Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, a source of drinking water for 2.7 million people in the City of San Francisco, is viewed from O'Shaughnessy Dam on October. The pipeline is essentially the fourth step of the Keystone Pipeline System. Both Kyl and McCain do a good job of presenting their claims to support their interests. But while it is deemed as very beneficial, it also has its downsides. San Francisco began a partnership with Turlock and Modesto to share in Don Pedro Dam as well as the Tuolumne River (to which they already shared rights). It was denied in 1903 by Ethan Hitchcock, then Secretary of the Interior, because he felt that a National Park isnt like ordinary wildernesses. There was no distinction between wilderness, National Forests or National Parks. In 2015, Restore Hetch Hetchy filed a lawsuit against the City and County of San Francisco, seeking a ruling that Hetch Hetchy Reservoir violated California law. The scenery on the way up is amazing (duh, it's . Its not just San Francisco.. Reservoir releases also generate hydropower that San Francisco uses for . But that is what the suite is all about. Pros: The damming and flooding of Hetch Hetchy, which is a portion of Yosemite National Park, is by far the biggest harm our national parks have ever seen. Whether to restore hetch hetchy will be the subject of a panel discussion thursday at the commonwealth club, with experts from both sides of the debate, including tom graff, regional director. The first great American conservation movement was born during the Progressive Era out of the concern that industrial growth and urban development threatened to extinguish America's wilderness. Donald Hodel, then Secretary of the Interior, suggested that the time might be ripe to remove the OShaughnessy Dam that holds back the Tuolumne River creating the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. If they expand filtration at Sunol, they would need to break gravity at that point. After the built the dam farm land increased by a lot. How feasible is restoration? Since they built the dam, yuma became a bigger city which a lot of people passed through it to get to the gold rush. Between 1908 and 1913, Congress debated whether to make a water resource available or preserve a wilderness when the growing city of San Francisco, California proposed building a dam in the Hetch Hetchy Valley to provide a steady water supply. He is arguing that the conservationist only care about the real dollar cost for the project without consideration for what will be. With having low flow in the Dam it affected the Colorado River, other rivers, canals and dams too. In the 1600s when Europeans began to settle in North America, there were 1037 million acres of forestland. But with them building the dam the water level would lower down making it harder to be at a safe distance from the ground. Guess who owns millions of acres of American wildlands? Hetch Hetchy: Pros and Cons of Restoration. Reliable: Tidal currents are predictable. A society as advanced as the humans on earth must have areas of wilderness regulated by the government. Hetch-22. Restoring the valley would return to Yosemite National Park a major asset. United States. Engineers came to try to protect the low flow, valleys, flooding and stable, The book had a great impact on the Elwha River and was cited, both as an inspiration and as cold, hard evidence, by the first advocates for dam removal. This lead to one of the biggest events in US history, which was the removal of the Elwha Dam about 30 years after the book was written. Hetch Hetchy is only one of nine reservoirs in the San Francisco Public Utility Commission's water system. Building a dam on the tuolumne river at hetch. . Rosekrans had previously worked at the Environmental Defense Fund, a New York-based environmental advocacy nonprofit, where he was lead author of the 2004 report Paradise Regained: Solutions for Restoring Yosemites Hetch Hetchy Valley. Oak Trees end up showing the history of conservation, and wildlife comes from what others consider devastation of the land. Ecocentrism is an environmental point of view that . In the end Congress chose management over aesthetics, voting 43-25 (with 29 abstentions) to allow the Hetch Hetchy dam on federal land. According to the California Department of Water Resources, it would cost $65 million to properly study the pros and cons of draining Hetch Hetchy. . 