In terms of quality, Hetch Hetchy water is so pristine that it is one of only a handful of water supplies in the country that doesn't need to be filtered, a process that is expensive and energy intensive. Hetch Hetchy Quotes - Rausser College of Natural Resources Park entry (as needed). She says the water first leaves Hetch Hetchy through the O'Shaughnessy Dam. The second concept is preservation. You may take easy hike to Wapama falls ( around 6 miles) or even more challenging hike to Rancheria falls ( around 14 miles). As a consequence, visitors came to experience it for themselves. This 1910 view shows Kolana Rock and Tueeulala Falls in the background. The Engineer as Lobbyist - JSTOR [18], Due to its abundant wetlands and stream pools, Hetch Hetchy was notorious among early travelers for becoming infested with mosquitoes in the summertime. Prominent sponsors of the dam proposal, particularly (by then former) Mayor James Phelan and city engineer Marsdon Manson (and later his successor, Michael OShaughnessy), quietly lobbied key figures in the government, trusting that the appeal of municipal water and power would easily win supporters amid the prevailing progressive political climate. The battle for the Hetch Hetchy Valleys future was not simply preservation versus conservation. If youre excited about a long hike or backpacking trip, you can continue to Laurel Lake for a 14.2-mile (22.9 km) out and back. Many are vital pieces of infrastructure that provide reliable water supplies, hydropower, flood control, and recreation. The main power facility in the system, the Moccasin Powerhouse, began commercial operation on August 14, 1925. Copyright © 2023 More Than Just Parks | This post may contain affiliate links - read our Standards, Corrections, & Privacy Policy. Located 30 miles southeast of Las Vegas, the dam captures water from the . Principally, dam removal on the Klamath will require annual replacement of 696 gigawatt hours of electricity by other means. Building the Dam. It also was an early battle of conservatives vs progressives. So visit Hetch Hetchy. [2] If you love that insider feeling of discovering an often-overlooked gem, plan a stop at Buck Meadows on your way to or from Hetch Hetchy. Note: you may use the handout or navigate to our feature on the Hetch Hetchy Environmental Debates to access the overview and copy of the Raker Bill. Put another way, if Congress denied the city of San Francisco the Hetch Hetchy Valley, the California Progressive leaders suspected that it would only be a matter of time before the emerging Pacific Gas and Electric Company would grab the area. Above all, one's behavior Argument Against The Hetchy Dam 587 Words | 3 Pages In November 2012, San Francisco voters soundly rejected Proposition F,[86] which would have required the city to conduct an $8 million study on how the flooded valley could be drained and restored to its former state. Looking up at Wapama Falls from the footbridge on the hiking trail. [15] When the glacier retreated for the final time, sediment-laden meltwater deposited thick layers of silt, forming the flat alluvial floodplain of the valley floor. San Francisco Mayor James Phelan led the fight to build a dam at Hetch Hetchy. The Valley Below | The Verge Secretary of the Interior, Ethan Allen Hitchcock, refused to give San Francisco a permit to build the dam. . Her poetic descriptions of Hetch hetchy won her the attention of powerful members of Congress. Off Deadline: Is 'Restore Hetch Hetchy' a pipe dream or a living vision The U.S. Congress passed and President Woodrow Wilson signed the Raker Act in 1913, which permitted the flooding of the valley under the conditions that power and water derived from the river could only be used for public interests. San Francisco applied to the United States Department of the Interior to gain water rights to Hetch Hetchy, and in 1908 President Theodore Roosevelt's Secretary of the Interior, James R. Garfield, granted San Francisco the rights to development of the Tuolumne River. [69], In 1987, the idea of razing the O'Shaughnessy Dam gained an adherent in Don Hodel, Secretary of the Department of the Interior under President Ronald Reagan. $27.3125/hr Watershed Worker (Summer, 2023) - Hetch Hetchy Water [5] Chief Tenaya of the Yosemite Valley's Ahwaneechee tribe claimed that Hetch Hetchy was Miwok for "Valley of the Two Trees", referring to a pair of yellow pines that once stood at the head of Hetch Hetchy. For all the similarities between Hetch Hetchy Valley and Yosemite Valley, there is one enormous difference the Hetch Hetchy reservoir. