construction of filtration plants, costing more than a billion dollars without the associated conveyance appurtenances. 4. The CALFED Bay -Delta Program states in its 2004 multiyear plan that the state and federal water systems alone (not counting local systems) are in need of developing between 1.2 and 1.5 million acre -feet of additional water storage. Federal, state, and local governments are spending millions to complete feasibility studies for four new storage projects. Removing storage that communities depend upon is wholly inconsistent with the direction that this state must take. 5. CALFED's ten year plan, without storage and conveyance, will require in excess of $7.6 billon dollars. With storage and conveyance, it could be as high as $15.7 billon. What would be the source of the additional billions necessary to drain Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and attempt to make the Bay Area whole again? Leaders in the Bay Area and the SFPUC are sympathetic See Vital Part, page 33 +�* f..J 444 AW O'Shaughnessy Dam in Hetch Hetchy Valley. March /April 2005 • Southwest Hydrology • 15