7. The leaders of the tribe say that Washington never considered their concerns, as required by the federal law (Worland). Pros and cons of allowing the Hetch Hetchy Dam to remain in place; Controversy surrounding removal of the Hetch Hetchy Dam; and ; Your position on whether the Hetchy Hetchy Dam should be removed or not. He also gives the specific dilemma that, The Hetchy Dam controversy of the early 1900s was a debate that shaped how America has dealt with the environment since. This November, a group of environmental advocates will put forth a ballot measure that would require the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission to develop a plan to drain Hetch Hetchy. The Sierra Club also built a visitor and education center in 1898. Water quality would remain high. Water data back to 1930 are available online. . If you don't look at the dam and think about how it holds back the Tuolumne River and covers a valley that John Muir compared (pre-dam) to Yosemite Valley, it actually looks like another beautiful Yosemite mountain lake. Basically, this method of power generation uses water, which is a free . Mining was a huge activity of the mid to late 1800s that caused many people to travel west in search for gold. Which gave it more attention so more people came through and check it out. need to think this through better) The Keystone Pipeline has been debated for sometime now. Pinchot would soon face opposition from ranchers and miners that began to hurt his position on conservation. The money was used for city to make more towns. If you're doing all of the main Yosemite things, such as stopping at Tunnel View or doing the Yosemite Valley Tram Tour, you'll need to head north and exit the Park through the Big Oak Flat entrance. Jay Lund, director of the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences, thinks so. The Hetch Hetchy Valley and Reservoir in Yosemite National Park, a system that is operated by the San Francisco Public . It started with some basic facts; that it stores up to 117 billion gallons of drinking water; it is a clean, efficient water delivery system for 2.6 million residents daily; and it generates 1.6 billion kilowatt hours of clean hydroelectric power annually. This river connects with the Colorado River as well, and now flows into Southern California 100 yards north of the US Mexico border. The river later turned away flowing West, and led into the Southern California Salton Sink river. That anyone would try to destroy [Hetch Hetchy Valley] seems; incredible; but sad experience shows that there are people good enough and bad enough for anything. By california standards, hetch hetchy is not a large reservoir. They would need to reoperate the others and make additional investments. People would save large amounts of money because it was not needed to be used on distillation payments. Whether it was from your teacher, the news or something on the internet that you glanced at then moved on to watch more cat videos, you still noticed it. Its very clean; theres very little sediment. The water is disinfected with ultraviolet light but, in contrast to almost all other reservoirs in the U.S., filtration is not required. Legal issues aside, is it theoretically possible to change the Hetch Hetchy water system? John Muir was the main proponent for the preservationists. Final we learn if mans ownership of land compared to those who also inhabitant it is more important. River Plan Too Fishy for my Taste Buds explains how the project will not help at all, something fishy must remain a secret. . Theodore roosevelt approved the concept of the o'shaughnessy dam, which ultimately created the hetch hetchy reservoir within yosemite. We have estimated the cost to be $B 2.0 over 50 years primarily for water supply, water quality and hydropower replacement. . They also cannot pass through because there is going to be a dam in there way. On the other hand, Navajo representative, Ed Bencenti wrote the article, Senate Bill 2109 Seeks to Extinguish Navajo and Hopi Water Rights, in which he exposes the real intentions of the Senate Bill. A decade later the O'Shaughnessy Dam, the second largest civil engineering project of its day after the Panama Canal, was completed. Giving a Dam: Congress Debates Hetch Hetchy. As Leopold moves along in A Sand County Almanac, the reader finally understands the full scale of thought that is placed in front of them. United States. Hardin defines a technical solution as one that uses science or technology to save the commons (1968, pp. And Im in favor of that. Likewise, the hydro-electric losses can be made up in other locations or by other forms, such as renewable sources as is already required by the state. Because after they built a dam the water levels decreased. The regional water system provides water to 2.4 million people in San Francisco, Santa Clara, Alameda and San Mateo counties. Have San Francisco look into it. Do the State and Federal filtration standards that Hetch Hetchy Reservoir meets or exceeds include the standards necessary to eliminate the Giardia parasites? However, the intentions of the Senate