Buck Meadows is also a great place to spend the night. Rancheria Falls itself is a series of whitewater cascades that crashes through a narrow canyon on its way to the reservoir. The waterfall on the Tuolumne is now submerged under Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. "[34], When Yosemite Valley became part of a state park in 1864, Hetch Hetchy received no such designation. Guests at these suites receive breakfast on their patios. For your last day, enjoy a short hike on the shores of the beautiful Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. A) human well-being B) renewable energy C) environmental sustainability D) cultural services E) human population growth, The current total world population has just passed ________. Most importantly, San Francisco would lose its source of high-quality mountain water, and would have to depend on lower-quality water from other reservoirs which would require costly filtration and re-engineering of the aqueduct system to meet its needs. In the foreground, the deep still water of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir reflects sunshine, clouds and the proud shadows of the surrounding mountains. A full breakfast is served in the dining room. 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 doesnt need to be filtered, a process that is expensive and energy intensive. As well dam for . Due to large cataracts on the Tuolumne River upstream, Hetch Hetchy Valley may have been in the uppermost range for native rainbow trout in the river. The idea of punching a hole in or removing the dam and allowing the valley to be restored to its pre-development conditions has been around since the late 1980s. The Hetch Hetchy Reservoir created by the dam has a capacity of 360,400acreft (0.4445km3), with a maximum area of 1,972 acres (798ha) and a maximum depth of 306 feet (93m). The O'Shaughnessy Dam and reservoir, and the series of aqueducts, tunnels, and tunnels as well as 8 other dams make up the entire Hetch Hetchy Project. Photo: Chris Migeon In 1913, Woodrow Wilson appointed Lane his Secretary of the Interior. GROVELAND,CA San Francisco may be required to pay more rent to the federal government for water from the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir or even tear down the O'Shaughnessy Dam. All offers, including but not limited to, bonus amenities, upgrades, prices, and group benefits are based on select dates, resorts, room categories, and/or fare codes. [58], Water from Hetch Hetchy is some of the cleanest municipal water in the United States; San Francisco is one of six U.S. cities not required by law to filter its tap water, although the water is disinfected by ozonation and, since 2011, exposure to UV. 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. He was a firm believer in utilitarian conservation. This is why environmental impact statements, which were not required prior to 1969, are so important today. [5] The valley was slowly becoming known for its natural beauty, but it was never a popular tourist destination because of extremely poor access and the location of the famous Yosemite Valley just twenty miles to the south. Would that be an improvement? John Muir, the first president of the Sierra Club, condemned plans to build the dam, saying, "Dam Hetch Hetchy! In the distance, long white plumes of water cascade hundreds of feet down from rocky heights. The Poopenaut Trail begins at a signed trailhead four miles past the entrance station. The first Moccasin Powerhouse in Moccasin, California began commercial operation in 1925 followed by the Holm Powerhouse in 1960 (the same month the Early Intake Powerhouse was taken out of service). This can be very disorienting to fish and disrupt their migrations as they depend on steady streams and flows to guide them. Photo: Herbert W. Gleason courtesy of the Sierra Club. The imputed motive was to divide the environmental movement: to see residents of the strongly Democratic city of San Francisco coming out against an environmental issue. [8] Rancheria Falls is located farther southeast, on Rancheria Creek. Looking up at Wapama Falls from the footbridge on the hiking trail. The regional water system provides water to 2.4 million people in San Francisco, Santa Clara, Alameda and San Mateo counties. . For John Muir, it was about preserving a natural wonder which could be enjoyed by generations to come. [71], The dam would not have to be completely removed; rather, it would only be necessary to cut a hole through the base in order to drain the water and restore natural flows of the Tuolumne River. As we learned from Rachel Carsons Silent Spring, humankind can damage the environment while attempting to control it. The most prominent preservationist spokesman was John Muir.. High temperatures prevail in summer months, but that is a small price to pay for the reward of vast wilderness filled with stunning peaks, hidden canyons, and remote lakes. [9] Formerly, a "small but