The Pine Flat Turbine Bypass, a $6 million project completed in the spring of 2003, helps to control the temperature of water being released from Pine Flat Reservoir into the Kings River when irrigation demands are too low to generate electricity. The turbine bypass benefits the cold-water fishery during low-flow periods of the year. Such conditions typically occur in the late summer and fall months.

The system of pipes, valves and support structures connecting the Jeff L Taylor Pine Flat Power Plant's three penstocks provide cooler water for the trout fishery downstream from the dam. The new plumbing can also be used to preserve remaining reserves of cold water in the reservoir under very dry conditions. Additionally, the turbine bypass efficiently takes care of dissolved oxygen needs downstream from the dam when the device is in use.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the federal agency that operates and maintains Pine Flat Dam, administered the project. The Corps, with support and legislative backing by Congress, pursued design and development of the turbine bypass as a modification of the original Pine Flat Project.

KRCD was the local cost-sharing sponsor, with financial support from the Kings River Water Association (KRWA), the California Department of Fish and Game and the California Department of Water Resources.

KRCD's Pine Flat Power Plant staff operates the turbine bypass throughout the year and releases water through the bypass as needed. At times during the late summer and fall months, extreme temperatures and low river flows require the Pine Flat staff to coordinate the bypass system and spill from the dam to regulate river temperatures. KRWA advises the staff on desired blending rates for these two methods of releasing water.