Bill are not ethical and efficient; instead of attempting to alleviate the issue of the scarcity of water, it is contributing to this problem by taking away the water that belonged to the tribes and giving it to coal, Also if some respected the movement, they did not take care of it because they saw no need to for a clean environment. Our figures include replacing that with solar power.. Theodore Roosevelt approved the concept of the O'Shaughnessy Dam, which ultimately created the Hetch Hetchy reservoir within Yosemite. Then in 1913, when it was reconsidered, the Raker Act was passed. As well dam for water-tanks the people's cathedrals and churches, for no holier temple has ever been consecrated by the heart of man." . The debate 100 years ago was technically and, as it happens, critically won by san francisco. . We can produce power from dams because of the kinetic energy of the water movements as it causes turbines to spin. There is a lot of background information about the Keystone as well that it has an environmental and economic impacts. Owned by the city of San Francisco, Hetch Hetchy Reservoir provides water to 2.7 million residents and businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area. There is a waiver for FILTERING but not for TREATMENT. For example, raising a dam on another reservoir in the system could flood another stretch of the Tuolumne River that, while outside Yosemite National Park, is designated as a national Wild and Scenic River. Hardin writes that the tragedy of the commons is that the conflict between the individual interests and the collective interest will always lead to the depletion of the commons, unless otherwise held in check (1968, pp. The dam and reservoir are the source for the Hetch Hetchy Aqueduct, which provides water for over . Department of the interior. The very idea that a dam and a reservoir was allowed and constructed within a National Park is repugnant. In a brief filed with the appellate court, they said, The trial court did not determine that the continued use of the dam and reservoir was reasonable rather, it concluded that the question could not be examined at all. In other words, they say the trial court did not address the substance of Restore Hetch Hetchys argument. This photo from the early 1900s shows Hetch Hetchy Valley from the southwestern end, with the Tuolumne River flowing through the lower portion of the valley prior to damming. The reservoir is about a 1-hour drive from both Groveland and Yosemite Village. 1. Some of the costs would be operational, recurring year after year. When the gold rush happen they put yuma on the map. Aldo Leopold discusses these dangers in his essay, Good Oak, suggesting solutions to prevent them and improve the environment in the process. So Restore Hetch Hetchy filed an appeal with the Court of Appeals in Fresno, which heard arguments from both sides in May of this year. John Muir believed that nature was an example of the power of god and creation, and that the use of nature through management was an act of defamation. Between 1908 and 1913, congress debated whether to make a water resource available or preserve a wilderness when the growing city of san francisco, california proposed building a dam in the hetch hetchy valley to . You own magnificent red-rock canyons and beautiful turquoise rivers. May be crucial for the energy transition process. Some people are outraged by the pipeline because it contributes to man-made climate change. Not only would restoration make Yosemite entire once more, but would also encourage others that we don't have to continue making . The projected restored the natural habitat of the river and opened it up to its original course from the Olympic Mountains to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite delivers water to 2.6 million Bay Area residents every day. Increase in food production capacities. tuolumne river. Building a dam on the Tuolumne River at Hetch Hetchy was fiercely debated when it was proposed in the early 1900s, and the reservoir continues to spark controversy today. Fortunately, humans have governments that will manage our areas of natural wilderness. Spreck Rosekrans said, Yes, certain system improvements are required to keep SF whole with respect to water and power. The two sides include Preservationists who wanted to preserve Hetch Hetchy and Conservationist who believed that we should take advantage of the resources Hetch Hetchy provides. While the dam did drive away some business from Yuma, it also brought people and grew the cities of Yuma. Ive tried to be fair in the presentation of the issue, but have made clear which side of the fence I daggle my feet. Monitoring location 11275500 is associated with a LAKE, RESERVOIR, IMPOUNDMENT in