UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

FEDERAL ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION

RE: Pacific Gas and Electric                  )           Upper North Fork Feather

Notice of Application Ready for            )           Hydropower Project

Environmental Analysis             )           Project No. 2105-089

Soliciting Comments, Terms and           )

Conditions                                            )

                                                            )

Upper North Fork River, California      )

COMMENTS AND TERMS AND CONDITIONS FILED BY AMERICAN WHITEWATER AFFILIATION, CHICO PADDLEHEADS, AND SHASTA PADDLERS FOR THE UPPER NORTH FORK FEATHER RIVER HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT, FERC NO. 2105-089

I. Introduction

            Pursuant to 18 C.F.R. §4.32(b)(7) of the Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, American Whitewater Affiliation, Chico Paddleheads and Shasta Paddlers (hereinafter referred to as the Boating Groups) hereby request leave to file comments and terms and conditions on Pacific Gas and Electric’s (PG&E) application for new license for the Upper North Fork Feather Hydropower Project, FERC No. 2105. 

            American Whitewater, Chico Paddleheads and Shasta Paddlers have been integrally involved in this proceeding since PG&E initiated the relicense process.  We helped organize and participated in the whitewater controlled flow studies for the Seneca and Belden reaches dewatered by project diversions and canals.  As part of this traditional license process the Boating Groups filed with the FERC in a timely fashion additional information requests, comments on the scoping document and motions to intervene.  In addition to our participation in the traditional license process members of the respective Boating Groups are active participants in the collaborative group striving for a settlement agreement for the Upper North Fork Feather River Hydroelectric Project.

II. Interests

American Whitewater, Chico Paddleheads and Shasta Paddlers members use and enjoy sections of the North Fork Feather River for recreational and aesthetic purposes, including but not limited to whitewater recreation, fishing, viewing, and enjoyment of the outdoors.  The stairway of hydropower projects owned and operated by PG&E greatly limits the opportunities for whitewater recreation due to extensive dewatered reaches cumulatively impacting 50 miles of formerly superb whitewater recreation.  The Applicant’s new license as written fails to mitigate this complete elimination of whitewater opportunities due to project operations for the eleven-mile Class IV-V Seneca reach and the nine-mile Class III Belden Reach.  The Belden Reach in particular was used extensively by whitewater enthusiasts prior to the Belden powerhouse coming online in 1970.  Throughout the 1960’s whitewater slalom races were held on the Belden Reach and for several of those years the Belden Reach was the site for the United States National Whitewater Slalom Races where the U.S. National Champion was crowned.  Construction of the Belden dam, reservoir, powerhouse and appurtenant facilities forever eliminated this site for the national championship race as well as opportunities for casual recreational boaters.  Spills in a boatable range have rarely occurred below the Belden Dam since its construction due to the large storage capacity of Almonar Reservoir upstream capable of absorbing storm and run-off events.  

III. Boating Group’s Proposed Terms and Conditions

The Boating Groups advocate for ten days of whitewater releases on weekends June through October in the Belden Reach with the following terms.  The table below graphically displays the proposed schedule. This table is identical in format to that used for the Rock Creek-Cresta license with the exception that the flow volumes and triggers are specific to the Belden Reach.  The Boating Groups recommend that the weekend dates for the actual releases be adaptively managed to coordinate with releases on the Rock Creek-Cresta project.

Table B: Belden Reach Recreation River Flow Schedule ***

*    Critically Dry years

**  Dry, Normal and Wet years

***  Flow releases will occur between the hours of 10 AM and 4 PM during wet normal and  dry water years, and between the hours of 10 AM and 1 PM during critical dry years. 

A.  Recreation Flow Calendar.  An annual recreation flow calendar will be posted that schedules the initial recreation flow day per month.  An annual planning meeting will be scheduled each year in March to discuss expected Water Year Type, results of monitoring efforts, Licensee maintenance needs that may conflict with recreation flow releases, and other issues relevant to on-water recreation.

B.  Additional Flow Days.  The desired date of the month for the second flow will be recommended at the March meeting based on evaluation of social and ecological considerations.

