You could miss this small mountain community if you blink at the wrong time, but it is home to a few remarkable small businesses. What part should mountains, rivers, natural meadows or wild creatures play in American life? 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. The Valley Below | The Verge 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. Muir and other defenders of Hetch Hetchy believe the fight revolved around two central issues. Why We Need Hetch Hetchy More Than Ever | SPUR The water is transported from the reservoir by the Hetch Hetchy Aqueduct which is made up of 170 miles of gravity-driven pipelines, dams, and other reservoirs. Exactly how San Francisco won the right to transform the bucolic valley into a In 2019, Restore Hetch Hetchy commissioned another study that found enormous recreational value from removing the dam. Second, dams slow rivers. The new. Right next to the Lucky Buck Cafe, youll find the Yosemite Westgate Lodge and Buck Meadows Lodge. First, the beauty of the valley which they felt should not be sacrificed to build a dam. History - Hetch Hetchy - Sierra Club In 1923, the O'Shaughnessy Dam was completed on the Tuolumne River, flooding the entire valley under the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. Restore Yosemite? It can be done. - Los Angeles Times Start by hiking across the OShaughnessy Dam then turn east along the shore of the reservoir. It has not been demonstrated that Hetch Hetchy is the only available source, but only that it might be the cheapest. Miners did not stay in the area for long, however, as richer deposits occurred further south along the Merced River and in the Big Oak Flat area. [40] By the 1880s, San Francisco was looking to Hetch Hetchy water as a fix for its outdated and unreliable water system. And in a larger sense, the waters of California served as the converting agents. 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. Before they could break ground at the OShaughnessy Dam, more infrastructure was required. [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. The National Park Service conducted research to determine what would happen if the dam were removed, and people have repeatedly proposed costly studies to further understand the consequences of removing the dam. Us too! The new 68-mile (109 km) railroad wound its way up the narrow canyon of the Tuolumne River past sharp curves and up steep 4% grades. Only a tiny proportion of Yosemites visitors explore this out-of-the-way corner of the national park. (Read SPURs analysis of this plan.) Park entry (as needed). One route begins six miles beyond the entrance station. Third, dams alter natural habitats and change the ways in which rivers function. As we learned from Rachel Carsons Silent Spring, humankind can damage the environment while attempting to control it. The SFPUC tests its quality more than 100,000 times a year to ensure that it exceeds all safe drinking water standards. Tom Philp of The Sacramento Bee - The Pulitzer Prizes As well dam for water-tanks the peoples cathedrals and churches, for no holier temple has ever been consecrated by the heart of man.. Dam the Hetch Hetchy! For instance, the WET company helps people see the beauty of water through magnificent water fountains. Apply Today! These clean and comfortable rooms also enjoy access to the pool, spa and other facilities at Yosemite Westgate Lodge. Hetch Hetchy | Hetch Hetchy Dam & Reservoir History | Yosemite.com Hetch Hetchy, unlike other water storage facilities in California, is relatively buffered from near-term climate change because of its high elevation. Most people called it Hetch Hetchy, a mispronunciation of a Central Mohawk word for a plant that indigenous people were harvesting there when the first white man came along.. 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. San Francisco Can Ban New Natural Gas Because It Destroyed The Hetch Then it travels through a series of mountain tunnels. Water System | SFPUC The maximum that the city has put away is 570,000 acre-feet of water. HETCH HETCHY: The Epic Enviro Battle That Changed America Swimming and boating are prohibited in Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in order to maintain a clean source of drinking water. 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. And, as you might imagine, it produces some of the cleanest municipal water in the United States. The falls roar in spring and early summer. 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 Road drops into the valley at the dam, but all points east of there are roadless, and accessible only to hikers and equestrians. 