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How a Long-Shot Push to Remove Dams to Protect Wild Salmon Is Gaining Traction by Brian Bennett Time Magazine, October 22, 2021

Two powerful Democrats from the Pacific Northwest are launching a formal review to study the possibility of removing four hydropower dams currently in the path of wild salmon migrating between the Pacific Ocean and breeding grounds in Idaho's high mountain streams.

In an escalation of the fight over breaching the dams to save the salmon, Washington governor Jay Inslee and the state's senior senator Patty Murray, both Democrats, announced on Friday they are launching a process involving both Washington state and the federal government to propose ways to replace the benefits the four lower Snake River dams provide, should the dams be broken open to help save wild salmon in those waters.

The dams, built and run by the Army Corps of Engineers in Washington state, provide reliable, low-carbon energy to the Pacific Northwest and an efficient way to get grain to Pacific ports. But, as TIME explored in a Democrats haggle over the details of the accompanying bill of spending climate and social programs.

But adding to the momentum for proponents of taking out the dams, the Biden Administration on Thursday joined other litigants in asking an Oregon court to pause an ongoing court battle over the survival of salmon and steelhead trying to get around federal dams in the Pacific Northwest. The agreement, if accepted by the court, would stay the litigation until the end of July 2022, and would buy more time to study the question of broader solutions like removing dams, including the four at issue in Washington state. "While it is important to balance the region's economy and power generation, it is also time to improve conditions for Tribes that have relied on these important species since time immemorial," Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland said in a statement announcing the agreement.

Gov. Inslee and Sen. Murray are both approaching the question of whether large sections of the dams should be removed to help wild salmon with "open minds and without a predetermined decision," the leaders said in a statement they put out together on Friday. "We recognize the urgency of tackling this long standing challenge as salmon runs continue to decline," Inslee and Murray said. The two want to know if there are "reasonable means" to replace the benefits the dams currently provide and whether those steps would be "sufficient to support breach" of the dams as part of a strategy to recover wild salmon in the Pacific Northwest.

The two leaders want to make their recommendations public by the end of July 2022. "Every community in the Pacific Northwest knows the value and importance of our iconic salmon runs -- the time is now to take decisive action," Inslee and Murray said.

To come to a conclusion, Inslee will hire experts to collect and review existing scientific research and data. The two leaders will talk to communities in the Pacific Northwest and consult sovereign tribes that hold treaties with the U.S. government protecting their access to wild salmon, as well as businesses and farmers that use the dam system. They will also ask for written comments from the public.

While the review is going on, Murray intends to use her influential perch as a senior senator on the Senate Appropriations Committee to pressure Congress to include a requirement that the Army Corps of Engineers study breaching the dams as part of an upcoming funding bill. Such a study is typically ordered by Congress before a major action by the Army Corps is ordered. Murray will push for that requirement to be included in the upcoming 2022 Water Resources Development Act, a crucial bill that comes up every two years to fund the projects of the Army Corps.

"As Governor Inslee and Senator Murray work to provide recommendations for a salmon recovery strategy, this legislative action will importantly ensure that breaching remains on the table," the statement said.

Inslee and Murray statement on establishing solutions
for salmon recovery in the Columbia River Basin
October 22, 2021

Today U.S. Sen. Patty Murray and Gov. Jay Inslee issued the following joint statement on next steps as they pursue a joint federal-state process to establish a comprehensive solution for salmon recovery in the Columbia River Basin.

"Saving our salmon is absolutely essential to Washington state’s economy and cultural heritage -- it is an urgent undertaking that we are fully committed to. In May, we called for a regional process that ensures all voices in the region are heard and takes all options into consideration, including potential breaching of the Lower Snake River Dams. We also stated that we are ready to do our part to promptly achieve a solution.

"Today we are announcing a joint federal-state process to determine whether there are reasonable means for replacing the benefits provided by the Lower Snake River Dams, sufficient to support breach as part of a salmon recovery strategy for the Snake River and the Pacific Northwest. We approach this question with open minds and without a predetermined decision. Both of us believe that, for the region to move forward, the time has come to identify specific details for how the impacts of breach can, or cannot, be mitigated.

"We recognize the urgency of tackling this longstanding challenge as salmon runs continue to decline. Our recommendations will be completed by no later than July 31, 2022.

"We will not start this process from scratch -- we will build on the important data and previously conducted research on these topics to help guide the process. Between now and July, we will also engage in robust outreach to communities across the Pacific Northwest to solicit their views as part of this process. This will include close consultation and advisement by treaty-protected Tribes whose unique perspectives and sovereignty each of us deeply appreciates. We intend to consult with individuals and groups with a wide range of views on the question of dam breaching to ensure the needs of the entire region are addressed.

"As Sen. Murray and Gov. Inslee conduct the joint federal-state process in Washington state, in order to keep all options on the table in good faith, Sen. Murray will work in the other Washington to ensure key elements of a salmon recovery strategy are included as part of any Army Corps of Engineers strategy in the FY2022 Water Resources Development Act, including possible expert analysis by federal agencies of breaching as part of a solution.

"Without this critical step, options that may be essential to salmon restoration could be excluded from the most timely and viable federal legislative vehicle. "Every community in the Pacific Northwest knows the value and importance of our iconic salmon runs -- the time is now to take decisive action. We look forward to working with every community from every part of the Pacific Northwest and those on both sides of the aisle to finally establish a regional path forward to save the salmon."

...

The Water Resources Development Act is a biennial bill which serves as the primary authorizing legislation for civil works projects and programs carried out by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Sen. Murray will work to secure in the 2022 Water Resources Development Act an authorization of an analysis of the four Lower Snake River dam projects that will evaluate the costs and impacts of breach alongside other options. As Gov. Inslee and Sen. Murray work to provide recommendations for a comprehensive salmon recovery strategy, this legislative action will importantly ensure that breaching remains on the table: historically, work on any Army Corps of Engineers projects, including dams, has been preceded by a study. If Sen. Murray does not pursue action as part of this Water Resources Development Act cycle, the next opportunity to authorize such an analysis would be in 2024. Such an analysis is necessary to pursue an authorization for further action with the dams, potentially including breach, to be included in a future Water Resources Development Act.

(bluefish notes: Murray's proposed study is completely redundant to the one-year old Colombia River System Operations Environmental Impact Statement which specifically took a "hard look" at the breaching of the four Lower Snake River dams.)

The Joint Federal-State Process is the mechanism that Sen. Murray and Gov. Inslee will utilize to inform their recommendation on whether the Lower Snake River Dams should be breached or retained. Consultant and expert support will be retained by the governor’s office to help synthesize existing information regarding what is known about options to replace the benefits of the dams, if removed, and what remains unknown. This assessment will be reviewed with Tribal governments, river users and communities, and other affected groups representing a range of views regarding the four Lower Snake River Dams. The governor and senator will, as appropriate, conduct Tribal consultation and meet with parties representing a range of views regarding the four Lower Snake River Dams. Formal mechanisms for the public to submit written comment on the topic will be detailed at a future date. At the conclusion of the Joint Federal-State Process in July 2022, the governor and senator will present their recommendations, and engage with relevant parties on next steps.