C. Recreation Flow Postponement. 

1.         Electrical Generation Emergency.  Licensee may postpone up to one weekend of recreation flow releases in July and one weekend of recreation flow releases in August if the Independent System Operator declares a Stage II or greater power emergency notice, provided Licensee gives 48-hours notice to the recreation community.  Such notice may be accomplished by sending a notice to the phone number or website specified by American Whitewater. 

2.         Operating Emergencies.  In the event of an emergency, Licensee may postpone any scheduled recreation flow release.  Licensee shall provide as much notice as reasonably practicable under the circumstances. 

3.         Rescheduled Recreation Flows.   Licensee shall reschedule postponed recreation flow releases on a date to be recommended by the Boating Groups.

D.  Triggers for Adjustments.  Licensee shall count observed boater use in boater days to determine whether release days should be added or subtracted.  One boater day is defined as use of the Belden Reach by one person for any part of a given day.  Licensee will collect boater use data on each scheduled recreation flow release days.  One day of recreation flow will be added to the recreation flow schedule the next year after 100% exceedance of the up-trigger is met for each day in a particular month of that year.  One day of recreation flow will be subtracted from the recreation flow schedule for the next year after 100% exceedance of the down-trigger are not met in a particular month of that year.  Days will be adjusted to the same month in which use is monitored.  Recreation flow releases will not decrease below 1 release per month and not exceed the Cap defined in Table B. 

E.  Ramping Rates.  In implementing recreation river flows, Licensee shall apply the Basic Ramping Rates as defined by the regulatory agencies.

IV. License Application

PG&E’s license application fails to acknowledge let alone mitigate the lost whitewater opportunities in the eleven-mile Class IV-V Seneca Reach and nine-mile Class III Belden Reach resulting from project construction and ongoing operation.  This is a gross oversight on the part of PG&E warranting detailed explanation.  PG&E has routinely claimed that whitewater releases are not appropriate in the Seneca and Belden Reaches due to uncertainty regarding the impacts on amphibians and fishery resources.  The Boating Groups have repeatedly requested PG&E conduct studies to remove the “uncertainty”.  PG&E is clearly attempting to use the threat of ecological impacts from whitewater flows to protect their self-interest in hydropower generation. PG&E can no longer “hide” behind this veil of uncertainty.  Amphibian surveys throughout both reaches have failed to locate individuals or populations of foothill yellow legged frogs (FYLF) or California red-legged frogs (CRLF).   PG&E has refused to undertake studies designed to monitor the direct effects of whitewater flows on fishery resources and aquatic organisms or angler catch rates.  Thus far, PG&E has based their failure to include whitewater flows in the new license application on speculation of ecological impacts and user conflicts. 

Despite PG&E’s self-serving speculative arguments against mitigating project impacts on whitewater recreation the license application does acknowledge the unique whitewater resource opportunities present in the Seneca and Belden Reaches.

“Belden Reach has the potential to attract intermediate-advanced kayakers and rafters in warmer summer and early fall months.  As a relatively easy Class III/IV river featuring continuous rather than pool/drop rapids, it offers a relatively rare opportunity for boaters to develop creek boating skills during a time of the year when few similar rivers are available.” (License application, E5-1045)

“Seneca Reach is likely to attract slightly more attention in the boating community than Belden Reach because of its difficulty and because it is a relatively unknown segment of river.” (License application, E5-1046)

            The North Fork Feather River could potentially contain some of the best whitewater resources in the state of California except for the fact that much of the 50 miles upstream of Oroville Reservoir is dewatered by PG&E’s hydropower facilities.   The recently licensed Rock Creek-Cresta Hydropower Project, FERC No. 1962 clearly underscores the quality of the whitewater resources on the North Fork Feather River and commensurate demand from the public.  Whitewater releases occur one weekend per month, June through October, on the nine-mile Class III-V Rock Creek section and the five-mile Class III-IV Cresta section as part of the new license for the Rock Creek-Cresta project.  In the two seasons of these releases participation has steadily increased greatly exceeding expectations of the Boating Groups as well as the resource agencies and PG&E involved in that relicense proceeding.  For example, whitewater releases on the three Rock Creek-Cresta reaches (Cresta—Class IV, Rogers Flat—Class III, and Tobin Class V) have steadily attracted greater numbers of boaters with each successive release.  The initial 2002 June releases on Rock Creek-Cresta attracted 150 to 200 boaters.  Use has increased with each successive release with numbers reaching 500 boaters for Cresta and 500 boaters for the Rock Creek section by October.  Clearly, the whitewater boating community rates the whitewater boating opportunities on the North Fork Feather River very high.  Additional opportunities on the North Fork Feather River are needed to satisfy this demand for whitewater recreation.

