Southern California Water Agencies Eye Potter Valley Dams as New Political Battle Emerges Over Eel River Future
Cape Horn Dam [Photo from waterboards.ca.gov]
A new article by the Press Democrat reports that directors from Riverside County’s Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District and representatives from the San Gorgonio Pass Water Agency recently toured the Potter Valley Project facilities in Mendocino and Lake counties and are actively studying possible opportunities connected to the aging water diversion system.
The report by Amie Windsor describes how the agencies have formed committees, made repeated site visits, and signed a letter of intent as they examine whether there could be a role for them in the future of the project after PG&E exits operation of Scott Dam, Cape Horn Dam, and the shuttered hydropower plant.
For years, tribes, environmental organizations, and local governments has been developing plans centered on dam removal and fish restoration. But now outside agencies (withpossible support from the Trump administration) are making that path uncertain.
Read the full Press Democrat article by Amie Windsor here: Southern California agencies explore role in Potter Valley Project future
Earlier:
- An Expired License, a Mysterious Applicant, and a Threat to Sue: What Else Can We Expect as the Fight to Control the Waters of the Eel River Continues?
- ‘Everyone knew it was coming’: Eel River Waters Continue to Be Diverted as PG&E Granted Annual License for the Potter Valley Project
- Fish Fight: Two New Developments in the Ongoing Damming of the Eel Via the Potter Valley Hydropower Project
- Two New Decisions on the Potter Valley Diversion from the Eel River
- PG&E Signals That It Will Speed Up Removing Dam Which Helps Divert Water From the Eel River to the Russian River
- PG&E Plans to Remove Both Potter Valley Project Dams—Mendo, Humboldt, Lake and Sonoma Fight
- PG&E Proposes Reducing Russian River Flow and Transferring Potter Valley Project to Subsidiary
- New Proposal Over Eel River Water Diversion Plan Leaves Some Stakeholders Out
- Final Draft Surrender Application and Decommissioning Plan for the Potter Valley Project Available for Viewing
- Humboldt Approves Agreement as End of Potter Valley Project Nears
- Dam, a Deal! Humboldt Approves Historic Potter Valley Project Pact
- Trump Administration Enters Fight Over Potter Valley Project, Eel River Water
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This is simply Republican ass kissing
Not going to happen unless the Feds step in and try to apply pressure. Even then, I can see that only delaying the inevitable.
The economic reality is what will decide this.
Anything you think you have is temporary- only until somebody bigger or more powerful wants it. That is our human reality.
Southern California Water Districts’ Real Plan for the Potter Valley Project: Energy Profits Through Pumped-Storage Hydroelectricity
Southern California water agencies, led by the Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District (EVMWD) in Riverside County, have expressed strong interest in acquiring the Potter Valley Project (PVP) in Northern California’s Mendocino and Lake Counties.
While they mention water supply, the primary economic driver appears to be profitable electricity generation. The site’s ideal setup for pumped-storage hydroelectricity would essentially turn the existing reservoirs into a giant, valuable grid battery.
Why Pumped-Storage Makes Perfect Economic Sense Here
The PVP already has everything needed for large-scale pumped storage at a much lower cost than building from scratch.
Scott Dam creates Lake Pillsbury, a large upper reservoir with significant usable storage capacity. Cape Horn Dam creates Van Arsdale Reservoir roughly 1,000 feet lower downstream. Existing tunnels and the old powerhouse site already connect the two.
Here is how it would work: During midday solar overproduction—when California electricity prices are very low or even negative—cheap power would pump water uphill from the lower reservoir to Lake Pillsbury.
During evening peak demand, when prices are high, water would release downhill through upgraded turbines to generate and sell expensive electricity.
This “buy low, sell high” arbitrage can be highly profitable. The elevation drop and existing dams and tunnels mean far lower construction costs than new pumped-storage projects. Lake Pillsbury’s scale could enable dozens of gigawatt-hours of storage, providing valuable grid services such as balancing renewables, frequency regulation, and reliability support in California’s volatile energy market.
The conventional 9.4 MW hydroelectric plant has been offline since 2021. However, the topography and infrastructure make restarting and expanding it for pumped storage a logical, revenue-focused move for a cash-strapped water district.
EVMWD’s Long History With This Exact Strategy: This is not speculative. It aligns directly with EVMWD’s past actions.
The district has spent nearly two decades pursuing the Lake Elsinore Advanced Pumped Storage (LEAPS) project, a proposed 500 MW pumped-storage facility using Lake Elsinore as the lower reservoir.
They have repeatedly sought FERC approvals and partnerships for it, demonstrating deep expertise and a strong commitment to this technology for managing high pumping costs and generating new revenue.
Analysts and local reporters covering the PVP bid have directly connected the dots. A district obsessed with pumped storage for more than 20 years suddenly showing interest in a distant site with a perfect 1,000-foot head difference is no coincidence. District representatives have repeatedly cited the energy benefits when discussing the project’s appeal.
Water diversion to Southern California would face massive legal, environmental, and infrastructure hurdles—including hundreds of miles of new pipelines and complex water rights issues—making it far less practical than monetizing the power potential on-site.