TUOLUMNE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA. Which is used for more people. It is my goal to use this site to share, not only my experiences and photos, but also some of its history and the tales of those who forged it. 4. These arguments were brought before congress to make a decision about the fate of the valley. The club continues opening National Parks, building monuments and dams in rivers and protecting the sequoia trees in many other parks (The Sierra Club). I have had no response on these questions. Guide to Visiting Hetch Hetchy . pros and cons of living in mackay; is alaska: the last frontier coming back in 2021; hillsborough county public schools employee handbook; index of series cheers; jack steward is he married. Agencies Accelerate Efforts to Build Transit-Oriented Development, San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. We havent built a major dam in this state since 1979, McClintock said. I also asked San Francisco Water Public Records the following: Ive been curious about the water purity issue and that one of the features of the Tuolumne River is its purity and that it could be delivered without filtration. Issues that bring about this conflict such as population growth and pollution, cannot be solved through technical solutions alone (Hardin, 1968, pp. Note they also derive water from local watersheds and do filter that supply. Considering the context of the hetch hetchy debate at the time,. Started at the dam, CCW on Friday 10/14, late arrival had us starting at 4PM. Feb 13, 2022. It would be much easier to fight for restoration if we had some bad guys to rally against, but I dont see any. Hetch Hetchy Reservoir is one of 9 reservoirs in the system. See Also:Giving a Dam: Congress Debates Hetch Hetchy, Giving a Dam: Congress Debates Hetch Hetchy. It pitted Gifford Pinchot, America's first forester, against John Muir, America's legendary conservationist.. Donald Hodel, then Secretary of the Interior, suggested that . There doesnt seem to be financial or business need within their own sphere of financial responsibility forcing the city to consider relocating the water storage. I reached out to Restore Hetch Hetchy and asked them, WHY Restore Hetch Hetchy wants the valley restored. In response, Spreck Rosekrans, Executive Director said (among other things): Restore Hetch Hetchys mission remains, to return the Hetch Hetchy Valley in Yosemite National Park to its natural splendor while continuing to meet the water and power needs of all communities that depend on the Tuolumne River.. Their arguments are curiously like those of the devil, devised for the destruction of the first garden. As a reservoir, Hetch Hetchy is part of a system that provides water to 2.4 million people in the San Francisco Bay Area. JI & SP: Today, Hetch Hetchy Valley is a dammed and flooded reservoir. Basically, this is a debate between ecocentric people and anthropocentric people. I would never put Hetch Hetchy where it is, but the fix itself would be destructive somewhere else, said Laura Tam, sustainable development policy director of SPUR, a San Francisco-based nonprofit dedicated to urban planning in the Bay Area. Water quality issues would have to be addressed if Hetch Hetchy water were put into the Don Pedro reservoir, of course. The battle for hetch hetchy was perhaps the first effort at what is now known as. Rules were not set in the early stages of the parks, so people would overkill the animals and damage the trees by puncturing the outer layer . It is definitely worth to visit Hetch Hetchy area especially in 2021 when main Yosemite area requires booking permits in advance. Made eco-friendly with 100% Free Range recycled pixels. In the essay Thinking Like A Mountain, Aldo Leopold tell us how important is sustainability. (Hook. The Hetch Hetchy water system includes other reservoirs, and the one in Hetch Hetchy Valley stores only about a quarter of the water San Francisco gets from the Tuolumne River. Wilderness belongs to you. I also reached out to San Francisco Water Public Records (SFWATER.ORG) for their views on the issue. You may take easy hike to Wapama falls ( around 6 miles) or even more challenging hike to Rancheria falls ( around 14 miles). Royalty-free Creative Video Editorial Archive Custom Content Creative Collections. But whenever we did have floodings the cost was very high to try and building and fixing it back up. Preservationist and Sierra Club founder John Muir did not testify before Congress, but he argued against the Hetch Hetchy plan in this excerpt from his 1912 book, The Yosemite. The Hetch Hetchy Project controversy brought into sharp relief the difference between conservation and preservation. Hidden in Yosemite National Park's peaceful northwest corner, Hetch Hetchy Valley is a treasure