noisy"[10] waterfall and natural pool existed on the Tuolumne River marked the upper entrance to Hetch Hetchy Valley,[11] informally known as Tuolumne Fall (not to be confused with a similarly named waterfall several miles upriver near Tuolumne Meadows). This strenuous 2.5-mile, round-trip hike to the Tuolumne River has 1,229 feet of elevation gain. The National Park Service concluded that two years after draining the valley, grasses would cover most of its floor and within 10 years, clumps of cone-bearing trees and some oaks would take root. The reservoir is eight miles long and the largest single body of water in Yosemite. The battle for Hetch Hetchy wasnt just conservationists vs preservationists. Ultimately, San Francisco sold hydropower from the dam to the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), which led to decades of legal wrangling and controversy over terms in the Raker Act. In the 21st century, Ken Brower, son of the renown environmentalist David Brower, wrote a fascinating account of the failed campaign to save Hetch Hetchy and the modern effort to Reverse an American Mistake, complete with speculation about how the rebirth of a wild valley might evolve. 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. Next to John Muir, the most vocal defender of the Hetch Hetchy Valley was Harriet Monroe. Use good judgment and stay safe. [50] The removal of the dam would be extremely costly, at least $310 billion,[76] and the transport of the demolished material away from the dam site along the narrow, winding Hetch Hetchy Road would be a logistical nightmare with possible environmental impacts. Muir predicted that this lake would create an unsightly "bathtub ring" around its perimeter, caused by the water's destruction of lichen growth on the canyon walls,[44] which would inevitably be visible at low lake levels. The Hetch Hetchy dam would still be as naturally beautiful as it was before when it was preserved, and along with that, the construction of the dam will benefit the greatest number of. 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. The entire valley is now flooded under an average 300ft (91m) of water behind the dam, although it occasionally reemerges in droughts, as it did in 1955, 1977, and 1991. Hetch Hetchy Water and Power also wants to remove the giant bulkhead that seals up the tunnel with 40 nuts and bolts, Ritchie said. The Hetch Hetchy Reservoir also serves to provide energy in the form of hydroelectricity, with a capacity of over 200 megawatts a year. 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. [77][78], The economic wisdom of removing the dam has been frequently questioned. Included with your registration: Two-day guided experience in Yosemite; one day at Hetch Hetchy and one day in Ackerson Meadow (Saturday, May 11, at 8 am, through Sunday, May 12, until about 3 pm). Before they could break ground at the OShaughnessy Dam, more infrastructure was required. 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. [67], Preservation groups including the Sierra Club and Restore Hetch Hetchy state that draining Hetch Hetchy would open the valley back up to recreation, a right that should be provided to the American people because the reservoir is within the legal boundaries of a national park. Historians of the American conservation movement regard Pinchot as the foremost exemplar of the utilitarian approach to conservation, according to which man has a right to use natural resources, but also an obligation to use them wisely and efficientlyor as the classic criterion put it, the greatest good for the greatest number over the long run. As applied to forests and espoused by Pinchot, this meant that the nations forest reserves ought not to be maintained as inviolate sanctuaries, but opened to enlightened management.. That trip is a 19.1-mile (22.9 km) out and back, or you can turn the hike into a loop that returns past Rancheria Falls (28.2 miles, 45.4 km). [41], In 1906, after a major earthquake and subsequent fire that devastated San Francisco, the inadequacy of the city's water system was made tragically clear. The Freeman Report artfully depicted reservoirs in Norway, the United Kingdom and the eastern United States showing how nature and public utility worked together to improve their surroundings and provide long-term benefits for everyone. The glacially-carved U-shaped valley floor maximizes the amount of water stored in the reservoir. On a national stage, Hetch Hetchy became caught in the cross fire between the interests of private utilities ownership and those of municipal ownership. ", "Fall in the Main Tuolumne River at the Head of Hetch Hetchy Valley", "Fly Fishing Poopenaut Valley Tuolumne River", "Screech Brothers Find Hetch Hetchy Valley", "Big Oak Flat (No. But if you still have energy, continue past the bridge to Rancheria Falls. Today the 117-billion-gallon reservoir supplies drinking water to about 2.5 million San Francisco Bay Area residents and