The Opposition: Dam Removal and River Restoration
Local stakeholders, tribes (including the Round Valley Indian Tribes), environmental groups, and Northern California water agencies strongly support PG&E’s plan to remove the dams as part of surrendering the FERC license.
Scott Dam has blocked salmon and steelhead from hundreds of miles of prime cold-water habitat for over a century, harming threatened fish runs. Full removal would restore a free-flowing Eel River, natural sediment flow, and access to historic spawning grounds.
The locally supported Two-Basin Solution aims to maintain limited, fish-friendly high storm-flow diversions to the Russian River without keeping the old dams. Keeping the dams for distant energy arbitrage would undermine ecological recovery, tribal rights, and local control.
This situation echoes the successful 1960s fight against the Dos Rios Dam that would have flooded tribal lands.
Bottom Line
The economics, EVMWD’s track record with LEAPS, the site’s unique topography, and public statements all point to energy profits via pumped-storage arbitrage as the real strategic objective—not primarily shipping large volumes of water south.
This fits a broader pattern of California water agencies turning hydro assets into revenue tools amid high energy costs and renewable grid challenges.
Any attempt to keep the dams would face fierce regulatory, environmental, and community pushback in favor of full restoration.
Sources for easy reference; LEARN MORE EDUCATE THE COMMUNITY! OPPOSE ANY PLAN THAT KEEPS THE DAMS STANDING!
https://localnewsmatters.org/2026/05/03/potter-valley-dams-to-come-down-as-socal-interests-challenge-local-water-agreement/ (detailed analysis of pumped-storage motive)
https://mendovoice.com/2026/05/the-downstate-bid-for-mendocinos-potter-valley-project/ (EVMWD interest and questions on energy benefits)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Elsinore_Advanced_Pumped_Storage (LEAPS project background)
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/2026/05/16/eel-river-dams-southern-california-takeover-potter-valley-project/ (recent developments on SoCal agencies touring the site)
https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights/water_issues/programs/water_quality_cert/potter_valley_ferc77.html (official PVP project description)
https://eelriver.org/programs/eel-river-dam-removal/ (restoration perspective and dam impacts)
Where the fuck were they in the >8 years of project scoping BEFORE PGE determined it to be fiduciarily responsible to forfeit the lease on the entirety of FERC P-77?
These Water Districts likely have little or zero clue as to what has transpired and/or why.
They now want water that they have NO right to.
Will the RVIT lease them water to run a Stored Hydropower System and/or to sell water to some other agency since there’s no pipe/aqueduct connecting to the CA Aqueduct System?
Very very strongly doubt it.
Can anyone do anything about that except RVIT?
NO.
Has anyone hear from the Humboldt County Supervisors about this Water Grab?
Do people really believe that because someone interested in the Eel River water lives far away from the water they can’t figure out how to get it to their area? San Francisco did it. Los Angeles did it. Why not these organisations? Better watch out Friends of the Eel. You’re about to loose your river.
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/San+Francisco,+California/Hetch+Hetchy+Reservoir,+California/@37.8516223,-122.3959765,8z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x80859a6d00690021:0x4a501367f076adff!2m2!1d-122.4194155!2d37.7749295!1m5!1m1!1s0x8096e1dc01e45a71:0x5f1dc12f404d8d2d!2m2!1d-119.7339171!2d37.9491204!5m1!1e2?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDUxMy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Sites+Project+Authority,+122+Old+Hwy+99W,+Maxwell,+CA+95955/Cape+Horn+Dam,+Potter+Valley,+CA+95469/@39.1866933,-123.2980494,9z/data=!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x808373dde934fb1f:0x156e1a3e522ee69!2m2!1d-122.1919489!2d39.2773915!1m5!1m1!1s0x808180523d61afc7:0xf0f61b66eefa5522!2m2!1d-123.1190848!2d39.3860619!5m1!1e2?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDUxMy4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D
There is nothing in this article nor the linked-to Press Democrat article that says they will actually be sending the water to Southern California.
It simply states that they are “exploring opportunities associated with Potter Valley” and that they want to “see if there’s anything there to diversify our prospective portfolios.”
I’m reading this as more of a financial investment rather than an actual attempt to send water to SoCal.
That said, PG&E declared the dams as unprofitable for a reason.
Even if they could be made to return a profit, the environmental cost of the dams is far too high, and they need to come down.
IMHO:
Political ‘Grandstanding’
The stolen Eel River water is already headed to the Ukiah Valley and the Russian River downstream.
Big thing is to watch what happens when they propose removing Trinity Dam and Whiskeytown Lake (which is only a holding basin).
Colorado River is drying out. There is no groundwater to pump in Southern California.
When the urban water taps go dry… it’s going to be hell in California.
You might think that the state government might be moving forward
on desalination plants ? (NOPE)
Future generations… it’s going to be fun !
Trinity Dam at Lewiston is a long way from Whiskeytown Lake. The dam should go, and water not diverted anywhere. The Carr Powerhouse operates at a net loss, and the water ends up in the Sacramento River for Central valley irrigation, at the cost of the forest, fisheries, and river folks.