worth visiting in all seasons. They did not so much respond to where they stood on the issue, rather they outlined why they like the system as it is; they shared a previously published flyer: Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System. Hetch Hetchy captures snowmelt that runs off granite, Ritchie said. Posted on May 6, 2013 by Galen Hiltbrand. In my opinion I am . The Bay Area Monitor thanks Craig Newmark Philanthropies for funding support of this site. The two books give near contemporary accounts of the Hetch Hetchy dam, one by the engineer in charge of building it. In the 1800s, that number of tress and forests decreased tremendously because expansion and progression recklessly exploited natural resources by clear-cutting forest to use wood for fuel and building supplies. Considering the context of the hetch hetchy debate at the time,. However, the term was really able to come to prominence after economist Garret Hardin invoked the analogy in his 1968 paper Science. The rights were acquired in the late 1880s, the dams construction began in 1921 and completed in 1923. Energy for northern california would be provided. Others believe that itll benefit the economy and will not have major impact on the environment. The values are at the heart of our legal petition filed April 21, 2015. The Tuolumne River was dammed 100 years ago in Hetch Hetchy Valley to create a reservoir of drinking water for residents of San Francisco and the Peninsula. The construction of the Hetch Hetchy Railroad took place from 1915 to 1918. Then What? The latest twist in this long story has just unfolded, and the final chapter is yet to come. In the end Congress chose management over aesthetics, voting 4325 (with 29 abstentions) to allow the Hetch Hetchy dam on federal land. Into the conclusions of the studies listed above and the data on which they are based, and, finally, to weigh the pros and cons of dam removal and formulate your own position. But changing the system would be jaw-droppingly expensive. So when all of those people go and pass through they decided to put yuma on the map. Hardin defines individual interests as the uses a logical, self-interested person sees for the commons to further his or her personal gain (1968, pp. Write an opinion piece (e.g. These arguments were brought before congress to make a decision about the fate of the valley. The dam made irrigation, This year has been really hectic, with protests and elections alike. We cant build more dams as long as the radical environmental laws make their construction impossible(McClintock). 3. And that is what happened with San Franciscos initial request to be granted the right to build a dam inside the park. Next well ask for a review from the state Supreme Court.. Instead, he envisions what once was and could be again. In 2012, Restore Hetch Hetchy placed a measure on the San Francisco ballot that would have required the city to conduct an $8 million study on the impacts of draining the reservoir. His greatest idea was the land ethic. A quote from the movie says: All ethics so far evolved rest upon a single premise that the individual is a member of a community of individual partsland ethic includes soils, waters, plants and animals. Although, Leopold died in 1948, his ideas are still current. Yet, on September 19th, 2011 the demolition of the dam began and was the largest dam removal in history. The dam had been built in the early 20s and remained there, blocking the flow of the river for about 100 years before it was finally taken down. My personal Yosemite tales, knowledge and park information. Answer #1. A little more research and a clearer explanation of the pros and cons of the Prop, as well as possible reasons for the lack of clarity to voters, is in order, based on quotes the writer . The sturdy and concrete material can help store water for a long time. The Hetch Hetchy area closes at 5:00 p.m. for day-use visitors, and a permit is required for overnight camping or backpacking. Causing more land to appear to use. Since December 19, 1913, when the Raker Act was signed by President Wilson, there has been a lamentation on the loss of Hetch Hetchy Valley. [emailprotected]. Encountered a bear meandering down the trail towards us about a 1/2 mile from the fork to go up left . of 5. Between 1908 and 1913, congress debated whether to make a water resource available or preserve a wilderness when the growing city of san francisco, california proposed building a dam in the hetch hetchy valley to provide a steady water supply. During 19th century, the Hetch Hetchy Dam was being inhabited by the Native Americans who usually practiced the so called hunting-gathering. Which would cause them to go out of business. The Hetch Hetchy Railroad (HHRR) was a 68-mile (109 