Council Panel Hears Details On $1 Billion ‘Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement,’ Extent Of ‘Collaboration’ Questioned

A December, 2023 agreement among six Northwest sovereigns and the U.S. government to restore Columbia River basin salmon and steelhead runs to “healthy and abundant levels” and touted by advocates as a collaborative effort to restore salmon runs in the basin, was questioned this week at the Northwest Power and Conservation Council meeting in Portland.

The agreement, currently known as the Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement (formerly called the Columbia Basin Restoration Initiative), was the result of behind-the-scenes negotiations among the six sovereigns – the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and the Nez Perce Tribe, and the states of Oregon and Washington – and the U.S. government.

After representatives from the sovereigns gave an overview of the nearly $1 billion agreement to the Council’s Fish and Wildlife Committee on Tuesday, Jan. 14, Idaho Council member Ed Schriever said the agreement that left out of the negotiations two Northwest states that have a stake in salmon recovery was anything but collaborative.

“You say its collaborative and that everyone can participate, but Idaho and Montana struggle,” Schriever said. “You write the rules and expect everyone to agree.”

The agreement was the outcome of a pause in litigation that initially challenged a 2020 Columbia River System Operations Environmental Impact Statement and a Record of Decision by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Bonneville Power Administration and the Bureau of Reclamation, as well as a biological opinion on the effects of the federal power system on salmon and steelhead by NOAA Fisheries, all released at the same time. The Columbia River power system BiOp had been litigated numerous times since 2001.

The litigation that was filed in the federal District Court of Oregon was stayed or administratively terminated in 2021, which allowed all parties to engage in mediated discussions.

Plaintiffs in the legal challenge were American Rivers, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Institute For Fisheries Resources, Sierra Club, Idaho Rivers United, Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association, NW Energy Coalition, National Wildlife Federation, Columbia Riverkeeper, Idaho Conservation League the state of Oregon and the Spokane Tribe of Indians. Attorneys were from Earthjustice.

The outcome of these discussions was a Memorandum of Understanding – the Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement — with the Six Sovereigns and the National Wildlife Federation plaintiffs. The RCBA provided for a stay of litigation on the CRSO EIS, ROD and related biological opinions for up to 10 years and includes agreed upon operations at Columbia River dams. Earthjustice called the RCBA a “comprehensive plan to restore the basin’s native fisheries.”

“Sue and settle provides the opportunity for collaboration, but only among yourselves,” Schriever said. “And, it seems the prep work seems to be following the same pattern.”

However, the representatives of the collaboration speaking at the Council meeting stressed an urgency to move forward on recovery of Columbia basin salmon and steelhead.

“We understand your concerns,” said Jim McKenna, Columbia River Federal Affairs Advisor to Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek. “What came out of this is a framework to move this all forward. You call this a veto power; I see it as making sure we recover the fish.”

“From Washington’s perspective as a friend of the court, we thought we weren’t getting far enough on recovery,” said Michael Garrity, Special Assistant for Columbia River Policy for the state of Washington. He added that 25 years of litigation hadn’t produced a solution and that there is now an urgency to do something more. “We hope that conversations like this will bring people along.”

As the largest salmon-producing river in the lower 48 states, the run of salmon and steelhead into the river once tallied 10 to 18 million fish. Now the annual run is just 1 to 2 million, with only about 250,000 that are natural (wild) spawners. Of the historical runs, the Council has estimated the hydroelectric system accounts for the loss of 5 to 11 million salmon and steelhead, said Jay Hesse, Director of Biological Services for Nez Perce Tribe. The Council’s interim goal is for 5 million salmon and steelhead to return to the river each year by 2025. “That’s this year,” he said.

Snake River salmon are in crisis, Hesse said. As the largest tributary, the Snake contains the largest accessible amount of pristine, protected habitat remaining in the Columbia Basin, yet wild salmon and steelhead from the Snake River Basin are in dire straits.

As of 2021, 42 percent of Snake River spring/summer Chinook populations have natural origin spawner abundances at or below the Quasi-Extinction Threshold of less than 50 returning spawners per year; and 19 of Snake River steelhead are at or below the QET, he said.

Developing the RCBA was a response to the urgency of recovering these salmon, he said. It is building on other basin initiatives, including:

— Columbia Basin Partnership Task Force Goals

— Columbia Basin Initiative – Rep. Mike Simpson

— Sen. Murray / Gov. Inslee Lower Snake River Benefit Replacement Report and Recommendations

— Biden Administration government-to-government consultations with Columbia Basin Tribes

— Mediation and Biden Administration efforts to resolve 30+ years of hydrosystem litigation

— NOAA Fisheries 2022 Report on Rebuilding Interior Columbia Salmon and Steelhead.

Hesse went on to say that the RCBS is intended as a roadmap to help the Six Sovereigns and the U.S. government work in partnership and with others in the region to “halt the decline” by restoring Columbia Basin fisheries to “healthy and abundant levels, honor commitments to Tribal Nations, and deliver affordable and reliable clean power while meeting the many resilience needs of stakeholders in the Columbia River basin and the Pacific Northwest.”