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. There is no Starbucks here no daily parade of tour buses and RVs. [61] In 2018, the Department of the Interior of the Trump administration began to consider a proposal to allow limited boating on the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir for the first time, supported by the advocacy group Restore Hetch Hetchy which argued that "San Francisco received [Hetch Hetchy's] benefits long ago, but the American people have not. Rounding the corner and catching the first glimpses of Hetch Hetchy Valley reveals the play of light on water. Not far from there, youll find more budget-minded lodging at Buck Meadows Lodge. To do so, it would either have to buy out the private monopoly at an exorbitant price or outmaneuver or outbid Spring Valley for a potential new reservoir., (Source: Natural Rivals: John Muir, Gifford Pinchot, and the Creation of Americas Public Lands, John Clayton). [50] The project is operated by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. If you delight in getting off the well-beaten path, or if you are looking for a peaceful natural retreat, its perfection. In 1967 the Robert C. Kirkwood Powerhouse started commercial operation followed by a New Moccasin Powerhouse in 1969 when the Old Moccasin Powerhouse was taken out of service. No picture of the giant sequoia trees in Yosemite National Park manages to fully capture their immense size and majesty. Construction of O'Shaughnessy Dam began in 1919 and was finished in 1923, with the reservoir first filling in May of that year. The water winds between granite features like Kolana Rock and Hetch Hetchy Dome. Hetch Hetchy Valley is a treasure worth visiting. Over the last 35 years, the idea has been studied by the Environmental Defense Fund, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the National Park Service, UC Davis, and several state agencies. An adjacent building contains another five suites with vaulted ceilings, forest views and soaking tubs. remains the least visited area of the park. O'Shaughnessy Dam (California) - Wikipedia But if you still have energy, continue past the bridge to Rancheria Falls. San Francisco Hetch Hetchy Reservoir Initiative, Proposition F In this unmanaged scenario, where nature is left to take hold in the valley, eventually a forest would grow, rather than the meadow being restored. By 1908, a different Interior Secretary, James R. Garfield, sided with the utilitarian conservationists and issued a permit for the Hetch Hetchy project. Franklin Lane served as the attorney for the city of San Francisco in 1903. But Hetch Hetchy was a federally protected as part of Yosemite National Park. This fight set the stage for future battles between those who believed natural resources were to be used for the greatest good versus those who believed natural resources were to be preserved for the greatest enjoyment. The locations of these two formations roughly correspond with those of Cathedral Rocks and El Capitan seen from Tunnel View in Yosemite Valley. 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], While its cousin Yosemite Valley to the south had permanent Miwok settlements,[25] Hetch Hetchy was only seasonally inhabited. But during peak spring flow, the thundering waterfall can wash over the bridge making it dangerous to cross. The openings in the Taft administration led to the eventual success of the Raker Act. It is only a cut in the hills through which the Tuolumne River runs, but if you think there might be a valley keep looking and if you find such a place I will give it to you., Nate went on looking for the valley. Yosemite Westgate Lodge offers newly-remodeled and well-appointed modern accommodation. It then cascades on its westward descent through the Grand Canyon of the Tuolumne, and enters the eastern end of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. From this work, we have concluded that it is not wise to reduce water storage facilities considering the realities of a growing population and climate change. In the sum of American economic expansion the intrusion might have seemed a minor, obscure matter, but to [John] Muir immense issues were involved: why had the nation preserved that pure wildness in the first place? [53], As completed, O'Shaughnessy Dam is 910 feet (280m) long, spanning the valley at its narrow outlet. Once again, the political pendulum had swung. [54] An additional hydroelectric system comprising Cherry Lake, Lake Eleanor and the Holm Powerhouse is also part of the Hetch Hetchy Project, adding another 169 megawatts of generating capacity. Hetch Hetchy Valley, Yosemite National Park, California The Greatest A Dam Removal in Progress. . That's about twice the amount of power lost when Hetch Hetchy will be restored. As a result, San Francisco secured a reliable and . He was opposed by then Mayor Diane Feinstein who argued that the dam was San Franciscans birthright. As well dam for . As of October 2022, Hetch Hetchy was at 77.5% of its capacity. Progressive political leaders, of whom Mayor Phelan was one, believed it was time to take this power away from the private interests and turn it over to the people. Today, descendants of these people still use milkweed, deergrass, bracken fern, willow, and other plants for a variety of uses including baskets, medicines, and string. 