The Upper Tuolumne River Ecosystem Program: November 2010

Monday, November 1, 2010

Yosemite Nature Notes: Glaciers

The newest installment of Yosemite Nature Notes by Steve Bumgardner is now on YouTube. This latest episode focuses on the Maclure and Lyell glaciers, which form the headwaters of the Tuolumne River, and features Greg Stock (Park Geologist with Yosemite National Park), Pete Devine (Naturalist at the Yosemite Conservancy), and mountain guide Josh Helling.

About the Program

The Tuolumne River is located on the west slope of the Sierra Nevada in central California. With headwaters in Yosemite National Park, the Tuolumne flows westward 150 miles to its confluence with the San Joaquin River in California's Central Valley.

The Upper Tuolumne River Ecosystem Program (UTREP) is a collaborative, long-term, science-based river management program led by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC).

The UTREP monitors river ecosystem conditions and develops recommendations for river management downstream of Hetch Hetchy Project facilities to support broad river ecosystem values, while maintaining water supply reliability for 2.6 million San Francisco Bay Area customers and providing clean hydropower for San Francisco municipal facilities.

Scientific collaborators include Yosemite National Park, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, Stanislaus National Forest, consultants, researchers, and academics.

STATUS: UTREP efforts are currently focused on technical review and revision of the O'Shaughnessy Dam Instream Flow Management Plan and routine annual monitoring.