Another Weekend of South Fork Water!

We will have Chili Bar boating flows this coming weekend - 1500 cfs from 9-noon at Chili Bar - and, barring emergencies, that schedule will continue indefinitely. Obviously when rain starts we will start to see more. Until then, weekday water will be occasional and unpredictable, and Saturdays/Sundays will be 1500 cfs from 9-noon.

Ice House will not flow this weekend. SMUD has completed its maintenance at Union Valley, which was the reason for them needing to put water down the South Fork of Silver Creek below Ice House Dam.

SMUD: All Quiet on the Western Front

From Theresa L. Simsim, ROAR! Restore Our American River:

For the first time since last June ROAR! will have no official presence at the upcoming SMUD Board of Directors meeting. Leaving Jim Shetler & his SMUD team free to focus on the momentous task before them. And despite the connotation of my title - NO NEWS will be GOOD NEWS for the next few weeks as it will point to two sides engaging in real negotiation. In other words, after taking the time to clarify questions at what can be described as a positive meeting with the Agencies & NGO's - SMUD is now set to release their "red lined" version of the Agency/NGO alternative this Wednesday. If acceptable to the Agencies & NGO's, Thursday will mark the beginning of marathon negotiations with the common goal of settlement before the FERC deadline on November 17th. (Yes, I'm holding my breath!)

To occupy your wait time - here is the FERC link to the "new" Agency/NGO Alternative Proposal filed last October 18th. Note that the agencies refined the proposal to add even more flexibility for SMUD operations on the UARP (i.e. language that allows for variance in reservoir levels). Also on the link is the 300+ page rationale that details solid arguments for the proposal.

Since my beer mug is always half full - I'm hoping to share some good news in the next few weeks! In the meantime make sure to enjoy added perks like Ice House (if more flows are possible) and Chili Bar flows which will continue to be coordinated by Bill Center, Hilde Schweitzer, SMUD & PG&E.

CDEC Down, Water Up

CDEC isn't responding this morning, but Chili Bar as of 6:50 Saturday AM is at about 800 cfs and heading toward 1500 cfs at 9:00 am. Same thing on Sunday. No tricks today - just treats. Ice House too!!! Have a great weekend - if you are around Camp Lotus Sunday afternoon stop by for our end of season party - we're giving away our left over beer and candy to keep me from getting fat over the winter.

Weekend Water, Both Days!

I just talked to PG&E and Chili Bar is full, they intend to keep it full, so we should have about 1500 cfs from about 9-noon on both Saturday and Sunday. Flows over the past few days, and today, are from "extra" SMUD water - this new process is resulting in a little different pattern, but with the cooler mornings we will probably continue to get occasional mid-week morning flows like we did on Thursday. No one will be able to predict mid-week flows, which is the trade-off right now for getting much more reliable weekend flows.

Oct 28-29th Flows and Options

SMUD has committed to do a best effort attempt which barring emergencies and anticipating cooperation with PGE will result in flows on Chili Bar for both days-probably from 9-12 in the 1500 range Sat and Sunday.ICE HOUSE will run both days again from 10-1 in the 500cfs range. Remember daylight savings on Sunday so go early. The water temp is really cold so dress accordingly. The more use the better so get out there and boat-it's a really fun run.NF Feather will only have Sunday flows on the Rock Creek section, no Cresta release on Sat.This cooperation with SMUD in terms of coordinating recreational boating flows shows quite a bit of positive movement from how it has been done in the past. Hopefully the momentum will continue into a relicense that gets flows not only on Chili Bar throughout the year but on Slab and Ice House, two new runs.Enjoy-If you do go to Ice House, please post so we get an idea on how much use it is getting. Obviously, the more, the better
hilde

Wild & Scenic Protection for the South Fork American River - Meeting Nov 1

From FOR: The South Fork American River has been recommended for Wild & Scenic protection by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and we need your help to make sure that really happens. Rafters, kayakers, and others who love the South Fork now have an opportunity to advocate for its protection against long-standing but currently shelved plans to build dams on the river. Federal protection would prohibit new dams, ensure that federal public lands along the river are managed to protect their outstanding values, and require upstream dam owners to operate those dams in a manner that protects river values.

