Please consider a contribution to Restore Hetch Hetchy.
A longtime supporter of Restore Hetch Hetchy has generously offered to match contributions, up to $25,000, made during the week of Giving Tuesday. Contribute online or send a check, dated December 4 or before, to Restore Hetch Hetchy, 3286 Adeline St. Suite 7, Berkeley, California 94703.
At a time when our national parks are more popular than ever, Hetch Hetchy can be a new model. We can create a place where natural and cultural resources are truly honored, but without the congestion that too often diminishes the visitor experience.
At Restore Hetch Hetchy, we have been especially busy the last few months. We’ve adopted and begun to implement a strategic plan, invested in additional outreach to communities in and around Yosemite National Park, and are working closely with the National Park Service to improve access and recreation even with the dam in place. Finding Hetch Hetchy, our new rock climbing film, is due out very soon, and will help us tell our story to new audiences – climbers as well as all park lovers.
Opportunities for San Francisco to improve its water system, so it can sustain or improve water supply for its customers without Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, continue to expand. As legally mandated Groundwater Sustainability Plans are put into place, communities, including those along the lower Tuolumne River, will have additional incentive to recharge aquifers. Also, San Diego has embraced new recycling technology that will not only provide half of its water supply but will improve the quality of its beaches – technology that would not only allow Hetch Hetchy Valley to be restored but would improve water quality in San Francisco Bay.
Timmy O’Neill ascends Hetch Hetchy Dome, while Lucho Rivera watches from the portaledge below. Lucho and Timmy, like so many climbers, are passionate about Yosemite and great ambassadors for Hetch Hetchy’s restoration. (Photo: James Q Martin)
As we encourage economic growth in California, we should also make a commitment to cherish and sustain our natural heritage. I can think of no better way than restoring Hetch Hetchy Valley for our children and grandchildren.
John Garamendi, Congressman