The Potter Valley dams are coming down

MENDOCINO CO., 5/1/26 — The Potter Valley Project, a century-old hydropower complex in Mendocino County, is on its way to the recycle bin. PG&E filed last summer to surrender its federal license. Two dams — Scott and Cape Horn — are coming down. The Eel River water rights pass to the Round Valley Indian Tribes for the first time in a century.

Now a Riverside County water district 600 miles to the south says it might want to buy a piece. The Trump administration is backing the bid. What the district actually wants — water, electricity, or both — is the question. And the district isn’t answering it.