Condit dam on White Salmon River |
White Salmon River Campaign
During an eight year campaign to restore the White Salmon River, FoE was instrumental in establishing the biological, engineering, social, economic, and legal grounds for removing Condit Dam. Our coalition ultimately persuaded the dam owner that dam removal is more cost-effective that trying to upgrade and continue operating this aging project. Built in 1913, Condit Dam has no fish ladders or other means for salmon to get over the dam, severely degrading the ecosystem of this federally-designated Wild and Scenic River. This settlement agreement avoids a costly, protracted legal battle over the future of Condit Dam while restoring salmon to the White Salmon River for the first time in more than 80 years. PacifiCorp is allowed to operate the dam for 7 more years to generate funds to help offset dam removal costs. Condit Dam will then be removed and the natural river channel restored, funded by the dam owner. This landmark settlement is currently awaiting approval by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the government agency responsible for overseeing privately owned power dams. The White Salmon River Flowing south from the slopes of Mount Adams, the White Salmon River once teemed with steelhead, coho and chinook salmon. Low in the Columbia River basin, where conditions are optimal for migrating anadromous fish, the White Salmon River's salmon and steelhead were once so abundant that they supported the inhabitants of two native villages. From Mt. Adams, the river flows 45 miles to its confluence with the Columbia River. The White Salmon drainage is an area of approximately 400 square miles and is located on the cusp between the wet coastal and dry continental climates. The river's glacial beauty prompted Congress to designate it under both the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area Act. The White Salmon valley provides a rare corridor for numerous wildlife species from alpine tundras and upland forests down to the banks of the Columbia River. The river offers a rare corridor of scenery, geology, plants, wildlife and multicultural history. The White Salmon River also provides incredible recreational opportunities. This is one of the only rivers in the region that has Class III rapids in a natural setting, and Class IV-V in a natural, remote gorge and is runnable for most of the year. The whitewater boating experience ends abruptly, however, at Northwestern Lake, an artificial consequence of Condit dam. The White Salmon River is within the area ceded to the United States by the Yakama Tribe. The Yakama Tribe reserved an interest in the fishery resources within their ceded area in their treaty with the United States. The White Salmon River also provides recruitment stock to the reach of the Columbia River, which is subject to the Treaty-reserved rights of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation, the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation, and the Nez Perce Tribe. Condit Dam The Condit Hydroelectric Project is a 14-megawatt project is located on the White Salmon River in southwestern Washington. Owned by PacifiCorp, the dam is 471 feet long, 125 feet high, with a 125-foot spillway. The project was built in 1913 and is located three miles upstream from the confluence of the White Salmon and Columbia Rivers about 60 miles east of Portland, Ore. It is the only man-made impoundment along the river's 45 miles, from its source on Mt. Adams to the Columbia River. The dam is a complete barrier to all ocean-migrating fish. Two early attempts to construct fish passage for migrating salmon shortly after the dam was built construction washed away within a few years and were never rebuilt. As a result of gravel loss and low flows caused by the dam, very little natural salmon production occurs downstream of Condit Dam. Discharge from the powerhouse attracts and injures what few salmon and steelhead remain in the lower river. And flow fluctuations resulting from power peaking operations at the dam cause stranding of juvenile fish and disturb adult spawning. The White Salmon River's once abundant fish runs are in deep trouble. The American Fisheries Society found that the river's wild salmon and steelhead runs are at high risk of extinction, due in large part to Condit Dam. The dam also segregates the river's scenic areas from one another, and prevents the integration of the river's fish, wildlife, recreational, and aesthetic resources. Condit Dam was construction prior to enactment of the Federal Power Act (which requires licenses for hydroelectric dams), so it wasn't until 1968 that the federal government issued a 25 year license for the project as an already-operating facility. In 1989 PacifiCorp began the process seeking a new operating license for Condit in anticipation of the original license expiring. That licensing process is intended to determine whether to relicense the dam, and if so, what terms and conditions for operating the dam would be required. Since 1982, the Northwest Power Planning Council's Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program has called for PacifiCorp to provide fish passage at Condit dam to help restore the anadromous fish runs. