Russian River
Water Forum 
The Russian River Water Forum is a collaborative effort initiated by Sonoma Water and a collection of regional partners with funding from the California Department of Water Resources.
The Water Forum seeks to identify water-supply resiliency solutions that respond to PG&E’s planned decommissioning of the Potter Valley Project while protecting Tribal interests and supporting the stewardship of fisheries, water quality, and recreation in the Russian River and Eel River basins. More broadly, the Water Forum supports ongoing regional collaboration on water supply and watershed restoration issues in the Russian River and Eel River basins.
Go to the Water Forum’s website for detailed information: https://russianriverwaterforum.org/
The RRWF DWR Grant
The Russian River Water Forum (WF) DWR grant included the following projects:
- A facility assessment of the PVP diversion and how it would function under various conditions, including the possibility of Scott Dam being removed. PG&E has recently allowed access to the facility.
- The grant also covers the effort to look for more storage upstream from Lake Mendocino, either surface or groundwater storage in Potter Valley. If Scott Dam is removed, the only water coming through the diversion will be in the wintertime. They are looking for a large storage site that would hold 11 to 15,000 AF of water. Additionally, there may be a potential for drilling groundwater wells and a study is underway to determine this possibility.
- The third element of the grant funding was the formation of the Russian River Water Forum (WF). The Water Forum supports ongoing regional collaboration on water supply and watershed restoration issues in the Russian River and Eel River basins.
Please click on the Russian River Water Forum website link for more detailed information.
The RRWF June 12 Second Planning Group meeting Notes
RRWF-Planning-Group-Meeting-2-Summary_FINAL
Please go Here for more detailed information.
The RRWF First Planning Group meeting 5/17/2023
The Water Forum Planning Group met for the first time to discuss and evaluate options for a local solution that responds to the planned decommissioning of the Potter Valley Project and that can formulate information for future negotiations with PG&E.
The Planning Group is comprised of approximately 30 members representing a cross-section of interests in Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, and Humboldt Counties. The goal is to explore ways to maintain flows in the Russian River once PG&E decommissions an inoperative power plant while also “protecting Tribal interests and supporting the stewardship of fisheries, water quality, and recreation in the Russian River and Eel River basins,” according to its draft charter.
Listed Goals for the Planning Group include:
- Bring together interested parties in the Russian River and Eel River basins in a collaborative, solutions-oriented process.
- Improve understanding of water reliability uncertainties in the Russian River and Eel River basins.
- Problem-solve around the future of the Potter Valley Project, water supply resilience, and fisheries in both river basins.
- Identify funding sources to support water supply resiliency solutions and environment benefits in response to the planned decommissioning of the Potter Valley Project.
Please click on the Russian River Water Forum website link for more detailed information.
The Russian River Water Forum Summary of Interview Findings
This Summary of Interview Findings document presents overarching themes and key perspectives from interviews Kearns & West conducted with a broad cross-section of parties with an interest in Pacific Gas & Electric Company’s Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project (PVP) and/or water supply or associated resources in the Russian River and Eel River basins. For more than 100 years, the diversion of water from the Eel River to the Russian River via the PVP has provided an important source of water for the Russian River basin.
PG&E plans to decommission the PVP, which could reduce or eliminate this water source. The Russian River Water Forum (Water Forum) is a new collaborative process initiated by Sonoma Water and a collection of regional partners, including IWPC, with funding from a California Department of Water Resources grant. The Water Forum aims to preserve the flow of water from the Eel River via the PVP into the Russian River while also fostering collaboration to support water supply resiliency in the Russian River watershed. Kearns & West has been engaged to help establish and facilitate the Water Forum through an inclusive, transparent process. The interviews for this report represent an initial step in that process, and the findings will help inform the governance structure and engagement approach of the Water Forum. This document summarizes key views on the diversion from the Eel River and the Water Forum, including challenges to overcome, keys to success, and elements of potential solutions.
To review the interview results, click the link below: