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Even really small hydro is not so green. PGE's Centerville Powerhouse
outside of Chico is rated at 5.8 MW. As we all know that is a misnomer
since during the critical low water period of summer, it rarely
produces more than 2 MW. When you you realize that prior to 1992 the
minimum flow in the prime salmon holding and spawning areas was 20cfs
in normal years and 10 in dry years, Centerville was a major fish
killer for a paltry amount of power
(<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://buttecreek.org/documents/SpringRunNumbers.pdf">http://buttecreek.org/documents/SpringRunNumbers.pdf</a>). Even today PGE
struggles to maintain temperature in the low flow section (now with a
40cfs normal year and 20 cfs dry year flow since 1992) because they try
to squeeze out a few more KW's. 2002 and 2003 saw major fish kills
(7000 and 11,000 prespawn endnagered salmon) that were characterized as
natural loss due to high temperatuere. Never mind that PGE controls
the temperature in the low flow section. Recent temperature data from
the relicensing of the project show great benefits to shutting down the
Centerville Powerhouse (at least during summer) and running all the
water down the creek. Please join me in requesting PGE to shut down
the Centerville Powerhouse and let the creek run free. We have nearly
20,000 endangered spriing run salmon this summer and they will be hard
pressed to make it thorugh the summer with only 40cfs. Normal summer
flow ranges from 80 to 120cfs. PGE would like to spend 40 million to
replace the powerhouse which would buy a nice solar generating plant
anywhere. For more information on Butte Creek visit <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.buttecreek.org">www.buttecreek.org</a><br>
Allen Harthorn, Executive Director<br>
Friends of Butte Creek<br>
<br>
Byron Leydecker wrote:<br>
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<div class="Section1">
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">June 1, 2007<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">Shikha Dalmia’s commentary (<i><span
style="font-style: italic;">Dam
the Salmon</span></i>, May 30, 2007) grossly mischaracterizes two
complex
issues—the global warming impact of hydropower reservoirs and the
restoration of the <st1:place w:st="on">Klamath River</st1:place>.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">Ms. Dalmia seems to think that reservoirs do
not release greenhouse
gases. This is quite wrong. Because of the rotting of flooded organic
matter,
dams worldwide are an important source of global warming pollution –
according to the latest research causing 4-5% of the total human impact
on our
climate. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="background: yellow none repeat scroll 0%; font-size: 12pt; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">No measurements have been made of gases
released from the Klamath. Yet
the water quality in the reservoirs is extremely poor - usually an
indicator of
elevated emissions, especially of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.
Hence the
greenhouse gas pollution from hydropower production on the Klamath may
be
significant.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">The Klamath dams have been analyzed in depth
over the past 7 years as
the five-dam project owned by Warren Buffet’s PacifiCorp is under
Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission review for a new hydropower license. This
analysis
has uncovered a project that is economically shaky, provides a small
fraction
of PacifiCorp’s hydroelectric power, and contributes to water quality
problems that are a threat to human health. The Klamath dams have all
but
extinguished tribal rights to fish for salmon and collapsed the
commercial
salmon fishing industry along 700 miles of coastal <st1:State w:st="on">Oregon</st1:State>
and <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">California</st1:State></st1:place>.
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">As the California Energy Commission notes,
the retirement of
inefficient generation facilities with high environmental impacts is a
standard
feature of the power generation industry. The small capacity of the <st1:place
w:st="on">Klamath River</st1:place> hydroelectric project---160 MW
capacity but
low flows mean that it operates at only half of this
potential---results in
meager power benefits that are outweighed by the far reaching economic,
social
and environmental costs of the dams<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">A large contingent of tribes, federal, state
and local government
agencies, environmental groups and local farmers are working to address
the
many issues surrounding the removal of dams on the <st1:place w:st="on">Klamath
River</st1:place>. This roll-up-your sleeves approach to solving
complex
resource issues is the hope for the future in addressing climate
change, large
scale restoration projects, and especially the situation in the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Klamath</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Basin</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">Brian Stranko, Executive Director, <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">California</st1:State></st1:place> Trout<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">Patrick McCully, Executive Director,
International Rivers Network<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">California Trout has been involved in the <st1:place
w:st="on">Klamath River</st1:place> dams relicensing negotiations
since 2000. <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.caltrout.org">www.caltrout.org</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;">International Rivers Network has published
several reports on
greenhouse gas emissions from dams and reservoirs. <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated" href="http://www.irn.org">www.irn.org</a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><st1:PersonName w:st="on"><em><i><font
color="gray" face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt; color: gray;">Byron Leydecker</span></font></i></em></st1:PersonName><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><em><i><font color="gray" face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt; color: gray;">Friends of <st1:place
w:st="on">Trinity River</st1:place>, Chair</span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><em><i><font color="gray" face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt; color: gray;">California Trout,
Inc., Advisor</span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><st1:address w:st="on"><st1:Street w:st="on"><em><i><font
color="gray" face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt; color: gray;">PO Box</span></font></i></em></st1:Street><em><i><font
color="gray" face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: gray;"> 2327</span></font></i></em></st1:address><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on"><em><i><font
color="gray" face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt; color: gray;">Mill Valley</span></font></i></em></st1:City><em><i><font
color="gray" face="Times New Roman"><span style="color: gray;">, <st1:State
w:st="on">CA</st1:State> <st1:PostalCode w:st="on">94942-2327</st1:PostalCode></span></font></i></em></st1:place><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><em><i><font color="gray" face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt; color: gray;">415 383 4810 </span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><em><i><font color="gray" face="Times New Roman"
size="3"><span style="font-size: 12pt; color: gray;">415 519 4810 cell</span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><em><i><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="mailto:bwl3@comcast.net">bwl3@comcast.net</a></span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><em><i><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="mailto:bleydecker@stanfordalumni.org">bleydecker@stanfordalumni.org</a></span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><em><i><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.fotr.org">http://www.fotr.org</a></span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><em><i><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.caltrout.org">http://www.caltrout.org</a></span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><o:p></o:p></font></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><span
style="font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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