Potter Valley Project

Map of the Potter Valley Project
Lake Pillsbury, the project's primary reservoir

The Potter Valley Project is an interbasin water transfer project in Northern California in the United States, delivering water from the Eel River basin to turbines in the headwaters of the Russian River.[1] The project is owned and operated by Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E). The main facilities are two dams on the Eel River, a diversion tunnel and hydroelectric plant.[2] Average annual throughput is 159,000 acre⋅ft (196,000,000 m3), although this figure varies significantly with both the amount of precipitation in the Eel River basin and the demand on the Russian River.[3]

In 2019, PG&E chose not to relicense the hydroelectric project with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, as it had become unprofitable to operate. Federal regulations require that PG&E submit a final license surrender application by 2025, which would enable it to begin decommissioning the project.[4][5] The dams and hydroelectric facilities are to be removed, while various options are being considered for maintaining water diversions to the Russian River.[6]

  1. ^ "Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project | Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Project No. 77". California State Water Resources Control Board. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
  2. ^ "The Potter Valley Project". Potter Valley Irrigation District. Retrieved 2013-12-18.
  3. ^ "Staff Report on the Russian River Watershed: Proposed Actions to be taken by the Division of Water Rights on Pending Water Right Applications within the Russian River Watershed" (PDF). California State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Rights. Klamath Resource Information System. 1997-08-15. Retrieved 2013-12-18.
  4. ^ "PG&E Confirms Plan to Begin Full Removal of Eel River Dams". CalTrout. 2023-11-17. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  5. ^ "Potter Valley Project (FERC Project No. 77) Surrender Application and Decommissioning Plan". Pacific Gas & Electric Company. Retrieved 2024-01-30.
  6. ^ Fishman, Kate (2023-12-11). "Decommissioning the Potter Valley Project: a turning point for Mendocino County". The Mendocino Voice. Retrieved 2024-01-30.