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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDWR - final habitat expansion plan 10.19.10 pF WAlE�,9 X CA a G p y Department of Water Resources Pacific Gas and Electric Company Division of Environmental Services Power Generation Mailing address: Mailing address: PO Box 942836 PO Box 770000, N 11 C Sacramento, California 94236-0001 San Francisco, California 94177 November 19, 2010 ��s� blspRS NOV 3 2Qpp O&OVjLLE C Mr. Rodney R. McInnis AL1PpRN!A Regional Administrator, Southwest Region United States Department of Commerce National Marine Fisheries Service 501 West Ocean Blvd., Suite 4200 Long Beach, California 90802 Re: Final Habitat Expansion Pian for Central Valley Spring-Run Chinook Salmon and California Central Valley Steelhead Dear Mr. McInnis: Please find enclosed a copy of the Final Habitat Expansion Plan for Central Valley Spring- Run Chinook Salmon and California Central Valley Steelhead(Final HEP) for your review and approval. The Final HEP is being submitted by the Department of Water Resources (DWR) and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) (together, the Licensees) as required under the Habitat Expansion Agreement for Central Valley Spring-Run Chinook Salmon and California Central Valley Steelhead(HEA) and your letter, dated June 1, 2010, agreeing to a six-month extension to the submittal date for the plan. The Final HEP is also being distributed to the HEA signatories and stakeholders for their information. The Final HEP represents three years of rigorous review of hundreds of potential restoration actions throughout the Sacramento River Basin. The Licensees, most of the HEA signatories, and many other stakeholders committed significant resources to the process of developing the Final HEP in a collaborative effort to achieve a successful outcome for the HEA. We greatly appreciate the participation and contributions made by National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and others in this effort. In the Final HEP, the Licensees recommend a set of eligible habitat expansion actions, collectively referred to as the Lower Yuba River Actions, which in aggregate are estimated Mr. Rodney R. McInnis November 19, 2010 Page 2 to exceed the Habitat Expansion Threshold specified in the HEA (i.e., expand habitat sufficient to accommodate an estimated net increase of 2,000 to 3,000 spring-run Chinook salmon for spawning in the Sacramento River Basin). The recommended actions are distinct from, and complementary to, restoration actions proposed by, or required of, other stakeholders in the watershed, including the actions required by NMFS' 2007 Biological Opinion for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers'Operation of Englebright and Daguerre Point Dams on the Yuba River, California. The recommended actions are located in the Lower Yuba River and consist of the following three components: ■ expansion of spawning habitat at Sinoro Bar in the Englebright Dam Reach above the confluence of Deer- rebk and the Yuba River; ■ expans}on!of-sawning habitat at Narrows Gateway in the Narrows Reach below the Deer Creek confluence; and • an option.to'plan and install a seasonally operated segregation weir on the Yuba River below the outofs,tfi-e`�f"`' s Pool to segregate spring-run and fall-run Chinook salmon.,.,if deemed necessary. The Lower Yuba River Actions recommended in this Final HEP are modified from those recommended in the November 20, 2009 Draft HEP. In particular, the recommended actions in the Final HEP add spawning habitat expansion at Narrows Gateway. Modifications were also made in response to comments the Licensees received from the HEA signatories and other stakeholders on the Draft HEP, as well as new information developed subsequent to the Draft HEP. We believe the recommended Lower Yuba River Actions will significantly contribute to the ongoing efforts of the Licensees, resource agencies, non-governmental organizations and landowners to support a geographically separate, self-sustaining spring-run Chinook salmon population in the Lower Yuba River. A detailed description of the recommended actions is provided.in Chapter 3 of the Final HEP. The process followed to select the actions is described in Chapter 2, and the compelling rationale for their selection as the recommended actions is found in Chapter 4. The Final HEP details how the Lower Yuba River Actions meet the HEA Approval Criteria and exceed the requirements set forth in the HEA through their estimated contribution to habitat expansion. Even though these actions exceed the cost threshold at which the Licensees could withdraw from the HEA, the Licensees are recommending these actions because they represent the best opportunity to provide a significant, timely and much- needed contribution to the conservation and recovery of spring-run Chinook salmon, with ancillary benefits to steelhead. In particular, they can be implemented relatively quickly, do not rely on uncertain or experimental methods, are fully volitional, and will have an almost immediate and sustained positive effect on species recovery. The recommended actions also represent a sizeable contribution to the development of a Yuba River spring-run Chinook salmon population that is fully supportive of goals in the October 2009 NMFS Public Draft Recovery Plan for Central Valley Salmon and Steelhead and could be used as a springboard to launch an Upper Yuba River salmon reintroduction plan, if and when such a plan is developed. Mr. Rodney R. McInnis November 19, 2010 Page 3 The next step in the HEA process is for NMFS to commence a 60-day consultation process with the HEA signatories, the State Water Resources Control Board and other stakeholders prior to considering approval of the plan. The Licensees urge NMFS to initiate consultation as soon as possible and take the steps necessary to approve the Final HEP. Once approved, we can begin work with the stakeholders toward implementing, and thus realizing, the benefits of the recommended actions. If you have any questions on the Final HEP, or would like additional information on the recommended actions, please feel free to contact either of us or the Steering Committee at hea(c7water.ca.gov. We thank you in advance for your time and consideration of this plan and look forward to working with you on achieving a successful outcome for the HEA. Sincerely, Dears F. Messer David W. Moller Chief, Division of Environmental Services Director, Hydro Licensing and Compliance California Department of Water Resources Pacific Gas and Electric Company cc: Attached List Mr. Rodney R. McInnis November 19, 2010 Page 4 cc: Rebecca Wodder Arthur G. Baggett, Jr. President Board Member American Rivers State Water Resources Control Board 1101 14th St., NW, Suite 1400 1001 1 Street, 24th Floor Washington, District of Columbia 20005 Sacramento, California 95814 John McCammon Beth G. Pendleton Acting Director Deputy Regional Forester Department of Fish and Game United States Department of Agriculture Forest 1418 Ninth Street, Room 1207 Service Sacramento, California 95814 1323 Club Drive Vallejo, California 94592 Ren Lohoefener Regional Director Terry Erlewine California and Nevada Region General Manager United States Fish and Wildlife Service State Water Contractors, Inc. 2800 Cottage Way 1121 L Street, Suite 1050 Sacramento, California 95825 Sacramento, California 95814 Attached distribution list of additional HEA stakeholders