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is the agency responsible for making the licensing decision. In October 1996, FERC issued a final Environmental Impact Statement for the project that called for PacifiCorp to install fish ladders and other measures to allow fish to migrate past the dam. These and other license conditions would have cost $30 million or more of license conditions. The company argued that these conditions would make the project uneconomic to operate over the life of a new license, primarily because of the required fish passage facilities. Dam Removal In 1992, Friends of the Earth and a broad coalition of environmental, fishing and recreation groups intervened in the FERC licensing process for Condit Dam. In conjunction with the Yakama Indian Nation and the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, we called for removal of Condit Dam and restoration of the White Salmon River as a fully-integrated ecosystem. Time is running out for the river and the fish. Wild spring chinook in the White Salmon River are now extinct, and the river's three other wild anadromous fish runs (fall chinook, summer and winter steelhead) are on the brink of extinction. Fisheries biologists at the National Marine Fisheries Service have stated that dam removal is "the most fail-safe method to safely pass fish through the project area." Dam removal is the "optimum means for anadromous fish to access their historical range," as mandated by the Northwest Power Planning Council's Fish & Wildlife Program. In addition, aquatic species other than salmon and steelhead (trout, sturgeon, eel) will benefit from unimpeded passage and water quality and flow improvements that come with dam removal. Dam removal will also permanently eliminate water quality problems related to dam operations. And spawned-out salmon will become an additional, nutrient-rich food source for wildlife frequenting upper reaches of the sub-basin, including bears, ospreys (a state-monitored species), and bald eagles (a federally-listed species). Dam removal and bringing back White Salmon anadromous fish stocks will help to restore continually eroding Native American treaty rights. The Yakama Nation lost several significant treaty-protected fishing sites -- including the site at Husum Falls - when salmon migration was blocked over 80 years ago. Restoration and enhancement of upstream wildlife habitat will also help to restore the Yakama Nation's treaty-protected hunting and gathering rights in the White Salmon watershed. Condit Dam removal will add over 5 contiguous miles of whitewater runs for commercial and non-commercial whitewater boating, benefitting local guides and outfitters. Restoration of the salmon fishery will benefit businesses dependent upon commercial and sports fishing. And while the negative impacts of Condit Dam are huge, the amount of electricity generated at the dam is quite small. PacifiCorp can easily replace the output from Condit dam with cost-effective, less damaging sources of power. Once the dam is removed the White Salmon watershed can be restored and managed as a fully-integrated and federally-protected river from headwaters to mouth. In addition, dam removal will improve public safety downstream of the dam as sudden and large flow fluctuations resulting from project operations will no longer be a danger. Beneficiaries include Native Americans who use the in-lieu tribal fishing site at Underwood and instream recreationists who frequent the riparian corridor downstream of the project. Settlement Agreement Following FERC's determination in 1996 that PacifiCorp must install ladders and other fish passage measures if Condit Dam was to be relicensed, the environmental coalition, Native American tribes, federal and state fisheries agencies and the company began exploring settlement possibilities to resolve the deep conflicts surrounding the Condit Dam licensing process. In January 1997, all parties petitioned FERC to halt the licensing proceedings for Condit and we entered in to settlement discussions over possible dam removal options. The feasibility of dam removal was the central issue of the talks, particularly whether it could be accomplished at a substantially lower cost than a new license. Settlement discussions also focused on potential methods and costs of removing the dam, as well as addressing short-term impacts associated with removal. Friends of the Earth staff were key participants in those negotiations, providing important technical expertise on several issues, including dam removal and sediment management. In September 1999, all parties reached a final settlement agreement. The agreement calls for the company to stop generating electricity at the project after seven years - October 2006 - and for the dam and the water conveyance system to be removed. During the seven-year period, funds generated by the project operations will go toward dam removal, engineering, permitting, a fisheries enhancement fund and a fund to enhance a traditional Indian fishing site at the mouth of the White Salmon River. The overall costs will not exceed $17.15 million. Of this: The settlement agreement was submitted to FERC for approval. It is anticipated that FERC will amend PacifiCorp's current license that will allow it to continue operating until the dam is removed in 2006. If FERC rejects the settlement agreement or modifies it, all parties will ask FERC to stay the proceedings to allow time for the parties to negotiate changes to the settlement. If the amended license is ultimately rejected, the relicensing proceeding will be restored to the status quo prior to reaching the settlement, meaning FERC would issue a license with conditions for the project. An engineering plan, agreed to by all parties, has been developed that identifies how removal will be accomplished. During the fall of 2006, a large hole will be drilled in the base of the dam, and through it the reservoir will be drained fairly rapidly. Most of the sediment will be flushed when the dam is breached. The canyon where the reservoir is located will consist of bare rock and soils although vegetation is expected to rejuvenate rapidly. The dam will be taken down in pieces, and the water flowline, surge tank and penstocks will be removed. The historic powerhouse will remain. |
