A Natural Treasure for Nevada County and all Californians

• The Nevada County Board of Supervisors is sponsoring S.B. 496 in conformance with the county's General Plan, which discourages the construction of new dams and identifies the river as a unique recreational, tourist and natural asset.

• The South Yuba River is an irreplaceable economic resource for Nevada County and the state of California. A 1993 study by the California Department of Parks and Recreation calculated the river's state parks generated more than 700,000 visitor-days and $23 million in economic activity annually, and use has increased since that study.

• The South Yuba has four dozen state and national historical sites, including the Bridgeport Covered Bridge and others listed in the National Register of Historical Places. It also features the 2,200-acre South Yuba River State Park, the Independence Trail (the longest wheelchair-accessible wilderness trail in the country) and world-class kayaking and rafting.

• The CalFed Bay Delta Program has identified the South Yuba as a statewide priority for watershed and fish habitat restoration projects, and the river has been found eligible for wild and scenic designation by the Tahoe National Forest. The Yuba River currently supports the Central Valley's last self-sustaining run of wild steelhead trout, as well as several runs of endangered chinook salmon.

• The South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) was formed in 1983 to preserve the South Yuba for the continued enjoyment of all Californians. SYRCL currently has more than 2,200 local members, making it one of the state's largest grassroots rural environmental organizations. Visit the SYRCL website at www.syrcl.org for additional photos and information.

SB 496 Does Not Prevent Flood Control

• In the last ten years the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has released two separate studies ruling out new South Yuba flood control dams like those proposed by the Yuba County Water Agency as environmentally, economically or technically infeasible.

• The most recent study, issued in April 1998 by the Army Corps and the California Reclamation Board, determined that "the only plan that was economically and environmentally feasible was modification of existing levees along the Yuba and Feather Rivers." This study specifically considered and rejected the Edwards Crossing and Narrows Dams currently under study by the Yuba County Water Agency. (Final Feasibility Report; April, 1998)

• This report also concluded that new storage projects could actually exacerbate flooding dangers by eroding downstream river channels.

• As a result of these findings, a $26.6 million levee improvement item for the Yuba River has been included in the 1999 Water Resources Development Act (S. 507) currently being considered by the Congress. Nevada County has endorsed this funding.

• Designation would not preclude new flood control projects outside of the 39-mile protected segment.

• The South Yuba River Citizens League is currently seeking CalFed funding for Yuba Tools, a cooperative study to evaluate non-dam flood control strategies for the Yuba Watershed that have been effective in other watersheds. Yuba Tools has been endorsed by more than 45 local, state and federal agencies and organizations, including several from Yuba County.

• The Yuba County Water Agency currently operates California's 5th highest dam and 11th largest reservoir at New Bullards Bar on the North Yuba River. The Agency's own studies have determined that reoperation and expansion of this facility alone would increase flood protection for downstream Yuba County from the current 100-year level to a 184-year level.

• The most recent California Water Plan Update, released in 1998, lists no flood control or water supply projects options on the South Yuba River. (Bulletin 160-98; Volume 2, Chapter 8, Page 20)

• In addition, no South Yuba dam has ever been included in the California Water Plan since its initial release in 1957. The Plan is now in its 8th update.

• The Yuba River is already one of the most exhaustively studied and managed watersheds in California. It currently supports twenty reservoirs and 20 hydroelectric facilities, and the New Bullards Bar project on the river's North Fork is California's 5th highest dam and 11th largest reservoir.

Likely Projects in Yuba Watershed are Unaffected by SB 496

• Only two projects in the entire Yuba Watershed made the 1998 Water Plan Update's list of "Options Likely to be Implemented in the Sacramento River Region." These projects were the Parks Bar Reservoir on the main stem Yuba (more than 20 miles below the Wild and Scenic segment) and the off-stream Waldo Reservoir.

• Both of these projects are well outside the segment proposed for designation and would not be affected by designation. (Bulletin 160-98; Volume 2, Chapter 8, Page 20)

• None of the 14 potential reservoir sites identified by the CalFed Bay Delta Program to meet its water supply goals are located on the South Yuba River.

• To meet its surface water storage goal CalFed is focusing on off-stream reservoir sites and expansion of existing on-stream reservoirs. CalFed will not pursue storage at new on-stream reservoir sites. (CalFed Phase II Report, Page 82)

• Since the dam projects proposed by the Yuba County Water Agency (the Edwards Crossing and Narrows Dams) are "new on-stream reservoir sites," they are by definition excluded from consideration by CalFed. SB 496 would preclude these projects and protect CalFed's statewide objectives.

Ecosystem Restoration

• CalFed has identified the South Yuba as a priority for watershed restoration projects. CalFed and the State of California have invested $1.3 million for watershed restoration studies and a management plan for the South Yuba River, all of which would be threatened by a new dam.

• Restoring endangered chinook salmon and steelhead trout habitat in the upper Yuba watershed is a key CalFed ecosystem restoration goal. SB would protect habitat in the South Yuba vital to CalFed's restoration goals.

Why Designate the South Yuba While CalFed is Incomplete?

• Although CalFed has ruled out new South Yuba dams, it cannot stop the licensing of new facilities, like those proposed by the Yuba County Water Agency, that conflict with its restoration goals.

• Sponsored by the Nevada County Board of Supervisors, SB 496 is the culmination of 15 years of community efforts to protect the South Yuba from new dams. Its passage would serve both statewide water supply interests and recognize Nevada County's long-standing desire to protect its local interests.