In contrast to the demand for whitewater opportunities on the adjacent Rock Creek-Cresta project, PG&E’s license application for the Upper North Fork Feather hydro project speculates that whitewater use estimates for the Belden Reach are extremely low (page E5-1047).   PG&E fails to substantiate this speculative use estimate.  The Boating Groups argue based on demand for the Rock Creek-Cresta Reaches that demand for scheduled whitewater releases on the Belden reach will be extremely high.  Additional opportunities are warranted in the North Fork Feather River corridor to spread out demand for the existing whitewater opportunities at the Rock Creek-Cresta project.  The narrow river corridor further constricted by the railroad and PG&E’s facilities limits access on Highway 70 along the Rock Creek and Cresta Reaches.  Scheduled whitewater releases on the Belden section will provide additional opportunities on a reach not adjacent to Highway 70.  Furthermore, the geological differences on the Belden section results in unique Class III rapids not found on the Rock Creek or Cresta sections.  Clearly the scheduled releases at the Rock Creek-Cresta project are not able to meet the user demand or the spectrum of whitewater users therefore additional scheduled releases are needed in the Feather River canyon.  The Boating Groups proposal for scheduled releases on the Belden Reach balances the interests and needs for continued power generation as well as angling interests in the reach.

PG&E failed to solicit input from the Boating Groups on the Whitewater Controlled Flow Study Report for the Belden and Seneca sections despite the fact that the Boating Groups helped design and organize participants for the study.  PG&E asserts in the license application that “This draft report is scheduled to be released to the public for a month-long comment period (E5-1002)” none of the Boating Groups were given the opportunity to review and comment on the draft.  The license application goes on to state, “The final report will include public comments and agency/consultant responses (E5-1002).”  The Boating Groups have provided no input on the draft and therefore, our comments/review are not included in the final report.  Furthermore, page E5-1096 of the Application states that the licensee is committed to holding a dialog with the whitewater boating community to discuss the flow recommendations contained in the Draft and Final Applications.  This dialogue has not taken place to date.  Despite PG&E’s lack of consultation on the final report and recommendations for mitigation of whitewater resources the Boating Groups have presented a whitewater release schedule to the 2105 Collaborative Group.  The schedule has been approved by the group although agreement has not yet been reached on the adaptive study plan and user demand triggers for additional releases.

In the opinion of the Boating Groups, opposition to whitewater releases and unreasonable constraints on them stems from self-serving motives by PG&E and the group called Anglers Against Weekend Whitewater Flows (AAWWF).  PG&E’s opposition in the License Application is clearly to protect power generation interests.  Scheduled whitewater releases result in foregone power generation.  While the Boating Groups can understand PG&E’s motivations to protect power generation interests we remind the utility that the North Fork Feather River is a public trust resource.  The Electric Consumers Protection Act (1986) requires the FERC to “give equal consideration to power and non-power values” when establishing conditions for a hydropower license.  Complete elimination of whitewater opportunities on two river reaches totaling twenty-miles hardly complies with the requirements of ECPA.  The proposal for ten scheduled whitewater releases annually in the Belden Reach by the Boating Groups is extremely reasonable under ECPA considering the fact that boatable flows for whitewater recreation were present in the North Fork Feather River 365 days per year prior to project construction and operation.

The AAWWF, as their name implies, are philosophically opposed to scheduled whitewater releases.  The desired conditions for the AAWWF limit the spectrum of opportunities to anglers only and other recreational opportunities compatible with desirable angling instream flows.  The AAWWF labels the scheduled whitewater releases as artificial in nature even though the volume of the whitewater flows mimics the natural flows in the North Fork Feather River prior to project construction and operation.  Ironically, the instream flows advocated by the AAWWF are artificial.  Adding additional irony, the AAWWF also advocates for a fish stocking program in the Belden Reach further compounding this artificial angling condition.  The Boating Groups are not criticizing or proposing to deny the AAWWF’s interests in angling.  In fact we support their desire to enhance angling opportunities impacted by project operations.   The Boating Groups do however find the vehement attacks on whitewater releases hypocritical given the artificial nature of the preferred angling flows. 