hydro-electric power generated by two plants downstream. Impounded by O'Shaughnessy Dam, Hetch Hetchy Reservoir water passes through hydroelectric powerhouses before it enters the San Joaquin Pipelines, the Tesla Ultraviolet Treatment Facility, and the Coast Range Tunnel on its journey to the Bay Area. benefits of hetch hetchy dam. Not far from there, youll find more budget-minded lodging at Buck Meadows Lodge. The Hetch Hetchy Valley was within Yosemite National Park and protected by the federal government, leaving it up to Congress to decide the valley's fate. Some of these studies determined that the idea of draining the reservoir was technically feasible but incredibly costly. And, as you might imagine, it produces some of the cleanest municipal water in the United States. [73] Furthermore, the removal of O'Shaughnessy Dam would not require costly sediment control measures, as would be typical on most dam removal projects, because of the high quality of the Tuolumne River water in the first 90 years since its construction, only around 2in (5.1cm) of sediment had been deposited in Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, much less than most other dams. Then, in 1906, a devastating earthquake caused a series of fires in San Francisco that destroyed 25,000 buildings across 490 city blocks. Monroe was a Chicago poet who joined Muir and others on their 1908 and 1909 outings to the valley. The dam is a small portion of the overall Tuolumne River/San Francisco storage system that benefits the Bay Area. While youre at it, plan to add to the historic flavor of this route with a stop the Northern Mariposa County History Center. As of 2013, the water storage and hydroelectric power supplied by the Hetch Hetchy Project serviced an estimated 2.6 million people in the San Francisco Bay Area. This time, in favor of those who wanted to build the dam. For instance, the WET company helps people see the beauty of water through magnificent water fountains. But Hetch Hetchy was a federally protected as part of Yosemite National Park. 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. You may take easy hike to Wapama falls ( around 6 miles) or even more challenging hike to Rancheria falls ( around 14 miles). [2] The dam contains 675,000cuyd (516,000m3) of concrete. He said, So we come now face to face with the perfectly clean question of what is the best use to which this water that flows out of the Sierras can be put. The walls of both are of gray granite, rise abruptly out of the flowery grass and groves are sculptured in the same style, and in both every rock is a glacial monument., (Source: Journal of Sierra Nevada History & Biography, Hetch-Hetchy, Natural History Before The Dam, Joe Medeiros), In defense of Hetch Hetchy, Muir crafted some of his most famous prose. By 1908, a different Interior Secretary, James R. Garfield, sided with the utilitarian conservationists and issued a permit for the Hetch Hetchy project. 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. This time it was in favor those who wanted to preserve the valley for generations yet to come. ", "Hetch Hetchy reclaimed: The dam downstream", "Alternatives for restoration of Hetch Hetchy Valley following removal of the dam and reservoir page 15", "Chapter 9: Impact of restoration on hydropower production and revenues", "Putting Bay Area's Water Sources to a Vote", "Hodel Would Tear Down Dam in Hetch Hetchy", "On Hetch Hetchy, John Muir was wrong: California's revered naturalist wrote a poetic diatribe against the drowning of the great valley. Water could be diverted into the Kirkwood and Moccasin Powerhouses using lower-impact diversion dams, providing power generation on a seasonal basis, and the enlarged height at Don Pedro would also increase power generation there. . document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This is interesting from an ideological perspective. The dam in the Hetch Hetchy valley of Yosemite National Park, first proposed in 1908, was intended to create a reservoir that would provide water and electricity for the burgeoning city of San Francisco. 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. Gray pine, incense-cedar, and California black oak grow in abundance. You can expect one (short) email per month. The question Pinchot always asked was, What is the greatest good for the greatest number?, He was famously quoted as saying, Where conflicting interests must be reconciled, the question shall always be answered from the standpoint of the greatest good of the greatest number in the long run., RELATED: Gifford Pinchot: A 2021 Lesson From Americas First Forester, In his congressional testimony, Pinchot argued in favor of building the dam. The terminus of the incomplete line was "conveniently located next to a PG&E substation", which connected to PG&E's private line which in turn bridged the gap to San Francisco. Stand on OShaughnessy Dam and feel the cool updraft. What part should