Water agency concerned if Tahoe wilderness area expands
By Rocklin and Roseville Today
AUBURN — A campaign proposing to expand the Granite Chief Wilderness Area by more than 10,000 acres west of Lake Tahoe has raised concerns at the Placer County Water Agency.
In a report to the PCWA Board of Directors on Nov. 21, Director of Resource Development Andy Fecko and natural resources consultant Marie Davis said the area proposed for expansion includes the watershed above Hell Hole and French Meadows reservoirs, which are major features of the agency’s Middle Fork project.
The project supplies water to significant portions of Placer County and produces enough hydroelectric energy to power a community of over 100,000 homes.
A wilderness designation is the most restrictive land management strategy available on federal lands. No vehicle, helicopter or other motorized access, forestry and fuel load management operations, or land improvements are permitted, and fire management activities are severely limited in such areas.