Supreme Court Rejects Bid to Dismantle Hetch Hetchy

The California Supreme Court on Wednesday (Oct. 17) pounded yet another nail in the coffin of a misguided effort to tear down the system that provides clean water and power to 2.7 million Bay Area residents and businesses. The Bay Area Council has been a leading champion of protecting and enhancing the Hetch Hetchy clean water and power system against a fringe Berkeley group that has fought for years to tear it down. The group vowed to take their fight to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Council led the campaign with Sen. Dianne Feinstein and then-Mayor Ed Lee against a 2012 ballot initiative in San Francisco that would have opened the door to removing the Hetch Hetchy system. Dismantling Hetch Hetchy would cost an estimated $10 billion, wreak untold environmental damage and threaten the reliability of the region’s main water source. To engage in the Council’s water policy work, please contact Vice President Adrian Covert.