FERC 2010 Re-Licensing of the View of Oroville Dam

By Bill Connelly

The 770' earthen dam is located less than two miles from the City of Oroville, the Butte County seat. The dam's 762 megawatt hydroelectric facilities are operated and licensed by the State Department of Water Resources (DWR). DWR is seeking a 50-year renewal of the license from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). FERC is a bureaucratic agency located in Washington D.C. charged with oversight of hydroelectric facilities throughout the United States.

When the dam was proposed and before the initial license was issued, the following was promised in writing, but not in a contract:

• Generation of permanent jobs
• Economic development
• Low cost energy
• Maintenance of roads
• Promise of 83,000 tourists per day
• Resort lodging, railroad for tourism, and a tram up the dam's face
• Dozens of other promises of recreation enhancements and financial gain

From these promises the citizens of Butte County have learned, if details are not in the contract signed by both parties it will not happen. In addition to broken promises the actual negative financial impacts of the dam to Butte County government are substantial and well documented.

The County spends 5.2 million dollars annually on direct services. These services include police, fire rescue, jail, probation, road maintenance, and traffic control. There currently exists an ongoing loss of property tax revenue to the County. The 41,000 acres of state owned land for which no county property tax is collected. This is an annual loss of more than 6.9 million dollars. The total economic loss to Butte County is over 12 million dollars every year. DWR refuses to compensate the county for these direct financial impacts. It must be pointed out the dam or related facilities do not bring any net tourism or other net revenues to Butte County government. In addition no low cost power was ever offered to local residents, businesses or government. All untaxed locally generated power and revenues are used to push water south cheaply at local expense. We actually subsidize the water for the rest of the state.

FERC and DWR acknowledge that this project does have a cost to the County for provided services, but fail to acknowledge the full negative financial impacts. We are still far apart:

The Final Environmental Impact study from FERC concludes that Butte County is losing millions of dollars in property tax revenue estimated to be between "1 and 6.9 million dollars annually."

Other recently relicensed FERC projects around the country received at least two of the following benefits, and several all five:

• Annual tax or other payments to the host community
• Low cost power to the community
• Special payments or benefits to address local needs
• Unneeded project lands returned to the community
• Monies committed to road and/or infrastructure improvements

Butte County currently will not receive any of these benefits—not one.

Butte County is in the process of trying to negotiate the relicensing of the Oroville Dam with DWR. We have the support of Senator Feinstein, Senator Boxer, Congressman McClintock, Congressman Herger, Assemblyman Logue, and Assemblyman Nielson.

In conclusion DWR broke promises and did not live up to the terms of the original license. DWR does not want to change anything to help Butte County cover actual costs in the new license application. DWR will not acknowledge what other new licenses provide for the local agencies and host communities. Butte County will not continue to subsidize DWR's operation of the Oroville Facility with taxpayer money.

Butte County is committed to seeking a just, morally right result, by settlement, FERC orders, or court decision.

Note: My next article will detail some of the ignored environmental impacts of the currently offered license.

Bill Connelly is Butte County District 1 Supervisor.

From the Summer 2010 issue of the Environmental News.