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BPA: Refilling Dworshak Best for Salmon by Associated Press Commentary, Spokesman Review, February 10, 2001

Flows would increase in April and May, then summer

LEWISTON -- Endeavoring to refill northern Idaho's Dworshak Reservoir by summer and using Montana water for winter power demands is the best option to help migrating salmon, Bonneville Power Administration officials say.

They plan to skimp on spring flow augmentation from Dworshak and rely instead on water from Hungry Horse and Libby reservoirs, said Ed Mosey, spokesman for the federal power broker.

"We are trying to put the water where it's going to do the most good for fish. The biggest impact we can make for fish is in the summer," he said.

The idea is to keep the outflow at Dworshak on the Clearwater River at a minimum, about 1,300 cubic feet per second, for the rest of the winter. Flows to flush spring chinook to the ocean will be concentrated between April and May when more fish are in the system.

The remaining water would be saved for the summer to cool the Snake River and push young fall chinook to the ocean. Water used in the summer also is more valuable for power generation for air conditioners.

Mosey said the agency wants to avoid the need to purchase power on the open market, where prices have exploded.

National Marine Fisheries Service research indicates flow augmentation is better for young salmon traveling in the summer than for spring migrants. That is why the agency believes it is more important for Dworshak to refill than the Montana reservoirs, biologist Paul Wagner said.

But he added most of the studies on spring flow augmentation have been conducted during years of average or above-average flows.

Idaho Department of Fish and Game biologist Steve Pettit said history indicates spring flows are crucial to spring chinook. Each time there has been a low snowpack, it has resulted in low returns of adults two years later.

"The empirical data of 30 years of observation since the Snake River projects went online is all the evidence I need and my fellow salmon managers need to realize flows are very, very critical during spring migration."

Amid the wrangling over water, some worry the federal government is ignoring the states and tribes.

Nez Perce Tribal Chairman Samuel Penney said choosing electricity over salmon would be a violation of their treaty.

"The question is whether the costs of losing entire runs of salmon, for which millions of dollars have been spent for recovery, are outweighed by the risk of BPA being unable to meet power demands for one day in February or March," Penney said. "We do not think it is."

Penney said the tribe supports Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber's proposal to allow Bonneville to defer its debt payment to the federal treasury this year and use the money to buy power instead. But Mosey said the $700million to $800 million would not go far given the current prices for wholesale electricity.

"It just wouldn't buy that much power," he said. "The math is a little weak."