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Breaching the Dams is Not a Silver Bullet Solution by John McKern Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, May 19, 2021

I called David (Welch),
a long-time friend, ...

David Welch, president and CEO of Kintama Research, recently published a report on salmon smolt to adult return rates, or SARs, for rivers from Alaska to California.

SARs for the Snake River, the subject of the dam-breaching hoax, were no worse than those of many rivers without dams. All are down due to ocean conditions.

I called David, a long-time friend, about the SARs used by fisheries and environmental groups to support breaching the dams. David confirmed that the SARs are a bogus measure of the success of fish survival or mitigation programs for the four dams.

That is because ocean harvest fluctuates widely depending on predicted returns from the ocean. In-river harvest is not accurately represented either below Bonneville or Lower Granite Dam, where the SARs are estimated. Therefore, SARs are a poor measure of the effects of the lower Snake River dams. For three decades, plaintiffs have been basing their claims on biased, data that misrepresents the facts.

Bonneville Power Administration funded the report. Sixty-eight so-called experts wrote letters to federal and state government representatives disclaiming Welch’s findings. David wrote a reply stating, in no uncertain terms, that breaching the dams is not the silver bullet solution they claim it to be.

Related Pages:
Increase Wild Fish Production, Reduce Harvest by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 12/23/20
Ending Super-Saturation Will Help Salmon by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 4/14/19
Supersaturation is Real Trouble for Salmon by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 12/27/18
Breaching Dams Won't Cool River Water by John McKern, Walla Walla Union Bulletin, 11/8/18
Blaming Snake River Dams for Orca Woes a Hoax by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 8/14/18
Judge, Court of Appeals Ignored Fish Facts by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 4/8/18
Ending Super-Saturation Will Help Salmon by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 10/18/17
View from Idaho on Dam Protection by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 8/1/17
Yes, Consider All Facts on Dam Breaching by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 6/30/17
McKern Letter: Salmon Runs by John McKern, Idaho Statesman, 1/2/16
Adult Salmon Survival Past Dams is 99 Percent by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 3/25/15
Hydropower Not Been Replaced by Wind Power by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 3/6/15
Environmentalists Try to Muddy Waters About Dredging by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 12/30/14
Talk of Breaching Snake River Dams a Red Herring by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 3/21/14
Blaming Dams for Fish Loss is a Hoax by John McKern, Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, 8/23/13
Judge Redden's Replacement Can't Be Worse by John McKern, Walla Walla Union Bulletin, 12/5/11
Science Does Not Support Dam Breaching by John McKern, Walla Walla Union Bulletin, 12/19/11