km) standard gauge Class III railroad constructed by the City of San Francisco to support the construction and expansion of the O'Shaughnessy Dam across Hetch Hetchy Valley.. Based in Groveland, the HHRR operated from 1917 to 1949.It primarily carried construction crews and materials, but also took excursion passengers, freight, and mail. Though the system fosters this behavior, it is the individuals that increase their usage of the commons and play into the hand of the failed system as opposed to standing up against it. SOLUTIONS. Hetch Hetchy was the first major battle of the environmental movement. SOLUTIONS. However, the Preservationists ultimately failed to convince Congress to stop the damming of the Hetch Hetchy due the ability to make money off the reservoir and the resources Hetch Hetchy provides that would benefit the people of San Francisco. The two books give near contemporary accounts of the Hetch Hetchy dam, one by the engineer in charge of building it. Which means we lose more money. As it is clear from the Pros and Cons above, (and San Franciscos less than enthusiastic undertaking in alternative view points) there are some sound reasons why San Francisco doesnt want to give up their Dam/Reservoir. However, pumps and filtration could be added at a fraction of what Restore Hetch Hetchy says would be the benefit of a restored valley. Updated: May 13, 2022. The dam in Hetch Hetchy Valley would subsequently be named in his honor. People who do not fully control the sources of their energy may take it for granted and waste it, however if they make changes in their lifestyle, these dangers can be avoided. There are already info-structure issues before San Francisco, such as required earthquake retrofits. Hetch Hetchy is an iconic, rare and spectacular landscape, Hetch Hetchy is part of Yosemite National Park and its damming and flooding is by far the worst destruction of our national parks have ever experienced, Restoration would not only make Yosemite whole once again it would inspire people that we dont need to live with mistakes of the past. Hetch Hetchy Valley, far from being a plain, common, rock-bound meadow, as many who have not seen it seem to suppose, is a grand landscape garden, one of Nature's rarest and most precious mountain temples. Ever since the establishment of the Yosemite National Park, strife has been going on around its borders and I suppose this will go on as part of the universal battle between right and wrong, however much its boundaries may be shorn, or its wild beauty destroyed. If the logging of Crater Lake is to impel, many of the natural treasures in the park would be wiped out and unsuitable as a wilderness destination (Juillerat, OPB). The name Hetch Hetchy is derived from a Sierra Miwok word for a type of wild grass. The O'Shaughnessy Dam was completed in . Raquel Coelho de Matos 2 Dissertao de Although Hetch Hetchy Reservoir is the most well-known, it stores less than 25% of the system's water. During the early 1900s there was a large debate in the United States concerning the proposed construction of the Hetch Hetchy dam. Brown mentions many ways to fix the ever growing problem at hand, and at the time, most seemed very radical. According to Restore Hetch Hetchy, Lake Eleanor is not part of their plan or goal. Which gave a giant increase to yuma county. The debate featured those for the proposed dam the conservationists and those opposed the preservationists. However, the source of that contamination is in contention and that more analysis was necessary. Maybe well find a legal one, allowing all parties to see alternative ways to handle the water system that would benefit both San Francisco AND visitors to Yosemite. Again, as I said in an earlier post about the nature of the government and of the Department of Interior more specifically, their job was of managing the land resources for progressive purposes (water use, timber, land appropriation). Theodore Roosevelt: Conservation As A National Duty introduces the problem of the lack of natural resources, and how are we going to fix the problem for future generations? It pitted a powerful city against a dedicated group of conservationists. The Hetch Hetchy Dam is destroying a piece of land that is the homes of multiple types of animals. Hydroelectricity is responsible for 19% of the world's energy supply, offering over 3000 terawatts each year. Other reservoirs are potential "holding tanks" for water for the San . O'Shaughnessy Dam is a 430-foot (131 m) high concrete arch-gravity dam in Tuolumne County, California, United States.It impounds the Tuolumne River, forming the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir at the lower end of Hetch Hetchy Valley in Yosemite National Park, about 160 miles (260 km) east of San Francisco.