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like The 1987 UN Commission on Sustainability first introduced the concept of ________ as a necessary focus for maintaining sustainability. Those who did visit it were enchanted by its scenery, but encountered difficulties with the primitive conditions and, in summertime, swarms of mosquitoes. Dianne Feinstein, the mayor of San Francisco at the time, said in a Los Angeles Times story in 1987: "All this is for an expanded campground? In contrast to the utilitarian view, the preservationist approach denied the assumption that the natural world existed solely to serve mans purposes. "Dam Hetch Hetchy!": John Muir Contests the Hetch-Hetchy Dam Rancheria Falls itself is a series of whitewater cascades that crashes through a narrow canyon on its way to the reservoir. San Francisco Hetch Hetchy Reservoir Initiative, Proposition F OPTION 3Give control to the local people of Hetch Hetchy While opponents of the dam were hard pressed for financial support, the city of San Franciscos campaign was well financed. In the early 20th century, San Francisco flooded the Hetch Hetchy Valley, destroying "one of nature's rarest and most precious mountain temples." This is why the city can now ban new natural gas. Also convince them it would be a good idea to raise the heights of their dams so we can enlarge these reservoirs with our extra water, flooding anew many miles of the Tuolumne River and acres of currently dry land. California needed secure, reliable access to drinking water for their burgeoning populations. As well dam for water-tanks the people's cathedrals and churches, for no holier temple has ever been . While the debate goes on, Hetch Hetchy remains a relaxing and often-overlooked corner of the park much to the delight of hikers and backpackers who prefer less touristy experiences. Located at 3,900 feet, Hetch Hetchy boasts one of the longest hiking seasons in the park and is an ideal place for thundering spring waterfalls and wildflower displays. But if you still have energy, continue past the bridge to Rancheria Falls. As Muir famously protested: Dam Hetch Hetchy? The Fight for Hetch Hetchy | Environment & Society Portal And in a larger sense, the waters of California served as the converting agents. One route begins six miles beyond the entrance station. I will agree to take down Hetch Hetchy, when we first replace it with a bigger new reservoir such as a bigger taller Yosemite Valley dam at El Capitan. SPUR Urban Center, 654 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-4015 | (415) 781-8726 | [emailprotected], 2023 SPUR Privacy Policy 501(C)(3) Non-Profit Tax Identification: 94-1498232, a member-supported nonprofit organization. We would be trading flooded acres in one place for flooded acres in another. The Hetch Hetchy Valley is about 8 miles (13 km) from Yosemite Valley. Monroe was a Chicago poet who joined Muir and others on their 1908 and 1909 outings to the valley. Download the official NPS app before your next visit. Richard Ballinger was a conservative who was one of the main characters who was responsible for the progressive-conservative split in the GOP in 1912 (leading to the creation of the Bull Moose party), which is the factor that determined the GOP would be on the right side of the political spectrum (and therefore ensuring the Democrats would be on the left side of the spectrum). They suggest that draining the reservoir and turning Hetch Hetchy Valley into a tourist center similar to Yosemite Valley could be worth up to $178 million per year. The extensive amount of storage, which is designed to benefit the Bay Area as droughts become more severe with climate. It pitted Gifford Pinchot, Americas first forester, against John Muir, Americas legendary conservationist. There, he met the same Indian chief and his wives. Divide the class into four small groups. [66] In 2015, Restore Hetch Hetchy filed a complaint arguing that the construction of the dam had violated a provision in the constitution of California about water use, but the lawsuit was rejected by an appeals court and later the California State Supreme Court. While the debate goes on, Hetch Hetchy remains a relaxing and often-overlooked corner of the park - much to the delight of hikers and backpackers who prefer less touristy experiences. The reservoir is fed by the Tuolumne River. On December 19, 1913, Congress passed and President Wilson signed the Raker Act which permitted the building of the OShaughnessy Dam and the flooding of the Hetch Hethcy