Ways to help: attend the BLM's public meeting on November 1 in Placerville, and write a letter to the BLM advocating for Wild & Scenic protection of the South Fork American River. For more information about the plan and what you can do, see this FOR page on Wild & Scenic Protection for the South Fork American River. The "how to help" section is here.

Flood Protection Plan for Sacramento

From Bruce Thomas:
Roger Dickinson, chairman of SAFCA, has published an article on flood control for Sacramento. It describes a rapid, sensible and affordable program that does not involve building any costly new flood control structures on free-flowing rivers (e.g., Auburn Dam).

Bruce posted information about the plan in his Whitewater Kayaking blog at Flood Protection Plan for Sacramento is on Track.

Bruce also supports Proposition 1E on the November ballot, saying it provides critical funding necessary for the above plan to be accomplished. Read Bruce's Case for Proposition 1E.

No Water Sunday

Chili Bar is too low to provide a boating flow and they don't anticipate anything but minimum flows from SMUD, so there won't be a boating flow today. There is still Ice House!

Saturday Water DEFINITE 1400 from 8-Noon

We will have at least 1400 from at least 8-Noon on Saturday 10-21. Sunday looks promising also. It is very gratifying to see SMUD and PG&E working so well together. Thank you!

Water on Ice House Run of South Silver - Sat-Sun Oct 21-22

From Hilde Schweitzer:

In part due to ongoing negotiations, the Ice House Run of South Silver will have runnable water on it both Sat and Sun Oct 21-22. It will run from 10 am to 1 pm both days. If you do go, please let me know so I can get back to SMUD with the results. Sorry for the late notice but we just got the water today. If you want a bit more information go to Boof.com, go to forums and click on any of the several links to info about the run.

Thanks to SMUD for providing this rec flow. We have a long way to go in
negotiating set flows but this is a big step.

Announcement:

Due to ongoing outages on the UARP, SMUD will be using the valve below Ice House Reservoir for the next several days. Typically the rate of flow will be 250 CFS; however, on Saturday 10/21/06 and Sunday 10/22/06 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm the flow rate below Ice House Reservoir on the South Fork Silver Creek will be 500 CFS. Ramp up and down times will occur before and after the 10:00 to 1:00 time slot.

Note from webmaster: Silver Creek is a tributary of the South Fork of the American River. You can find Silver Creek and Ice House Reservoir on our watershed map. If you make the run and want to report back to Hilde, you can comment on this post or send us a message and we'll forward it to Hilde.

SMUD Update - it doesn't hurt to be vocal

From Theresa L. Simsiman of ROAR! Restore Our American River:

Since Jim Shetler, Assistant General Manager, Energy Supply, at SMUD took it personally upon himself to restore flow last Sunday after Hilde Schweitzer brought to his attention the situation with the whitewater symposium - I took the opportunity to acknowledge his efforts at yesterday's board meeting while Nate Rangel announced that the El Dorado County Chamber of Commerce would endorse the Agency/NGO Alternative & Soren Jespersen presented some excellent graphics comparing the natural hydrograph, SMUD's proposal & the alternative.

http://smud.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2 (Select October 19th & jump to #8)

Marking the first day in which SMUD & the Agencies/NGO's could officially begin negotiating again - an encouraging sign came in the form of the representative from the Forest Service indicating to Jim a willingness to have productive negotiations.

On the private boating front - after an extensive email dialogue with Hilde, last Saturday's flow fiasco and subsequent email from Mark Davis & other vocal boaters - Jim agreed to meet after the board meeting. In brief it was the most productive contact with SMUD the private boaters have had to date. First they acknowledge our position as a separate & distinct stakeholder of private whitewater recreational users - not just being lumped into the commercial interests as the "rafters". Second, we discussed how to facilitate better communication between the private boaters & SMUD. And irregardless of what may actually go on during the negotiations, Jim expressed a real desire to provide for the private boaters in the interim of an actual license - which in the best case scenario could be at least 2 yrs away. So look for a more coordinated effort communicated by Steve Sorey (key SMUD "gatekeeper") Bill Center & Hilde. Also as an added bonus of direct communication - Hilde was able to get Steve to consider the possibility of Ice House flows for this weekend - we will get the word out today if this is a go. And while we mostly focused on the interim communication - I believe Jim & Steve at least get the concept that ultimately we want a specified flow schedule for the months outside of summer.

