December 1997
After four years working to save the Upper Kern from being swallowed up for
the next thirty years by the Edison power plant, we are down to the final
rounds. THIS IS IT. In the next six months, the river's fate will be decided by
the Forest Service.
The Forest Service has the power to mandate flows for recreation. On
December 17th, 1997 at 9 AM in Bakersfield (BLM office at 3801 Pegasus Dr) a
collaborative process will begin to determine recreation flows in the 16-mile
stretch from Fairview Dam to the Kernville powerhouse. There are many ways to
view and deal with this issue. The most even-handed and comprehensive involves
VALUES ANALYSIS.
The Forest Service under the Multiple-Use
Sustained-Yield Act of 1960 is required to analyze the value, to the public, of
alternative uses of this river and to allocate use accordingly. Another act,
the Federal Power Act, the guiding light of the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (FERC) is required to give "equal consideration" to
non-power uses (including recreation) when deciding how to best use a river.
The FERC never performed this analysis; it never assessed the public's valuation
of alternative river uses. And the Forest Service (which was not well-informed
on these issues), followed the FERC's lead. The Forest Service developed flow
allocations (Section 4(e) conditions) which had no public values analysis
support.
The Forest Service now is stepping forward to correct this
omission. Forest Supervisor Art Gaffery has agreed to a process of Values
Analysis. Before beginning any negotiations regarding flows, there will be a "fact
finding" process. This is a formal procedure which allows groups and
individuals to present specific informations about the value of the river, given
different uses and development agendas for the next thirty years.
Within this framework, it is possible to demonstrate that the river is
far more valuable for recreation than it is for power generation. These
demonstrations would 1) restore natural river flows up to 1600 cfs (and perhaps
eliminate diversions all together) and 2) establish a new model for valuing
rivers which could be used across the country.
This is it. Now is the time. If you are dedicated to the restoration of
the Kern and or other rivers across the country, now is the time to contribute
your skills and energies. Two things are needed:
A strategy meeting will be held in Kernville or Bakersfield on the afternoon
of Saturday Dec 13th. Please contact one of the people below and try to attend.
If you cannot attend but can contribute to this group effort, please stay in
touch with one of these people. For time and place of the strategy/planning
meeting contact one of the following: Rick Hains, Doug Carson, Rick Dancing,
Chris Nuthall, Linda Ivers, Bill Neal, Keith Beck, Preston Holmes.
Rick
Dancing
The following information was provided by Rich Bowers, AWA. December 11,1996.
First I want to thank all of the AWA members who wrote to the Forest Service regarding the Upper Kern River. AWA's Conservation Office received over 60 copies of these letters by email, fax or regular mail, and I'm sure the Forest Service (USFS) received even more. This is a great response and something the USFS should not be able to ignore.
But now the process moves on. And before you put down your pen, I am hoping you can take a few minutes and help us with the next step -- Just because the letters are at the USFS, this doesn't mean they will listen. AWA now needs California boaters to follow up by writing your elected officials, and asking them to put the pressure on the USFS to negotiate with us and help restore the Kern.
AWA and our coalition partners, Friends of the River, Kernville Chamber of Commerce, Kern Valley Community Consensus Council, and Kern River Outfitters, have written to the USFS and asked that they negotiate better conditions for the KR3 dam. But so far, the USFS has been very reluctant to talk with boaters and other river users. They will be more inclined to do so if elected officials request that the USFS listen and talk with their California constituency.
I have included a draft letter, and would ask that you include several critical points:
THANKS IN ADVANCE FOR YOUR CONTINUED HELP
Here are the addresses:
San Francisco area:
Los Angeles area:
Kernville and Bakersfield areas:
The following information was provided by Rich Bowers, AWA. November 7,1996. The comment period has now expired. Thanks for taking the time to write letters regarding this important issue.
AN URGENT APPEAL FROM AMERICAN WHITEWATER, FRIENDS OF THE RIVER, THE KERNVILLE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, AND THE KERN RIVER VALLEY COMMUNITY CONSENSUS COUNCIL
On October 18th, the Sequoia National Forest (USFS) and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) re-issued a Final Environmental Assessment for the Kern River #3 dam on the Upper Kern River. This provides one final public comment period that ends on November 22, 1996.
Comments by boaters, fishermen, local residents and businesses of the Kern Valley, and others are critical. This is one of the last opportunities to improve conditions and flows for the next 30 to 50 years on this outstanding recreational river!
According to the legal announcement for the Environmental Assessment, comments "must meet the specific content requirements of 36 CFR 215."
Comments should be addressed and sent to the following:
American Whitewater, Friends of the River, the Kernville Chamber of Commerce, and the Kern River Valley Community Consensus Council have been working together to restore flows and improve recreation along the Upper Kern, designated by Congress in 1987 as a National Wild and Scenic River. However, the Kern #3 dam, owned by Southern California Edison (Edison), removes up to 90% of the water, year round, from over 16 miles of the Kern.
So far, our combined efforts have succeeded in: increasing daily flows for whitewater between May 15th and August 15th; providing a portage around the existing Fairview Dam; and improving camping facilities along the river.
But for the Kern, this is just not enough!
Your letters can help restore even more of the beauty and recreational value of this river. We are asking each of you to write to the above agencies, by November 22nd, and explain how better flows can greatly improve whitewater, fishing, hiking, biking and other recreational use of the river -- increase the economic benefits for the local community and restore the natural fishery and aesthetic beauty of the river, the central theme of the Kern Valley. The USFS and FERC dislike form letters, so please take a few minutes and explain (in your own words) why the Kern is important to you! Explain why restoring flows to the Kern is a great idea, and how better conditions will benefit your use of this river.
Here are some critical issues to include in your letter:
Preston Holmes, of Preston's Kayak Page, has setup a listserv mailing list to make it easy to send messages of interest to the Kern boating community, but to make it work you have to subscribe to the list. That's easy, just send a message to [] that says:
subscribe kern-restore your name
You can leave the Subject: field blank, that's all there is to it!
When you want to send a message to everyone on the list, you would send it to [].
