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What Do You Think About Centennial Dam?

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Let NID know at Upcoming Public Meetings March 9th & 10th; Comments due April 18th

LEARN more about NID’s proposed Centennial Dam.
ATTEND NID’s scoping meetings on March 9th and 10th.
JOIN your community at a Public Process Orientation meeting.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, SUBMIT YOUR COMMENT LETTER BY APRIL 18TH

Centennial_Dam_Site_Map_LrgThe public now has 60 days to comment on Nevada Irrigation District’s (NID) plans to construct a new 275 foot-tall dam and 110, 000 acre foot reservoir on the Bear River between the existing Rollins and Combie Reservoirs.

While NID originally said the public would have only 30 days to comment on the Centennial Dam proposal, SYRCL and the Foothills Water Network (FWN) requested an additional 30-day extension for a total of 60 days. This week, NID agreed to extend the comment period to April 18, 2016. “We greatly appreciate NID’s extension, which will allow the public more time to understand NID’s proposal and submit informed comments,” said Caleb Dardick, SYRCL’s Executive Director. “It is very important that the community attends NID’s public Scoping Meetings next week and sends in comment letters before the April 18th deadline.”

The Centennial Dam proposal has many potentially significant environmental impacts listed in the Notice of Preparation (NOP). It’s up to concerned citizens to tell NID’s staff and consultants what they are most concerned about. Submitting letters, or speaking out at the Scoping Meetings, is the official way to be heard on the record.

SYRCL’s Statement on Centennial Dam:

SYRCL’s position is that in a time of record drought and climate change we need creative solutions to address our local water needs, and big, expensive dams are mostly a thing of the past. That’s why we are focused on water conservation and restoring headwater forests and meadows, which act like a sponge to hold clean water.

SYRCL is very concerned about Centennial Dam and has many questions about its potential negative impacts on the Yuba River.  Half of the South and Middle Yuba River water already gets diverted to the Bear River, and Centennial could demand more. SYRCL will educate its members about this proposed dam. We’ve let NID know we’re concerned and paying close attention. And as an organization founded to stop inappropriate dams, we are not going to stand by if the Yuba is threatened or if there are better ways for NID to meet its future water needs.

Submit Comments before April 18, 2016 to:

Lisa Francis Tassone, Board Secretary, NID
1036 W. Main Street
Grass Valley, CA 95945
Phone: 530-273-6185 ext. 2221, Fax: 530-477-2646
tassone@nidwater.com

NOTE: 
For emailed comments, please include “NOP scoping for Centennial Reservoir Project EIR” in the subject line.
FAQ & short guide to writing comment letters

Attend NID’s Public Scoping Meetings:

WHEN: Wednesday, March 9, 6:00-8:00pm
WHERE: Holiday Inn Express, 121 Bank Street, Grass Valley

WHEN:
Thursday, March 10, 6:00-8:00pm
WHERE: Forest Lake Christian High School, 12515 Combie Road, Auburn

SYRCL is actively engaged in closely monitoring NID’s proposal in coordination with our colleagues in the Foothills Water Network. SYRCL invites interested community members to engage in this process, especially during this critical environmental review phase of the project.

Please help us track the impact we are having by forwarding a copy of your letter to: Traci Sheehan, FWN Coordinator at traci@foothillswaternetwork.org. Please feel free to contact Traci to get on our mailing list or to get more involved with our coalition.

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