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Salmon Progress in Jeopardy by Patty Ann Shadden Spokesman-Review, December 11, 2009

With the help of President Obama, the tide is turning in favor of environmental radicals who want to tear out the Snake River dams. His administration wants to consider removing dams--as a last resort--if other measures can't save the salmon. There has, however, been extraordinary progress in this area.

Obama's plan undoes the years of work that resulted in a bipartisan plan with broad-based support. That plan, by the way, has contributed to record salmon runs. We need to ask ourselves why, then, does the president even want to consider removing dams when the current salmon restoration efforts are clearly succeeding? And why would he consider removing dams when doing so would lead to an increase in carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and roads we'd have to build to take the place of the dams' generating and transportation capabilities?

Fortunately, our Eastern Washington representatives, Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Doc Hastings, are asking those tough questions--and will fight to save our dams.