Among the strategies of the RCBA are to:

Significantly increase funding for restoration to levels sufficient to address identified mitigation needs and obligations and support “healthy and abundant” fisheries recovery goals. That includes about $530 million in new fish restoration and mitigation funds for 10 years, beginning in fiscal year 2023, as well as a commitment from BPA to maintain current levels of funding for its fish and wildlife and fish accord programs. In addition, it includes an agreement to seek additional non-rate-payer funds from Congress to at least double available resources for native fish restoration projects in the Columbia Basin, and a government commitment to fund tribal clean energy production. BPA agreed to pay $100M for 10yrs for Columbia Basin fisheries restoration

Fully fund hatcheries. Address the significant backlog of authorized and recommended, but historically underfunded, actions necessary for the safe and effective operation of critical fisheries infrastructure, assets, and programs. BPA along with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will fund $200 million for Lower Snake River Compensation hatchery programs,

Replace the benefits of the lower Snake River dams with due urgency to enable breaching to move forward, and ensure interim fish measures are adequate to minimize additional generational decline of fish populations.

Implement the Upper Columbia United Tribes’ Phase Two Implementation Plan to reintroduce and provide passage of anadromous species above Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee dams. BPA will pay $200 million for 20 years to help reintroduce salmon into the reaches of the Columbia River upstream of Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee dams.

Establish a long-term biological performance monitoring and reporting program to measure progress and support accountability towards the qualitative and quantitative recovery and abundance goals identified in the Columbia Basin Partnership Phase II Report.

Also presenting to the Council for the six sovereigns were: Kate Marckworth, Senior Attorney for the Yakama Nation, Eric Quaempts, Director of Natural Resources for the Umatilla Tribe and Lyman Jim, Fisheries Department Manager for the Warm Springs Tribe.

For background, see:

— CBB, December 22, 2024, AGENCIES TAKING ANOTHER LOOK AT 2020 EIS DETAILING IMPACTS OF COLUMBIA/SNAKE RIVER FEDERAL HYDROSYSTEM ON IMPERILED SALMONIDS, HTTPS://COLUMBIABASINBULLETIN.ORG/AGENCIES-TAKING-ANOTHER-LOOK-AT-2020-EIS-DETAILING-IMPACTS-OF-COLUMBIA-SNAKE-RIVER-FEDERAL-HYDROSYSTEM-ON-IMPERILED-SALMONIDSAGENCIES-TAKING-ANOTHER-LOOK-AT-2020-EIS-DETAILING-IMPACTS-OF-COLUMBIA-SNAK/

— CBB, December 22, 2024, COUNCIL SHOWS TOTAL SALMON/STEELHEAD RETURN NUMBERS TO COLUMBIA RIVER THROUGH THE YEARS SHORT OF GOAL; ESA-LISTED FISH CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE, HTTPS://COLUMBIABASINBULLETIN.ORG/COUNCIL-SHOWS-TOTAL-SALMON-STEELHEAD-RETURN-NUMBERS-TO-COLUMBIA-RIVER-THROUGH-THE-YEARS-SHORT-OF-GOAL-ESA-LISTED-FISH-CONTINUE-TO-STRUGGLE/

— CBB, December 9, 2024, SHIFTING CURRENTS IN COLUMBIA/SNAKE RIVER SALMON RECOVERY: EFFORTS TO SAVE SNAKE RIVER FISH RUNS LIKELY TO LOOK DIFFERENT UNDER TRUMP, HTTPS://COLUMBIABASINBULLETIN.ORG/SHIFTING-CURRENTS-IN-COLUMBIA-SNAKE-RIVER-SALMON-RECOVERY-EFFORTS-TO-SAVE-SNAKE-RIVER-FISH-RUNS-LIKELY-TO-LOOK-DIFFERENT-UNDER-TRUMP/

–CBB, June 21, 2024, Administration Report Describes Harm Of Dams To Columbia Basin Tribes, White House Sets Up Task Force To Coordinate Basin Salmon Recovery, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/administration-report-describes-harm-of-dams-to-columbia-basin-tribes-white-house-sets-up-task-force-to-coordinate-basin-salmon-recovery/

–CBB, Feb. 9, 2024, Federal Judge Approves Years-Long Pause On Basin Salmon Recovery Litigation So Parties Can Pursue Tribal-States-Feds Restoration Plan, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/federal-judge-approves-years-long-pause-on-basin-salmon-recovery-litigation-so-parties-can-pursue-tribal-states-feds-restoration-plan/

–CBB, Dec. 15, 2023, Biden Administration, Two States, Treaty Tribes Reach MOU On Columbia River Basin Salmon Recovery, Litigation Paused For At Least Five Years, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/biden-administration-two-states-treaty-tribes-reach-mou-on-columbia-river-basin-salmon-recovery-litigation-paused-for-at-least-five-years/

— CBB, August 23, 2022, NOAA SAYS NO CHANGE NEEDED TO ESA-LISTING STATUS OF INTERIOR COLUMBIA RIVER BASIN SALMON/STEELHEAD; TWO POPULATIONS FACE HIGH EXTINCTION RISK, HTTPS://COLUMBIABASINBULLETIN.ORG/NOAA-SAYS-NO-CHANGE-NEEDED-TO-ESA-LISTING-STATUS-OF-INTERIOR-COLUMBIA-RIVER-BASIN-SALMON-STEELHEAD-TWO-POPULATIONS-FACE-HIGH-EXTINCTION-RISK/

— CBB, July 15, 2022, White House Issues Reports On Basin Salmon Recovery, Costs; ‘Business As Usual’ Not Restoring ESA-Listed Salmon, Steelhead, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/white-house-issues-reports-on-basin-salmon-recovery-costs-business-as-usual-not-restoring-esa-listed-salmon-steelhead/