AREA IMPACTS
Lake County
For Lake County and the century-old Lake Pillsbury community, there are no readily identifiable benefits arising from the draining of Lake Pillsbury. However, the negative consequences are profound.
Recreation & Tourism
The completion of Scott Dam and the creation of Lake Pillsbury in 1922 laid thefoundation for recreational development in the area. Over the past century, Lake Pillsbury has become the recreational hub of the Mendocino National Forest, supporting established residential communities, campgrounds, marinas, a resort, public recreation facilities, and hundreds of thousands of annual visitors who rely on it for water-based recreation, as well as providing a significant source of tax revenue for the County of Lake. Removal of Scott Dam would permanently eliminate Lake Pillsbury and fundamentally alter the character of the area and the community's way of life. No equivalent or alternative recreational opportunities exist within the basin to replace the loss of Lake Pillsbury, and the limited summer and fall flows in the upper Eel River watershed area will not support comparable river-based recreation.
Water Supply & Groundwater
The draining of Lake Pillsbury will decrease groundwater, affecting wells, developed springs, and small water systems that support homes, campgrounds, and recreational facilities.
Wildfire Risk
Lake Pillsbury provides an immediate and abundant source of water for rapid-response fire suppression in the Lake Pillsbury basin, the Mendocino National Forest, eastern Mendocino County, Lake County and beyond. Eliminating Lake Pillsbury will significantly increase firefighting response times, reduce firefighting effectiveness and create substantial safety risks for the residents and hundreds of thousands of recreational users who visit the area each year.
Fish & Wildlife Habitat
In addition, the loss of Lake Pillsbury will devastate the existing ecology that fish and wildlife have become dependent on the ecology over the past century. For example, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife expects the large population of endangered Tule Elk, which lives at Lake Pillsbury, to face starvation once the Lake is drained and existing habitat disappears. Lake Pillsbury is also the nesting grounds for twelve pairs of bald eagles which will be lost when the lake disappears. Additionally, removal of Scott Dam will forever eliminate the cold water flows exiting Lake Pillsbury that “Friends of the Eel” and other environmental groups describe as essential to the health of developing salmonids in the Eel.
For these reasons, the County of Lake and Lake Pillsbury basin stakeholders remain adamantly and unequivocally opposed to the removal of Scott Dam and the decommissioning of the Potter Valley Project.