The Idaho Farm Bureau
supports keeping the Columbia and Snake River
waterways flowing. The
dams along the Columbia
and Snake River system
provide signifi cant economic and environmental
benefits to the Pacific
Northwest.
Idaho Congressman Bill
Sali has introduced House
Concurrent Resolution 184, which identifies the benefits of the Columbia and
Snake River system. The benefits (bluefish adds: of the combined Columbia/Snake system) are:
- The system provides renewable pollution-free power that does not contribute
"greenhouse" gases to the environment
as replacement power sources would.
Replacing the power generated by the
dams on the system would result in an
additional $400-550 million in costs to
consumers in the Pacific Northwest per
year.
(bluefish notes: $400 - 500 million in new generation would provide more power benefits than the Lower Snake Dams currently provide.)
- The inland water system transports $2
billion of agricultural goods annually for
export overseas. The total system barges
$15 billion annually in international trade.
Breaching the dams would eliminate the
ability to barge goods and would seriously
affect the region's economy. By shipping
products on the Columbia and Snake
River system, producers save $38 million
per year by avoiding more expensive land
based transportation, a savings which
keeps United States exports competitive in
world markets. The system replaces transportation capacity that would require the
use of 120,000 rail cars or 700,000 trucks.
(bluefish adds: replacing barges on the Snake would take 70,000 trucks. Also of note is that shippers do not compensate electricity ratepayers for about $1 million dollars of hydroelectricity lost to lock flushes at the Lower Snake Dams)
- The water collected in the Columbia and
Snake River system irrigates half the productive farmland in Oregon, Washington,
and Idaho.
(bluefish adds: 13 farms irrigate 36,000 to 37,000 acres with water pumped up from the Lower Snake Reservoirs. see pasco.htm)
- Improved fish hatchery processes have
resulted in the first successful run of coho
salmon on the Yakima River in three
decades. Survival of adult salmon and
steelhead at and between hydroelectric
dams is averaging 98 percent per dam and
reservoir and 91-98 percent for juvenile
fish passage. Salmon runs between 2001
and 2004 were some of the highest in history, with the dams in place.
(bluefish adds: for juvenile survival statistics see dampool.htm)
Without the flood control provided by the
dams, conditions like those seen in 1996
and 1997 would have resulted in an estimated $4.6 billion in flood damages.
(bluefish adds: the Lower Snake Dams do not provided flood control benefits and it is misleading to suggest that they do. Indeed, flooding risks have increased in Clarkston and Lewiston and the ACOE is studying alternatives to reduce the risk that is increasing yearly.)
In addition, breaching the four lower Snake
River dams would allow an annual sediment load of 3-4 million cubic yards to
be carried downstream to Lake Wallula,
where the majority of incoming sediment
would likely be deposited, and result in a
total release of 75 million cubic yards of
silt, exposing fish to increased toxins and
higher turbidity levels.
Since 1992, under two different presidential administrations from two different
political parties and at a cost of over $50
million to American taxpayers, there have
been at least five studies that have investigated dam removal and reservoir draw-down on the lower Snake River. Not one
recommended the implementation of dam
breaching or reservoir draw-downs.
We agree with Congressman Sali. Isn't it
about time we support science and common sense, close this expensive chapter,
and move on?
Rick Keller, CEO Idaho Farm Bureau Federation
Keep the Columbia and Snake River Waterways Flowing
Idaho Farm Bureau Quarterly, August 2007
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