🚨 California is about to spend $500 million to DESTROY a dam that supplies water to 600,000 people — in a fire-prone…

7 tweets1 min read♥ 20.7Koriginal

Summary

California plans to spend $500 million demolishing the Potter Valley Project dams that supply water to 600,000 residents, allegedly to protect fish populations. Critics argue the decision is driven by PG&E wanting to avoid maintenance costs and campaign donations to Governor Newsom and Congressman Huffman, while environmental groups provide political cover for the demolition.

Summarized by ThreadOut AI from the full thread. May miss nuance — read the thread below.

#1
🚨 California is about to spend $500 million to DESTROY a dam that supplies water to 600,000 people — in a fire-prone region. That's right — Gavin Newsom is making sure there's LESS water in a state that's short on water. ⬇️ You won’t believe this story. 1/🧵
#2
2/ The Potter Valley Project is a century-old water system that supplies Northern California towns from Potter Valley to Novato. It provides water for drinking, farming, and fire protection for 600,000 residents in Mendocino County. Newsom’s plan? Tear it down.
#3
3/ Why? PG&E, the longtime owner and operator of the dams, wants to shut them down to save on maintenance costs. They just so happen to be one of Newsom's largest campaign donors — so their wish usually becomes his command. But to make it happen, they needed a cover story.
#4
4/ Enter environmental groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Their agenda? Protecting PG&E's profits while selling the public on an environmental narrative that tearing down the dams will bring back fish populations — aka "freeing the river".
#5
6/ Jared Huffman, the Congressman representing this district has agreed to spearhead the closure of these dams. He just so happens to be a former lawyer for the NRDC. And guess who’s also backing him through tens of thousands in campaign contributions? PG&E.
#6
7/ But Huffman is just one part of the story. Governor Gavin Newsom has direct control over PG&E’s board, approving key decisions. And guess what? Newsom’s campaign coffers are filled with PG&E donations, too.
#7
8/ The result: PG&E gets to offload responsibility for the dams, environmental groups get another “win” to tout, and Newsom, Huffman & friends keep lining their pockets with PG&E cash. A win-win for them — and a loss for 600,000 residents about to lose a vital supply of water.