Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Project No. 5737

Project Name: Anderson Dam Hydroelectric Project, FERC 5737

Anderson Dam Anderson Dam
(Image from Valley Water’s Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project Environmental Impact Report.)

Applicant: Santa Clara Valley Water District
County: Santa Clara
Water Quality Certification Status: Application received on June 28, 2024
Waterbodies: Coyote Creek Anderson Reservoir

Project Description:
Anderson Dam impounds Coyote Creek, creating Anderson Reservoir in Morgan Hill, California. Anderson Dam was built in 1950 to provide additional water supply to Santa Clara County and is owned and operated by Santa Clara Valley Water District (Valley Water). Anderson Dam is part of the Anderson Dam Hydroelectric Project, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Project No. 5737, and impounds up to 90,373 acre-feet of water from approximately 195 square miles of the Coyote Creek watershed into Anderson Reservoir. The Project has an authorized installed generation capacity of 800 kilowatts (kW) and operates under a FERC small hydropower exemption.

Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project Background
In 2008, independent reviews determined that Anderson Dam was at risk of embankment instability due to seismic shaking and liquefaction. Valley Water initiated the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project (ADSRP) design in 2009 for the purpose of seismically retrofitting, maintaining, and operating Anderson Dam to meet safety requirements. In 2011, FERC and the California Department of Water Resources’ Division of Safety of Dams (DSOD) classified Anderson Dam as “High Hazard Potential” and required that Valley Water modify the existing dam and associated structures to reduce the risk of dam failure. On February 20, 2020, FERC ordered Valley Water to take immediate measures to reduce the risk of failure from an earthquake and a maximum probable flood event as much as possible until the full ADSRP could be implemented. To address this, Valley Water parsed out portions of the ADSRP to expedite permitting and construction of certain elements needed to achieve FERC’s urgent directive. This expedited retrofit project is referred to as the “FERC Order Compliance Project” (FOCP). The FOCP received a water quality certification on November 9, 2020, and is expected to be completed by 2026. Currently, Valley Water is proposing the ADSRP to remove and reconstruct Anderson Dam to meet public safety requirements, as well as surrender its existing FERC license exemption for the Anderson Dam Hydroelectric Project and decommission the existing hydroelectric facilities.

Related Documents

ADSRP

FOCP