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MEMORANDUM
TO: The Honorable Board of Supervisors
FROM: Supervisor Eddie Crandell, District 3
DATE: August 13, 2019
SUBJECT: Discussion and Consideration of impacts to Lake Pillsbury in the event Scott Dam is decommissioned and possible County Action in Response to PG&E's Decision to Withdraw its License Application for the Potter Valley Project
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Since our Board's June, 25, 2019 discussion of this matter, staff has gathered more information on the impacts of PG&E decision. In addition, a trip to the Lake Pillsbury area was made last week, for further consideration of impacts, by myself, Chair Scott and staff.
I am requesting agenda time to continue this discussion.
BACKGROUND:
The Potter Valley Project is a hydro-electricity project. This is a small hydro power project consisting of two dams: (1) the Cape Horn Dam which impounds the river into the Van Arsdale Reservoir, and (2) the Scott Dam which creates the Lake Pillsbury Reservoir. PG&E is the current licensee of this project. The project stores run-off from the upper Eel River Basin and diverts approximately 90,000 acre-feet of water each year into the Russian river in order to generate hydroelectric power. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) oversees PG&E's operation of the project.
In April of 2017, PG&E submitted notice to the FERC of its intent to renew its hydro power license. PG&E's current license expires in 2022, requiring it to make a new application no later than April 2020. However, in January of this year, PG&E withdrew its notice of intent and its pre-application document, discontinuing the license application process. In March of this year, the FERC issued a Notice Soliciting Applications. The notice set a deadline of 120 days from the date of that notice (July 1, 2019) for interested applicants, other than the existing licensee, to file notices of intent and pre-application documents, as well as requests to complete the pre-filing stag...
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