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Agencies File Fish Protection Plan by Staff BPA Journal, June 2010

Agencies file fish protection plan Four federal agencies, including BPA, recently completed and filed with the U.S. District Court of Appeals a supplement to the 2008 Biological Opinion on operating the federal hydropower system to protect endangered salmon and steelhead.

"The region should be proud of what the federal government, states, tribes and communities together have accomplished for fish," said NOAA Fisheries, lead agency for the filing. "The 2010 Supplemental BiOp is legally and biologically sound, and provides strong protection for Northwest salmon and steelhead."

Judge James Redden had encouraged the federal agencies to revisit and supplement the 2008 BiOp in a voluntary remand to formally incorporate actions developed last fall by the Obama administration in an Adaptive Management Implementation Plan. The remand also reviewed and adjusted the 2008 BiOp to make sure it reflects the latest scientific information and fresh consultation with federal and independent scientists. The voluntary remand is the latest step in Columbia River salmon litigation that has been in court since 1993.

The three-month review found that, two years into its implementation, the BiOp remains consistent with the new information that has emerged, including updated adult salmon return data, new information on cormorant predation on fish and more details on the possible biological effects of climate change on Columbia River salmon and steelhead. The supplement includes several additional actions to more carefully track and mitigate the potential impacts of climate change, such as a regional water temperature database.

For more information, go to www.salmonrecovery.gov.