No its not. The diversion pipe runs right over Buckhorn and down to Whiskeytown. Not far at all.
Doug LaMalfa is dead anyway. Don’t need to steal our water to grow rice in a desert.
How do we get local, community control of our own river? Whether their interest is to pipe away the water or use it for a data center in SoHum, it is not right, and it is not right that we are letting someone else decide this.
Humboldt county government rarely utters a word about the issue for over 100 years.
Thank god for Reagan. Calif and the US has gone to hell without him.
Actually ,i believe it was in 1969
Think about it…a lake over covelo would eliminate the huge crime issue that happens regularly.
I think that quite often
Must feed SoCal! It’s such a wonderful culture down there- really such an excellent collection of humans all packed into one very special place. So anything they want we must supply it to them. They are the pinnacle of humanity and western civilization ya know!
They steal so much water from the lower Klamath by diversions from the Trinity and the Central Valley Project, don’t let the SoCals steal the Eel!
No comment on the issue from Huffman, Humboldt county, or fish and wildlife.
This plan guarantees a dead/no river.
Plenty of water in lake Tahoe to steal, but the subject is always swept under the rug.
https://huffman.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/huffman-demands-answers-on-trump-scheme-to-ship-north-coast-water-to-socal-district
Right? He needs to deliver it to Sonoma and Marin
C’mon! That’s where they go to vacation
Before the dams people lived in the area. Life before for thousands upon thousands of sustainable, responsible years.
Few guys with $ sign eyes drive a vision in to fruition.
Mixing eco systems is really a bad idea.
Many examples exist, non native species issues etc.
Humans are not great about looking outside the contemporary they live in and that is a huge part of the issue.
With catchment ponds, improvement to the ag wells and better irrigation practices function can still be maintained. Ample time and discussion about the dam being decommissioned and developing new alternatives have been ongoing for decades honestly.
The Potter Valley irrigation system and ditches are super behind the times.
The “gates” as they call them many on the west side of the valley dysfunctional.
Open air, evaporation loss is certainly an issue. Anyone can go up lateral ditches and steal water if they have the right hidden spot. No way to track 100% what is really taken out of the ditches.
The people deeply vested in the ditches have deep pockets and loud voices. Now folks with no concern for anything local want to dip their toes in too. Wow!
Passion is a problem when our eyes are blind to truth.
Southern California water districts are interested in the Potter Valley Project mainly for energy profits, not shipping huge amounts of water south. The key is pumped-storage hydroelectric arbitrage. Lake Pillsbury sits about 1,000 feet above the lower Van Arsdale Reservoir. They could pump water uphill from the lower reservoir to the upper one using cheap electricity during times of surplus power (like midday solar overproduction). Then release the water downhill through turbines during peak demand hours to generate and sell high-priced electricity. With Lake Pillsbury’s storage capacity this site could function as a large-scale grid battery providing dozens of gigawatt-hours of energy storage and valuable grid stability services. This is feasible because the elevation difference already exists, the dams and tunnels are in place, and upgrading the powerhouse would be far cheaper than building a new pumped-storage facility from scratch. Southern districts like Elsinore Valley already have experience pursuing similar projects.
But we should strongly oppose any takeover that keeps the dams. Scott Dam has blocked salmon and steelhead from reaching hundreds of miles of prime cold-water spawning and rearing habitat in the upper Eel River and headwaters for over a century, including areas important to the Round Valley Indian Tribes. Full dam removal is essential to restore a free-flowing river, allow natural sediment and gravel movement, and let salmon return to their historic headwaters. This is the only reliable way to recover these threatened fish runs.
This fight echoes the 1960s Dos Rios mega-dam proposal that Governor Ronald Reagan helped stop to protect Round Valley, tribal lands, and the river itself. We should not let outside interests revive control of the Eel River through these existing dams. Prioritize ecological restoration, tribal rights, and local needs over distant energy arbitrage plans. Support full dam removal along with a fish-friendly Two-Basin Solution for limited “High Storm Flow”diversions to the Russian River
Scott has to come down, as it’s a seismic risk, and I gather Cape Horn is pretty well silted up.
Redwood Rumor Mill makes the only sense one can make of this, and I”m grateful for it. I wish I knew what login means so I could upvote this information
This is from the Mendo Voice about the water district’s reply to Huffman’s request for info:
The letter also acknowledged something Elsinore had never said before. Huffman’s request had two parts. The first was about the project itself — Scott Dam, Cape Horn Dam, the powerhouse, the water rights. The second was about plans to move Eel water out of the Eel and Russian River basins.
Morris told Huffman the district has records that match both parts. He did not say what those records are. He did not say how many. He told the congressman the district will start handing over the non-exempt ones by May 29, on a rolling basis after that. He reserved the right to keep back anything Elsinore decides is exempt under California’s public-records law.
A district that had not been thinking about moving Eel water south could have said so. Elsinore did not. It told Congress, in writing, that it has paperwork on the question.
https://mendovoice.com/2026/05/the-downstate-bid-for-mendocinos-potter-valley-project/
Here is the website to read the whole article.