The Biden Administration has unveiled a plan dedicating $1 billion in federal funding to resolve a longtime Snake River salmon population dispute. This more-specific “Fact Sheet” about the project follows a previous Presidential memorandum released in late September asking federal agencies to prioritize the restoration of native fish populations in the Columbia River Basin.
“The Biden-Harris Administration has made an unprecedented commitment to honor the United States’ obligations to Tribal Nations and protect and restore America’s natural wonders for future generations, while also recognizing the important benefits that the Columbia River System provides to communities and businesses throughout the region,” said a White House press release. “The Biden-Harris Administration has made an unprecedented commitment to honor the United States’ obligations to Tribal Nations and protect and restore America’s natural wonders for future generations, while also recognizing the important benefits that the Columbia River System provides to communities and businesses throughout the region.”
The Administration developed the three-pronged Columbia Basin Restoration Initiative in conjunction with major Tribal Nations in the Pacific Northwest, environmental groups and state agencies in Washington and Oregon. The billion-dollar plan will fund fish restoration efforts, tribal clean energy projects, and studies looking to implement changes to four federal hydro-power operations.
While not yet calling to remove the dams, the studies will explore how to offset impacts from the potential breach of four dams along the lower Snake River, which the Biden-Harris Administration inextricably links to the depletion fish populations in the Basin, saying:
“Wild salmon, steelhead, and other native fish populations in the Columbia River Basin are essential to the culture, economy, religion, and way of life of Tribal Nations and Indigenous peoples. Due to the Federal government’s construction and operation of Federal dams, private dam building, population growth, and other factors, wild populations of many salmon and steelhead species are severely depleted, substantially harming the Tribes that rely on them [...] Since the Federal dams were constructed, 13 salmon and steelhead species have been listed as threatened or endangered, and none have recovered.”
In addition to the project, all parties agreed to halt current litigation through December 2028 with the possibility of extending that gag order for an additional five years.