I want to close by sending out a thanks to all who contacted SMUD after Saturday's events - it doesn't hurt to be vocal.

PG&E Saving Water Thurs, Fri for Saturday

SMUD told us that because of maintenance at Union Valley Reservoir, flows out of Slab Creek Reservoir will be not enough for boating this weekend. Today they forecast a release of about 500 AF, but then released so much that PG&E generated for several hours. I just phoned PG&E and asked them to hold any more water they get over the next two days to try and fill Chili Bar enough for a Saturday run. They said they would do that - so if SMUD gives them much more than they need to meet minimum aquatic flow (about 400 AF per day) PG&E will make it available for boating on Saturday morning. I should know where we are at on Friday afternoon/evening and will post again then.

Hunting Season at Cronan Ranch

If you're hiking, bicycling or horseback riding at Cronan Ranch, please be advised that this is deer season, and hunting is permitted. Wear bright-colored clothing and make lots of noise! Hunters are supposed to sign in at the gate, but we've been advised that no sign-in sheet is posted, so don't assume there is no one there.

Per the BLM's Cronan Ranch Draft Management Plan, hunting at Cronan Ranch "is restricted to deer during the general season, turkey in the fall season, quail, and mourning doves, during the seasons specified by the CA Department of Fish and Game. There will be no hunting for bear, squirrels, rabbits, jackrabbits, waterfowl, furbearers, or non-game species."

A number of people have expressed concern about whether it is safe to allow hunting in an area where so many people are enjoying outdoor recreation. We understand that the new BLM field office manager, Bill Haigh, is considering changing the policy. If you would like to weigh in with your opinion, please send a letter to

William Haigh
Bureau of Land Management
Folsom Field Office
63 Natoma Street, Folsom, CA 95630

(Note: corrected office manager name 10/20/06)

There is a downloadable copy of the Cronan Ranch Draft Management Plan on the Folsom Field Office web page.

Water DEFINITE! on Sunday October 15

Due to a series of e-mails between a local boater and SMUD management, SMUD became very aware of the problem of no water today. I became aware of the e-mails and contacted PG&E, and they said that they were getting water from SMUD as we spoke (@3:00 pm), would end the day full and would do a full boating release starting to ramp up at 6:00 am on Sunday. By the way, I have heard second hand there won't be water next weekend, but haven't heard directly yet so am waiting for that before saying more.

More background on SMUD relicensing

Dan Bacher of The Fish Sniffer wrote an editorial last week: "Fish Groups Say No To SMUD's Hard Line On Relicensing Upper American." In it he detailed the varied concerns from stakeholders including whitewater boaters, conservationists and fisherman. He described the September SMUD Board meeting and notes:

"In some California watersheds, anglers, white water boaters and regulatory agencies have clashed over the timing and extent of pulsed dam releases for whitewater boating....

"In the UARP relicensing, these interests worked together to fashion boating flows that stay largely within the size and shape of the natural hydrograph and minimize impacts to fish, amphibians and aquatic insects. SMUD staff has not recognized the depth and extent of this accord....

"Just about every stakeholder is on the same page except for SMUD. On November 1, 2005, seven resource agencies, and several NGOs and individuals jointly issued a this Comprehensive Resource Agency/NGO Alternative for the UARP relicensing and the connected relicensing of the Chili Bar Project just downstream."

In a follow-up email, Bacher described SMUD's heavy-handed reaction to stakeholders attending the October 6th SMUD Board meeting. "The parking lot entrance and exit was blockaded by a SMUD security truck and a group of security officers were nervously watching the two dozen kayakers, river rafters, anglers, conservationists and Coloma-Lotus area business owners that were milling in the parking lot."

During the meeting, he says, twenty individuals spoke in favor of the Agency/NGO alternative, including "Mark Davis, Mother Lode Chapter, Sierra Club; V. John White, Director At-Large, Environmental Council of Sacramento; Chris Shutes, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance; Howard Penn, Owner, the Sierra Nevada House," and several members of the Coloma-Lotus Chamber of Commerce.

