Amador County – The nonprofit Foothill Conservancy filed a lawsuit in Amador County Superior Court Thursday seeking to stop the expansion of the Pardee Reservoir, being pursued by the East Bay Municipal Utility District. Foothill Conservancy Executive Director Chris Wright announced the lawsuit in a release November 18th. The suit seeks “to protect the Mokelumne River from the proposed expansion of Pardee Reservoir” in Amador County, a project that is included in the East Bay MUD “2040 water plan.” The suit was filed jointly with two other organizations, including California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, whose Executive Director Bill Jennings called East Bay MUD “a municipal vampire” that has “spurned reasonable alternatives that would have assured its customers of a reliable water supply.” The other plaintiff is Friends of the River. John Tinkl of the Calaveras Community Action Project said a new Pardee Dam “would be a disaster for the region's recreation, economy and scenic beauty,” and it “flies in the face of other options that could meet potential water needs but not harm” the region. Wright said the suit “is only the second lawsuit Foothill Conservancy has filed in its 20-year history.” He said it “is such an important issue, and people care so much about this river,” they had to do it, and hoped “people who care about the Mokelumne will donate to help cover (their) legal expenses.” Wright said the “lawsuit seeks to overturn the Environmental Impact Report on which the water plan and reservoir expansion are based.” He said the EIR included “one expansion option that would flood the entire Middle Bar reach of the Mokelumne River and up to a mile of the Electra Run above Highway 49.” Wright said the East Bay utility’s board voted October 13th to approve the 2040 Plan, which “retained 4 alternatives for a new Pardee Dam, 3 of which would destroy the Middle Bar reach and historic 1912 Middle Bar Bridge.” Wright said the Mokelumne River, which feeds Pardee Reservoir, “is not the property of East Bay MUD, and they are not above the law.” He said the EIR “doesn’t comply with the California Environmental Quality Act” by “failing to adequately analyze and mitigate the impacts on Amador and Calaveras counties from the new Pardee Dam.” The case also alleges East Bay MUD “inadequately responded to concerns” and ignored testimony from public hearings in Sutter Creek, San Andreas and Oakland. The suit asks the court to set aside approval of the 2040 water plan. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.