Rep. Connie Conway (CA-22) today introduced a bill in the House of Representatives to open up the Hetch Hetchy reservoir to recreational activities and to force the City of San Francisco to pay a fair price for its access to the reservoir’s water and power.
Cosponsored by Representatives David Valadao (CA-21) and Tom McClintock (CA-4), the Yosemite National Park Equal Access and Fairness Act will ensure that Californians can partake in recreational activities such as swimming, boating, and camping that are currently banned or tightly restricted at the reservoir, contradicting the stated intentions of San Francisco from the early 1900s—when Hetch Hetchy was dammed—to provide for recreational activities.
The bill will also raise the annual fee paid by the City of San Francisco for its access to Hetch Hetchy’s resources from $30,000 to at least $2 million.
Rep. Conway said, “Hetch Hetchy belongs to the people of California, but we are prohibited from enjoying its natural beauty or simply having picknicks there. San Francisco has not provided for these recreational activities, while paying a tiny fee for the invaluable benefits the city reaps from the reservoir. This bill will allow California families to access these serene areas and force San Francisco to pay a fair price for the benefits it has enjoyed from Hetch Hetchy for a century.”
Rep. Valadao said, “For too many years, San Francisco has gotten away with paying a minuscule rental fee for the abundant water supply Hetch Hetchy provides the city and surrounding communities. I’m glad to join Congresswoman Conway in her efforts to get San Francisco to pay their fair share and allow all Californians to enjoy Hetch Hetchy’s natural beauty.”
Rep. McClintock said, “Yosemite National Park was set aside in 1864 by legislation signed by Abraham Lincoln for the express purpose of ‘public use, resort, and recreation.’ I am pleased to join Congresswoman Conway in introducing legislation that will uphold this promise.”
https://www.watereducation.org/aquapedia/hetch-hetchy-reservoir-and-water-system
Yeah fight for water recreation rights for fun and games. This is paramount for these MAGA (plus one not so MAGA) Republicans. And this helps the farming industries and residential areas in the north, south and central valley’s how? Are we to believe that these valley legislators focus is on nothing more than recreational rights when it comes to water or is this another attempt to stick it to the Leader of the House of Representative who just happens to hail from San Francisco? How would this valley benefit from this bill (besides having one more recreational venue to spend their money at)? How will our farms and dairies benefit? Will water be diverted here? Will it provide more residential drinking water for valley areas? The Hetch Hetchy is unfiltered water as we speak. How long will this last with all these recreational people polluting the water with their urine, garbage, and gasoline/oil powered toys? Not long. Not everything needs to be turned into playgrounds for humans. This won’t create enough jobs to justify the damage that will be done to this water reservoir that smells more like political payback to liberal San Francisco for not embracing the GOP conservative agendas. Shame on you Conway and Valadeo. I was hoping for better from you. I have never expected anything from McClintock, he is what he is, just another extremist pea in the same bootlicking pod as McCarthy. Looks like they are moving over to make room for Conway and Valadao. Happy cohabing.
Frisco hopefully will finally pay its fair share. Us in the valley are turning into a desert while big cities that caused our problem are enjoying a private oasis.
I agree but this bill will not help “us” in the valley. It’s does not address nor benefit our valley’s water issues. It is just another water recreational playground. Does not address drought issues. Perhaps they forgot about that.
Reminder: Congresswoman Conway is on the Natural resources committee, and has been working to get an environmental hearing on our drought crisis, and has attempted to reinstate Trump era policies made specifically for our area. She also welcomes secretary haaland to our area to try and draw national attention to our crisis.
There’s a lot of history in the recreation San Francisco promised and Congress expected. See Keeping Promises report at link.
See https://hetchhetchy.org/keeping-promises/
Hetch Hetchy is one of the nicest, most serine areas of Yosemite. You can argue that the dam should not have been built, but allowing boating, etc. will ruin the place and turn it into another Pine Flat or Millerton. It reminds me of Republican notions of letting Disney run the National Parks during the Reagan era. What on Earth is wrong with these people?
“serene”
non-motorized boats – very different from Pine Flat and Millerton
Reminder: Congresswoman Conway is on the Natural resources committee, and has been working to get an environmental hearing on our drought crisis, and has attempted to reinstate Trump era policies made specifically for our area. She also welcomes secretary haaland to our area to try and draw national attention to our crisis.
I thought the bill text said non-motorized, so like Hume, or black rock kayaks, canoes, or raft type crafts.
I thought the bill text said non-motorized, so like Hume, or black rock kayaks, canoes, or raft type crafts.
Well Walter or Silas Doogood, or whatever handle you are going by it wouldn’t take long for non-mortorized to become motorized. Conway is not inclined to protect anything that doesn’t have Trump’s stamp of approval. Natural Resources Committee is in a world of trouble with people like her onboard seeking to make money money money off of our precious protected lands. And again how does this bill help our valley deal with drought issues?
Non-motorized boating (i.e. kayaks, canoes, standup paddle boards – SUPs) Hetch Hetchy would be amazing! Just like at Tenaya Lake.
If you went just a little ways upstream of Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and saw the unburied human excrement in Pate Valley, where backpacking is allowed, you’d have to ask why SF doesn’t build composting latrines there or restrict upstream access completely. If protecting water purity is the reason for restricting non-motorize recreation at Hetch Hetchy, I suggest looking upstream. At least there are bathrooms at Hetch Hetchy!
I am for restoring the Tuolumne River and its glaciated valley to its pristine natural state.
https://hetchhetchy.org/restoring-hetch-hetchy/