Valley in Yosemite National Park. From our petition "The cost of replacing water storage in Hetch Hetchy Valley to maintain the current levels of water service and electrical power production by CCSF would be approximately 2 billion dollars, including 199 million dollars for additional interties, 372 million dollars for water supply, 387 million dollars for water treatment, 669 Proponents of the dam replied that out of multiple sites considered by San Francisco, Hetch Hetchy had the "perfect architecture for a reservoir",[43] with pristine water, lack of development or private property, a steep-sided and flat-floored profile that would maximize the amount of water stored, and a narrow outlet ideal for placement of a dam. Yosemite's Hetch Hetchy Water Wars - Yosemite National Park Trips [2] The dam and reservoir are the centerpiece of the Hetch Hetchy Project, which in 1934 began to deliver water 167 miles (269km) west to San Francisco and its client municipalities in the greater San Francisco Bay Area. Hetch Hetchy, unlike other water storage facilities in California, is relatively buffered from near-term climate change because of its high elevation. The glacial Hetch Hetchy Valley lies in the northwestern part of Yosemite National Park and is drained by the Tuolumne River. They would light upon a man's blue shirt and turn it brown, and were voracious as mosquitoes would be. [77][78], The economic wisdom of removing the dam has been frequently questioned. The Hetch Hetchy Reservoir also serves to provide energy in the form of hydroelectricity, with a capacity of over 200 megawatts a year. Dbq Hetchy Project - 663 Words | Internet Public Library Should nature be left alone so that flora and fauna flourish while people enjoy its primal wonders? The openings in the Taft administration led to the eventual success of the Raker Act. Hetch Hetchy Valley, Yosemite National Park, California The Greatest A bigger population will increase demand, meanwhile climate change could significantly reduce supply through drought and hydrological cycle changes. No picture of the giant sequoia trees in Yosemite National Park manages to fully capture their immense size and majesty. Forests might provide for the material well-being of human beings, but they did not exist for this reason alone. Yosemite's Secret Valley - Hetch Hetchy - YouTube Winter storms fill Hetch Hetchy, renew debate about reservoir's future Hetch Hetchy - Wikipedia Garfield had granted San Franciscos request, but Ballinger ordered the city to show cause as to why Hetch Hetchy should not be deleted from their grant. The locations of these two formations roughly correspond with those of Cathedral Rocks and El Capitan seen from Tunnel View in Yosemite Valley. This is because the Tuolumne catchment basin above Hetch Hetchy is almost three times as large as the catchment area of the Merced River above Yosemite, allowing a greater volume of ice to form. Monroe went on to lobby members of Congress as the battle moved to Washington D.C. She was a tireless advocate who believed that people needed to be educated in order to do what was best for everyone involved. It's dumb, dumb, dumb. From 1901 - 1913, John Muir led the Sierra Club in a campaign to protect the Hetch Hetchy Valley, a part of Yosemite National Park, from being filled by a reservoir. Hetch Hetchy, a glacially carved valley situated in the northern end of the park, was flooded and dammed in the early 1900s in order to serve as the primary drinking water source for parts of San Francisco and the Bay Area. If their signature-gathering campaign is successful, a small group of environmental advocates, led by Restore Hetch Hetchy, will give you the opportunity this November to vote on a measure that would require the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) to develop a plan to drain Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. In spite of Muirs eloquent and heated objections, the Raker Act was signed into law in December of 1913. Tom Philp of The Sacramento Bee - The Pulitzer Prizes He wrote, I have always called it the Tuolumne Yosemite, for it is a wonderfully exact counterpart of the great Yosemite, not only in its crystal river and sublime rocks and waterfalls, but in the gardens, groves, and meadows of its flowery park-like floor. The larger issues at stake would frame environmental debates for years to come. As the Hetch Hetchy Valley was part of Yosemite National Park, Hitchcock preferred to protect the park's natural wonders.
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