The Boating Groups believe there is sufficient opportunity in the new license for the interests of whitewater boaters and anglers to co-exist under the regulated flow regime.  The lion’s share of the days between the 3^rd week in April (opening day for angling) and November are dedicated to instream flows suitable for angling.  Ten days will be for whitewater releases between the hours of 10 AM and 4 PM allowing sufficient time for angling before and after the releases.  The volume of the whitewater releases is less than a bankfull flow in the Belden Reach.  This periodic pulse of water will likely provide ecological benefits for the river reach impacted by the low volumes of the proposed static regulated flow regime.  These ecological benefits include nutrient cycling, energy transfer and increased native aquatic biodiversity.  Monitoring studies associated with whitewater releases on the Rock Creek-Cresta project have not found significant adverse impacts on fish and other aquatic organisms.

V. Proposed Settlement Agreement

The Settlement Agreement for the Upper North Fork Feather Hydroelectric Project is close to being finalized but several outstanding issues remain.  American Whitewater, Chico Paddleheads and Shasta Paddlers have not signed on to the Agreement in Principle submitted to the FERC in October 2003 due to unreasonable constraints on whitewater releases proposed for the new license.   These constraints include unreasonably high user numbers needed to trigger additional whitewater releases and baseline monitoring prior to initiating any whitewater releases.  The Boating Groups continue to work with the 2105 Collaborative Group to resolve these disagreements.  Recent meetings with the Collaborative Group appear promising.

The Boating Groups believe the number of boaters to trigger additional whitewater releases should be 80 boaters rather than the 200 boaters proposed in the Settlement Agreement.  Construction and operation of the Belden facilities has resulted in narrowing of the active river channel in the Belden Reach.  As a result this narrow river channel has a lower boater carrying capacity than the downstream Rock Creek and Cresta Reaches.   Furthermore, numerous parties to the Settlement Agreement are concerned that whitewater users on release days will displace other users.  In addition, the Plumas National Forest is concerned that the put-in and take-out areas have limited parking.  Setting use triggers of 200 boaters will limit the number of release days on the Belden Reach thereby concentrating the use rather than spreading out the number of participants over more scheduled opportunities.   Use triggers should be set at 80 boaters to be consistent with management goals for the reach.

The limited stochastic nature of the whitewater releases will be undetectable statistically relative to the temporal and spatial variability in the baseline monitoring.   The Boating Groups do support an adaptive management plan overseen by the agencies with regulatory authority.    This adaptive management plan will consist of experimental designs including hypothesis testing that specifically examine the effect of whitewater releases on the aquatic community including positive, neutral and negative effects. 

The Boating Groups oppose the concept of an adaptive management team with decision-making authority for several reasons: 1) The regulatory agencies with mandatory conditioning cannot give up their regulatory authority; 2) The FERC has no authority over parties except the licensee and therefore cannot order the adaptive management team to complete actions as scheduled in the license terms and conditions;  and 3) Participation in adaptive management teams is time consuming and costly thereby limiting public participation.  The Boating Groups are not opposed to an adaptive management team that is limited to providing recommendations to the regulatory agencies and Licensee.  Public participation in this limited adaptive management team should be limited to parties to the Settlement Agreement.  Signatories should be allowed to participate in person, by conference line or via written comments on meeting minutes, reports, and recommendations. 

VI. Conclusions

PG&E has categorically excluded whitewater releases in the new license without supporting scientific justification. The Boating Groups recommend an annual schedule of ten whitewater releases in the Belden reach of the North Fork Feather.  The Boating Groups believe the FERC can craft terms and conditions that accommodate a variety of recreational interests, continued power generation and improved instream flows for protection and restoration of aquatic resources.

Respectfully Submitted: December 1, 2003

John T. Gangemi, Conservation Director                      

American Whitewater              

Dave Steindorf, Conservation Chair

Chico Paddleheads

Kevin Lewis

Shasta Paddlers