DAM NOISE!
Joyce Kaufman moved to June Lake because it was a tranquil and quiet place, where cute A-frame houses are lined by pine trees and tucked into serene mountain vistas. But in the last decade, she’s become familiar with something less tranquil – the constant noise of helicopters.
This noise stems from Southern California Edison’s (SCE) ongoing operations associated with the Rush Creek Project, which includes dams on Agnew, Gem and Waugh Lakes. As the project enters its relicensing phase, community members like Kaufman are bracing for more disruptions from helicopter flights.
The operating license for the project is set to expire in 2027.
In anticipation, SCE has begun the relicensing process with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which is required under the Federal Power Act. This process involves extensive environmental studies, documentation and public input.
SCE’s most recent step in the process involved submitting a Draft Licensing Application (DLA) to FERC, with the final application due by the end of January, 2025. Last Thursday, SCE representatives provided an update at the June Lake Community Center on their studies for the application.
The meeting got pretty heated during the Q&A section, when community members had the opportunity to voice their concerns.
Historically, the three dams have provided water storage and recreational opportunities in the summer months and hydroelectric power generation during fall and winter.
But in 2007, a fault line was discovered near the facilities, raising concerns about the potential seismic hazard posed by the dams. FERC mandated that SCE take steps to ensure public safety by managing water levels and conducting structural modifications to the dams. This included implementing water storage restrictions at the reservoirs in 2012, followed by a series of structural upgrades between 2017-2018 and 2020-2021.
Throughout these upgrades, residents were subjected to frequent helicopter flights. According to Kaufman, these disruptions were “constant,” and the DLA suggests that more flights may occur in the future.
As part of the plan outlined in the DLA, SCE has decided the best path forward is to decommission two of the three dams and retrofit the remaining Gem Dam to meet seismic restrictions, including the construction of a new spillway and reducing the dam’s height.
These operations would require extensive helicopter flights.
For much of this activity, SCE has identified the June Mountain parking lot as its primary base of operations. This proposed use of the parking lot has raised concerns within the community.
Julie Brown, Vice President of Operations at June Mountain, said she had not yet been contacted by SCE, but expressed she was open to working with the utility.
“We’ve had multiple projects in our parking lot in the past, and we’ve worked well with Edison for projects that benefit the community,” she said.
June Mountain operates on a special use permit from the U.S. Forest Service. In order to use the parking lot for construction, SCE would need to apply for a second special use permit.
The operational space needed for SCE’s decomissioning project could conflict with June Mountain’s operations, but coordinating the details of that would mostly be between June Mountain and SCE, stated Lisa Cox, Inyo National Forest Public Affairs Officer in an email.
However, June Mountain does not have exlusive use of their permit area and the Inyo National Forest plans to work with SCE to determine the minimum necessary use of their equipment.
Local officials, including Mono County representatives, voiced concerns about the noise and disruption caused by the helicopter activity.
Scott Burns, former Community Decelopment Director and now a consultant, said that while the county does not have direct authority over SCE’s activities, it can provide feedback and advocate on behalf of the community.
To address these concerns, the county has provided public comment three times and suggested alternative locations for the base of operations, including sites away from the community. Burns said SCE has yet to present a full analysis of the pros and cons of these alternatives, leaving the community feeling somewhat in the dark.
“We feel we are under attack, under assault,” Kaufman said. “You provide all our electricity, but that doesn’t mean you have the right to treat us like this.”
Matt Woodhall, the SCE Project Lead, acknowledged the concerns and emphasized that the company is open to feedback.
“We understand there will be impacts,” Woodhall said. “We’ll do our best to minimize those, using varying flight paths and exploring opportunities to reduce the number of flights.”
SCE has made some efforts to reduce the number of flights over June so far.
For one thing, Woodhall said at the meeting they would try to use the flight path which least impacted the community as much as possible, when the wind patterns allow for a safe flight. And the number of flights altogether has lowered since their first project outline.
SCE initially planned to transport demolished materials down to June Lake via helicopter, June Lake resident Bob Marks said. However, after significant pressure from the community and comments from the county, SCE revised its plans. Instead of hauling all the debris down to the village, the company is now planning to process some of it on-site, which would reduce the number of helicopter flights.
As SCE moves forward with its relicensing application, the community has been given a window for public comment.
The comment period for the Draft Licensing Application is open until November 26, 2024, and residents are encouraged to voice their concerns. Following this period, SCE will review and address the comments before submitting the Final Licensing Application.
