Today’s filing proposes to remove Scott Dam, which would allow Eel River fish passage to their headwaters habitat for the first time in a century. That’s a start. But too many questions remain unresolved.
Friends of the Eel River has been evaluating the safety and reliability of Scott Dam for several years now. We continue to have serious concerns about structural integrity and seismic stability, as well as PG&E’s failure to evaluate and disclose such liabilities. Please read our letter below to key elected officials, an attempt to draw … Read more
In response to preventable disasters like the 2010 San Bruno pipeline explosion, Pacific Gas and Electric has insisted that they are committed to high safety standards. It’s now a decade, and several other disasters, later and the company has yet to prove that they are following through on their promise to “…remain forever committed to … Read more
“Many people know that the river’s name is the Eel River right now, but the original name is Wiyot, that’s what we originated our name from and that is our ancestral river.” Ted Hernandez, Tribal Chair and Cultural Director for the Wiyot Tribe. Friends of the Eel River’s Conservation Director Scott Greacen hosts a discussion … Read more
We have great news for the Eel River and its fisheries. Days before entering bankruptcy, utility giant PG&E withdrew its application to relicense the Potter Valley Project and ended its attempt to sell the project, which includes two dams on the upper mainstem Eel River. Friends of the Eel River has been working for decades … Read more
(Eureka) Friends of the Eel River welcomes today’s announcement by PG&E that the utility is withdrawing its formal notice of intent to seek relicensing of the Potter Valley Project (PVP) before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and ceasing its efforts to sell off the two dams and associated diversion works. The two dams and … Read more
From Pacific Gas and Electric: NOTICE OF WITHDRAWAL OF NOTICE OF INTENT TO FILE LICENSE APPLICATION AND PRE–APPLICATION DOCUMENT On April 6, 2017, pursuant to 18 C.F.R. §§ 5.5 and 5.6, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (“PG&E”), filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“Commission”) notice of its intent to file an application for a … Read more
Utility Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) began seeking potential buyers today for two aging dams on the upper Eel River, even as new questions emerge about the vulnerability of the larger dam to seismic shocks. A conservation group working to remove the dams released a technical analysis today that identifies an active landslide above the … Read more
Tune in for a discussion of the fate of the Eel River dams that highlights more questions than answers. Pacific Gas and Electric made headlines last week when they announced, during the Eel Russian River Commission (ERRC) meeting, their intention to sell or surrender the Eel River dams. The Commission then began a discussion of … Read more
Every thirty to fifty years, hydropower projects get relicensed. Everyone knows that hydroelectric power is clean power, dams are good for rivers and fish, and even old dams never suffer any serious failures. So we should keep them all! At least, that appears to be how the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) thinks. The agency … Read more