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- Restoration Partners Break Ground for Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project
News Release Archive
Restoration Partners Break Ground for Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project
Media Contact:
Pete Lucero, 916-978-5100, plucero@usbr.gov
Paul Moreno, 415-973-5930, pmmm@pge.com
For Release: September 15, 2010
Today's 2 p.m. groundbreaking ceremony for the Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project culminated in representatives from the Bureau of Reclamation, Pacific Gas and Electric, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service, and California Department of Fish and Game symbolically turning a wheel at Coleman Dam along the banks of the South Fork of Battle Creek near Manton, Calif. This signifies a decade of commitment and dedication to this important effort.
About 100 people attended the ceremony and all attendees were invited to the Battle Creek Water Conservancy annual meeting and dinner in the evening.
Speaking at the event was Monica Medina, Principal Deputy Undersecretary for Oceans and Atmosphere for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration together with Michael Connor, Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation; Randy Livingston, Vice President of Power Generation, PG&E; Neil Manji, Regional Manager, Northern Region, California Department of Fish and Game; and Robert Clarke, Acting Assistant Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
PG&E's Livingston said "PG&E's early and full participation in the project is a reflection of our commitment to environmental stewardship."
"Reclamation and its partners and contributors are embarking on a historic restoration of valuable habitat in Battle Creek," said Reclamation Commissioner Michael Connor. "And by improving fish populations, the reliability in state and federal water operations as well as the salmon harvest will also be improved."
Robert Clarke, Acting Assistant Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, added "It is because of the continuing stewardship and support of natural resources of the Battle Creek watershed by the local community, that this project is now being implemented." PG&E is foregoing of nearly one-third of hydroelectric production of this facility, or 69 gigawatt hours of generation per year, and will maintain the newly built infrastructure. The utility also bore costs of a federal license amendment to allow the restoration work.
The restoration project is among one of the largest cold-water anadromous fish restoration efforts in North America. The project will restore approximately 42 miles of habitat on Battle Creek and an additional 6 miles of habitat on tributaries to Battle Creek while maintaining the continued production of hydroelectric power. This is a unique opportunity because of the geology, hydrology, and habitat suitability for threatened and endangered Chinook salmon and Central Valley steelhead trout. The project is in Shasta and Tehama counties near Manton, Calif.
In 1999, a Memorandum of Understanding between PG&E, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Marine Fisheries Service and the California Department of Fish and Game was signed committing each to the restoration project. In addition, numerous partners have played an important role in bringing this project forward.
Funding for the restoration project has been provided by federal and state agencies, including $6.8 million by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and through private donations. Additional financial support was provided by CALFED; the Packard Foundation (via The Nature Conservancy); the California Wildlife Conservation Board; the California Department of Fish and Game; the California Department of Transportation; the Battle Creek Watershed Conservancy; the Greater Battle Creek Watershed Working Group; the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California; the California Department of Water Resources; and the Iron Mountain Mine Trustee Council. PG&E is contributing to the restoration project in the form of foregone energy generation, voluntarily pursuing amendments to the Battle Creek Hydroelectric Project's federal energy generation license, and transferring certain water rights to the California Department of Fish and Game.
Two construction contracts were awarded late 2009, and on-site construction began at the Wildcat, Eagle Canyon and North Battle Creek Feeder sites on North Fork Battle Creek in April 2010. Wildcat Dam has recently been removed, and construction crews are installing fish ladders and screens at the Eagle Canyon and North Battle Creek Feeder Diversion Dam sites. A third construction contract was awarded in June 2010, and includes building a bypass and tailrace connector at the Inskip Powerhouse/Coleman Diversion Dam site on the South Fork of Battle Creek. The construction phase of the project is anticipated to be completed in 2014. The adaptive management phase for the project will begin after construction is complete. More information about the project is posted on the Battle Creek Watershed Conservancy's Web site at http://www.battle-creek.net/.
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