mountains, rivers, natural meadows or wild creatures play in American life? The other route begins at the entrance station and is 16 miles round-trip with 3,300 feet of elevation gain. While the dialogue around the West's water wars has been concentrated on the Colorado River and the alarming decline of Lake Powell and Lake Mead, watersheds across the Western United States are feeling the effects of a rapidly aridifying landscape due to climate change. Two additional reservoirs in the Hetch Hetchy RegionLake Eleanor and Lake Lloyd (also ", "Three Square Miles of Open Space: Is It Enough? Once again, the political pendulum had swung. Through the manipulation of water, the company also had the power to determine which real estate became valuable and which languished. Hoover Dam. Upcountry and the Bay Area. And Hetch Hetchy's damming has inspired generations of conservationists to protect our natural heritage and to commit to safeguarding our protected areas. [84] Karin Klein has described Yosemite Valley as "so crammed that it looks more like a ripstop ghetto than the site of a nature experience. One route begins six miles beyond the entrance station. Should natural resources be used to serve the greatest good for the greatest number? The Hetch Hetchy Dam is destroying a piece of land that is the homes of multiple types of animals. So the idea of planning for new water supplies need not be on the ballot. 406 California Historical Landmark)", "John Muir's Yosemite: The father of the conservation movement found his calling on a visit to the California wilderness", "Timeline of the Ongoing Battle Over Hetch Hetchy", "The Hetch Hetchy Letters: If a Group of Intellectuals Argues in a Forest, and then that Forest is Submerged Under Water, Does Their Argument Matter? But how did the dam get to be here? Download the official NPS app before your next visit. He discovered it a few of years later. Visitors might still need chains to get down Evergreen Road this time of year, but a trip to Hetch Hetchy reveals an example of the potent storms, and a reservoir of controversy for 100 years. For example, plan to stop at the Lucky Buck Cafe on your way to or from a day of exploring Yosemite. Had it been, the Sierra Clubs members would have presented a united front in opposition to its development. [12] During the last glacial period, the Tioga Glacier[13] formed from extensive icefields in the upper Tuolumne River watershed; between 110,000 and 10,000 years ago Hetch Hetchy Valley was sculpted into its present shape by repeated advance and retreat of the ice, which also removed extensive talus deposits that may have accumulated in the valley since the Sherwin period. Most people turn around here anyway. California needed secure, reliable access to drinking water for their burgeoning populations. Wapama and Rancheria Falls Looking up at Wapama Falls from the footbridge on the hiking trail. Sign up for the email list and join an active community of monthly readers. But tearing OShaughnessy Dam down now in order to restore Hetch Hetchy Valley would be a disaster. The openings in the Taft administration led to the eventual success of the Raker Act. [47] On October 28, 1934 twenty years after the beginning of construction on the Hetch Hetchy project a crowd of 20,000 San Franciscans gathered to celebrate the arrival of the first Hetch Hetchy water in the city. This can lead to algal blooms and decreased oxygen levels. For functional purposes, Hetch Hetchy was a promising solution to San Francisco's serious water shortages. The surface of the water hides an additional 300 feet of granite cliffs and once-upon-a-time waterfalls within its depths. The fundamental issue involved two concepts. The bustling metropolis of Los Angeles could not have become the city it did without the water which flowed from the Owens Valley hundreds of miles away. 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. Back in the early nineteen hundreds, when the debate start about The Hetch Hetchy dam being built a large majority of people did not realize or care how valuable nature is. Construction of O'Shaughnessy Dam began in 1919 and was finished in 1923, with the reservoir first filling in May of that year. The landscape painter Bierstadt, who brought his German Romantic training to the valley in 1862, gave the world an even larger portrait, and one in extravagant color, that photographers could not match on any scale. As a result, San Francisco secured a reliable and . Before damming, the high granite formations produced a valley with an average depth of 1,800ft (550m) and a maximum depth of over 3,000ft (910m); the length of the valley was 3mi (4.8km) with a width ranging from .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}18 to 12 mile (660 to 2,640ft; 200 to 800m). Muir observed:[3]. These clean and comfortable rooms also enjoy access to the pool, spa and other facilities at Yosemite Westgate Lodge.

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