From American Rivers:
The Bear River, a tributary of the Feather River in California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains, is threatened by a proposed 275-foot dam that would flood six miles of free-flowing river that are vital to the local community. This flood zone includes some of the most popular recreation sites in the area, as well as numerous native Nisenan village sites and burial grounds and the last stretch of free-flowing river available to the public.
The Centennial Dam is billed as a solution to meet future demand under climate change, but the Nevada Irrigation District has not promoted good water conservation and efficiency measures and has not involved local communities in the decision-making process for how to best meet future needs.
Using climate change to justify new big dams is a bad precedent, especially at the expense of local communities and ecosystems. There are better alternatives that should be looked at first, like water conservation and efficiency. New dams should be the last alternative considered, not the first.
