At the February meeting of the Eel-Russian Rivers Commission, the main topic was the proposal to reduce the amount of water diverted from the Eel River by an average of 15%. At issue are the 52 billion gallons of water a year that are diverted into the Russian River through PGandE's hydroelectric facility at Potter Valley. The 15% proposal has been adopted by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
The National Marine Fisheries Service had not yet signed on to the proposal, since the suggested flow regimes would, in their opinion as the designated government expert, further harm the native fishery. Patrick Rutten, regional director of NMFS, spoke of continuing efforts to assure adequate releases of water at times of the year that were critical to the life cycle of anadromous fish (those that live in the ocean but spawn in rivers, such as Chinook and Coho salmon). He was optimistic that a regime would soon be negotiated that would both protect the fishery and provide adequate water for Russian River watershed users.
Diane Pauli, chair of the Inland Water and Power Commission of Mendocino County, expressed grave concern at the potential loss of water during the summer, upon which the Potter Valley Irrigation District relies. Mr. Rutten assured her that meeting the District's needs was given great weight in any discussion. He then noted his agency's need to properly document every action they took, "because no matter what we decide, someone's going to sue us."
There was related discussion about Lake Pillsbury, the reservoir behind Scott's Dam that supplies much of the water for the diversion in the summer. The warm waters of the lake are causing two problems unrelated to water flow regimes: they provide a breeding ground for predatory fish, which eat the salmon fry, and result in the percolation of methyl mercury, which is entering the food chain.
As for the predatory fish, Gene Geary, the biologist for PGandE, argued that such fish exist in other parts of the Eel River system and are not themselves the problem. Then why are there no salmon spawning successfully between Lake Pillsbury and the diversion at Cape Horn Dam, some 15 miles downstream, even though the waters are cooler there? It is the artificial concentration of adult predators released from Pillsbury that de-naturalizes that stretch. And certainly the hundreds of miles of spawning streams above the lake will never be restored until the dam is removed.
As for the methyl mercury poisoning, earlier concerns that bald eagles, which have winter aeries in the Cache Creek wilderness, would be affected were dismissed, as no one had any reports of the eagles eating at the lake. Apparently the government can only take action if an endangered species is affected, even though humans are now warned not to eat any fish from the lake, and other animals are not so aware. Mercury is an element that does not flush out of the system, but continues to build up in the collective biology of the surrounding species. The only long-term solution is to remove the warm waters of the lake that percolate the mercury from mineral deposits unforeseen at the time of the dam's construction.
The next meeting of the commission will occur in May in Lake County. The commission provides time for public comment on each issue and others not on the agenda. To be placed on the commission's mailing list, call 463-4589, or write to them at The Courthouse, State and Perkins Streets, Ukiah, CA 95482.
Copyright Mendocino Environmental Center 2001
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