REDWOOD NEEDLES Presented by the Sierra Club Redwood Chapter Newsletter, The REDWOOD NEEDLES Return to Article Menu Restore Hetch Hetchy by Ron Good, Chair of the Sierra Club's Hetch Hetchy Restoration Task Force In 1987, following Secretary of the Interior Donald Hodel's proposal to restore Hetch Hetchy Valley, the Sierra Club's Board of Directors reaffirmed its "historic and fundamental opposition to the damming of the Tuolumne River in Yosemite National Park," and called upon "all interests to take an open minded, long view of this issue, and to study and assess alternatives to meeting their needs and concerns through alternative sources of water, power and revenues." The Sierra Club, therefore, believes that Hetch Hetchy Valley should be restored to its natural condition to allow "one of nature's rarest and most precious mountain temples" to be available for public enjoyment, to be reintegrated into its natural ecological system, and to provide for scientific exploration. In addition, Hetch Hetchy Valley should be restored in order to preserve the integrity and inviolate status of our National Parks. As a 1988 report prepared by the Bureau of Reclamation for the National Park Service states: "Such restoration would renew the national commitment to maintaining the integrity of the national park system and keep in perpetual conservation an irreplaceable and unique natural area." WHAT YOU CAN DO The Sierra Club's Hetch Hetchy Restoration Task Force is spearheading the renewed effort to restore Hetch Hetchy Valley. Your involvement is welcomed. Please visit the Sierra Club's Restore Hetch Hetchy webpage, which includes our Action Plan for restoring Hetch Hetchy, along with photographs and paintings of Hetch Hetchy. The webpage is: http://www.sierraclub.org/chapters/ca/hetchhetchy. For further information, please contact Ron Good, Chair of the Sierra Club's Hetch Hetchy Restoration Task Force, P.O. Box 289, Yosemite, CA 95389; (209) 372-8785; e-mail: rongood@inreach.com.   Return to Article Menu Last updated on 12/01/99 Comments or suggestions? Drop us a line at heyneedles@aol.com