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). Photo: Chris Migeon. 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. Yet environmentalists have dreamed of restoring the dramatic valley along the Tuolumne River, which was filled in by the lake when the dam was built in 1938 under the New Deal. [70] Hodel called for a study of the effect of tearing down the dam. William Howard Taft became president in 1909. Within 50 years, vegetative cover would be complete except for exposed rocky areas. Looking up at Wapama Falls from the footbridge on the hiking trail. The valley provided an escape from the summer heat of the lowlands. "[22], The valley's name may be derived from a Miwok word earlier anglicized as hatchhatchie, which means "edible grasses"[8][23] or "magpie". 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 ________. At full capacity, the reservoir stretches eight miles (13 km) upstream of the OShaughnessy Dam. If youre up for a driving adventure, try taking a little extra time to retrace parts of the route John Muir described in his book, My First Summer in the Sierra. Said San Francisco resident William Denman in 1918, "The first time I went into the Hetch Hetchy the mosquitoes were intolerable. Congress has set aside the Yosemite Valley as a state park in 1864, established a national park around it in 1890, and then reclaimed the valley as part of the national park in 1903. The Hetch Hetchy Valley is a part of Yosemite National Park. This effort was famously and vociferously fought by John Muir and was the subject of a national debate for years; the loss later galvanized the Sierra Club to successfully oppose large dams in Dinosaur National Monument and Grand Canyon National Park. He discovered it a few of years later. [57] Pipelines 3 and 4 end at the Pulgas Water Temple, a small park that contains classical architectural elements which celebrate the water delivery. Copyright © 2023 More Than Just Parks | This post may contain affiliate links - read our Standards, Corrections, & Privacy Policy. The . [31], During this time, the upper Tuolumne River, including Hetch Hetchy Valley, was visited by prospectors attracted by the California Gold Rush. [5], The valley is fed by the Tuolumne River, Falls Creek, Tiltill Creek, Rancheria Creek, and numerous smaller streams which collectively drain a watershed of 459sqmi (1,190km2). 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. Hetch Hetchy was the first major battle of the environmental movement. About one million years ago, the extensive Sherwin glaciation widened, deepened and straightened river valleys along the western slope of the Sierra Nevada, including Hetch Hetchy, Yosemite Valley, and Kings Canyon farther to the south. Hetch Hetchy Valley Analysis - 1299 Words | Internet Public Library He was a firm believer in utilitarian conservation. As the Hetch Hetchy Valley was part of Yosemite National Park, Hitchcock preferred to protect the park's natural wonders. [79] Some observers, such as Carl Pope (director of the Sierra Club), stated that Hodel had political motives[80] in proposing the study. [24] Screech reported that the valley was bitterly disputed between the "Pah Utah Indians" (Paiute) and "Big Creek Indians" (Miwok), and witnessed several fights in which the Paiute appeared to be the dominant tribe. 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. While John Muir led the fight against building the dam, the opposition was supported by Gifford Pinchot. Winter storms fill Hetch Hetchy, renew debate about reservoir's future Assign each group to analyze one or more . [59] The water quality is high because of the unique geology of the upper Tuolumne River drainage basin, which consists mostly of bare granite; as a result, the rivers feeding Hetch Hetchy Reservoir have extremely low loads of sediments and nutrients. ", "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. 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. Upcountry and the Bay Area. The most prominent preservationist spokesman was John Muir.. There is plenty to see and do right here, from kayaking on the water to climbing the magnificent domes above. For functional purposes, Hetch Hetchy was a promising solution to San Francisco's serious water shortages. [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 a consequence, visitors came to experience it for themselves. Slow-moving reservoirs heat up, resulting in abnormal temperature fluctuations which can affect sensitive species. This was likely because of Hetch Hetchy's narrow outlet, which in years of heavy snowmelt created a bottleneck in the Tuolumne River and the subsequent flooding of the valley floor. [56] All four pipelines cross the Hayward fault. Instead, the magnificence of a valley often described as Yosemite Valleys slightly smaller twin takes center stage. The extensive amount of storage, which is designed to benefit the Bay Area as droughts become more severe with climate.