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"Expend Significant Resources to Comply with the
by Bonneville Power Administration
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Compliance requirements
Endangered Species
The Federal Columbia River Power System Biological Opinion/s (BiOp) is the federal plan for operating 13 mainstem hydroelectric dams while protecting Endangered Species Act (ESA) listed salmon and steelhead on the Columbia and Snake rivers. Since 2001, the FCRPS BiOps (2000, 2004, 2008 and 2010 Supplemental) have been in litigation. Under the plan, flows, spills and dam operations are provided for fish spawning, rearing and migration. While the most recent Federal District Court decision left the 2008/2010 BiOp in place through 2013, the Court remanded the BiOp back to the Federal agencies to produce a new Biological Opinion in 2014 that evaluates actions that are "reasonably certain to occur" post-2013. BPA and the other federal agencies (NOAA Fisheries, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation) will expend significant resources to comply with the performance requirements of the current BiOp while also embarking on an intensive effort with the region to specify actions to improve salmon habitat and evaluate their associated biological benefits. However, the continued lack of clarity about what will be required of hydro power system operations in the future is a significant uncertainty and will continue to create challenges for planning future power production, cost and revenue levels for the agency.
bluefish: That's All Folks!
Full
report with other stuff at original site.
NOAA Fisheries graphics here.
Related Pages:
Compare with Survival of Downstream Migration Data from Draft 2000 FCRPS Biological Opinion, Appendix B by National Marine Fisheries Service 12/21/2000
Survival of Snake River Salmon & Steelhead Data compiled July 2004 by www.bluefish.org
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