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HETCH HETCHY, Calif. (KCBS) -- By unanimous vote, two key San Francisco commissions, the Planning Commission and the Public Utilities Commission, have approved an environmental impact report that clears the way for a multi-billion dollar seismic upgrade of the Hetch Hetchy Water System.
KCBS Barbara Taylor Reports
This massive eight volume EIR has been in the works for three years, and is needed to proceed with the PUC's 4.4 billion dollar Hetch Hetchy rebuild. PUC General Manager Ed Harrington says it attempts to balance conflicting priorities.
”It weighs the needs of the rivers, with the needs of the fish and the people that rely on them, and the needs of our suburban and city dwellers who rely on the drinking water,” said Harrington.
The PUC's plan relies primarily on conservation, recycling and local ground water to deal with future increases in water demand, but environmentalists are still concerned about the impact on the watershed.
”What we’re looking at is the state of the environment in the worsening condition of the fisheries on the Tuolomne River,” said Jennifer Clary of Clean Water Action, who called the EIR inadequate for not recognizing the detrimental impact on the watershed.
(MGO)
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