According to Bacher, SMUD is stating a commitment to a negotiated agreement. Expect a meeting, probably October 19th, between SMUD and the Agencies/NGOs. SMUD Board member Genevieve Shiroma asked the river advocates present to help her in bringing the parties together for a planning meeting (not negotiating) meeting before October 19 — and they agreed to help to bring the parties together.

Let SMUD know how you feel

From Theresa L. Simsiman of ROAR! (Restore Our American River):

At the last SMUD Board of Directors meeting General Manager, Jan Schori, gave a report on the water year coming to an end with 158% of normal. Even without her proud announcement we all know there's plenty of water available - yet SMUD does it again - they TURN OFF THE TAP TO WATER THEY DON'T OWN!

As Bill Center pointed out - so much for their water predictions on the SMUD website - as early as Thursday they "predicted" water for this weekend prompting PG&E to release early to make room for the expected water. FINE example of how SMUD will "coordinate" water flow with PG&E for the next 50 years.

If you find yourself making a flurry of calls to notify your boating pals, are putting away the kayak/raft/inflatable for your mountain bike or worst yet find yourself participating in the NATIONAL WHITEWATER SYMPOSIUM in FISH FLOW - be sure to drop a line to the SMUD Board of Directors:

http://smud.org/board/ (See Contact the Board)

See more background from Simsiman, along with action items and people to contact, in this SMUD Relicensing article.

No Water Saturday 10/14

There will be no release today. PG&E's Chili Bar has received almost nothing from SMUD since they spilled on Thursday. Chili Bar went into Friday virtually full, and SMUD had projected a release of over 1000 AF, so PG&E did a 3 hour boating release to create room for the release that never happened. If they had known that they would be receiving almost nothing from SMUD they would have held the water they had for Saturday. This morning SMUD is posting that there will be only 519 AF release into Chili Bar today, which doesn't do much more than keep up with the minimum flow. I won't be surprised if SMUD ends up releasing a lot more this afternoon, like they did on Thursday. But I'm learning that despite all the hoopla that accompanied their posting daily and hourly predictions on their website, the predictions have virtually no value in helping forecast flows. Since all I can do is talk to PG&E, and all they can do is base their releases on what is actually in Chili Bar reservoir, we are back to knowing there is water when it hits the river below the dam. I don't plan on wasting my time doing any long term projections (more than 2 hours out) for the rest of this year. I'm going to concentrate instead on relicensing negotiations.

Water Looks Good Friday, Saturday, probably Sunday

Chili Bar is currently full and spilling, and SMUD projects releasing
at least 1100 AF each of the next three days. If that happens we
should have decent flows on October 13, 14, & 15.

Oct 14-15 - American River Salmon Festival

The 10th annual American River Salmon Festival will be held next weekend on the lower American River. Venues include Lake Natoma and Nimbus Hatchery. A wide variety of events includes many aimed at children and families. Funds generated by the Salmon Festival help protect salmon and the American River. See the website for more information.

Oct 13-16 - National Whitewater Symposium in Coloma

From Dan Crandall: Current Adventures and The River Store are hosting the 4th Annual National Whitewater Symposium here in Coloma October 13-16. The event is based at the Earthtrek Camp below the 49 bridge, and does require advance registration. Visit the website or call Current Adventures at 530-333-9115 for info or to register. You can also e-mail Dan directly at Dan@Kayaking.com with questions or interest.

South Fork: Definitely Saturday Water, Sunday looks good too!!

We will have around 1500 cfs from 8-Noon or so at Chili Bar on Saturday. Sunday is very likely - similar flows and timing.

SMUD Relicensing Meeting this Thursday

The future of flows on the South Fork of the American River are in the balance. Interested parties are encouraged to attend SMUD's board meeting this Thursday at 6 p.m. and a press conference at 5:30 p.m. See this article for more information.

South Fork: Oct 7 & 8 Weekend Looks Good

Today's SMUD 8-day update shows they intend to have a minimum release from White Rock on Friday, Saturday and Sunday sufficient to support boating flows. They had a similar forecast last week, yet the flow on Friday was so late and uncertain that PG&E was unable to release on Friday and still be assured of Saturday water. We have no water today (Wednesday) and Thursday is uncertain/unlikely. I wouldn't count on Friday - but assume Saturday and Sunday will be good.