Editorial See Ulterior Motives in Recent Hetch Hetchy Discussion

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke met with Restore Hetch Hetchy and said he was intrigued by the different option to restore the "other" valley located in Yosemite National Park to its pre-dammed state.

This is not a new idea, however, as pointed out by the San Francisco Chronicle Editorial Board. "Taking out the dams, need it be repeated again, will cost $1 billion at the minimum in demolition work and new infrastructure elsewhere. This mainstay dam plays an indispensable part in California’s plumbing and energy systems," writes the Chronicle.

The editorial contends that Secretary Zinke's interest is not sincere, but rather a way to try to paint California lawmakers in an unsympathetic way with environmentalists, while the administration battles with California on other fronts.