Volume 147, No. 59 covering the 1st Session of the 107th Congress (2001 - 2002) was published by the Congressional Record.
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“COLUMBIA BASIN SALMON RECOVERY PLAN” mentioning the Environmental Protection Agency was published in the Senate section on pages S4239-S4240 on May 3, 2001.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
COLUMBIA BASIN SALMON RECOVERY PLAN
Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, a priceless national treasure in the Pacific Northwest is in dire straits. Icons of our region, wild salmon and steelhead, teeter on the brink of extinction. These anadromous fish are one of the best examples of how nature works her magic and selects the best and the brightest for future generations. This heritage must not end. Our generation has the responsibility to assure that these fish live on and enrich our lives in the future.
Despite several decades of work and a cost to taxpayers and electricity ratepayers of an estimated $3 billion, Pacific Northwest salmon and steelhead have continued to decline to the point where they may soon become extinct. We must reverse this trend. We must not allow extinction to happen and must proceed quickly with an aggressive consensus plan of action that returns them to sustainable and fishable populations. I believe we can do so in a manner that honors the principles of state water sovereignty, states' rights, and private property rights.
The economy of the Pacific Northwest is mainly vibrant and strong with some important exceptions, particularly in some more rural areas that depend on agriculture and natural resource industries. We must keep our Northwest economy strong and spread its strength throughout the entire region. This economy provides jobs for families and tax revenue to support important work, particularly the education of our children. Now, we face high energy costs and drought. Therefore, it is imperative that we make prudent choices now that will assure our future and quality of life in the Pacific Northwest.
There are volumes of scientific research and theories on what needs to be done to bring these fish back from the brink of extinction. For years, I have studied documents, discussed science with experts and advocates, held hearings to learn about and publicize policy choices, and today I am here to lay out a funding proposal to make our efforts for salmon and steelhead recovery far more aggressive, comprehensive, and coordinated than they have ever been.
The cost of restoring these fish has largely been borne by the citizens of the Northwest through the electricity rates they pay that fund the Northwest Power Planning Council's Fish and Wildlife Program. But because this is a national issue and because recovering the species is required by the Endangered Species Act, the Federal Government has an obligation to shoulder a significant portion of the financial responsibility for doing so.
I will not support flow augmentation other than that agreed to by the State of Idaho, if any. The extensive political opposition to breaching the four lower Snake dams means that such a recommendation would put the region into economic and political gridlock in such a way that would prohibit further efforts to take achievable steps to save the salmon and steelhead.
We now have a window of time, possibly up to 10 years, to exercise options and take steps toward recovering the fish before evaluation of dam breaching is then brought back to the table for further consideration. That means we have a brief opportunity to do things right. Otherwise, if we continue to spin our wheels or make wrong decisions about how to approach recovery, we will, in 5, 6, or 8 years be once again facing the difficult question of whether the region must breach the dams to save the fish.
Even though we have not yet mastered the entire process required to recover these fish, it is very obvious that we do have an enormous amount of good information and a very long list of measures that we can do, right now. The problem is that we have done only part of what we can do. My proposal will commit the region and the Federal Government to take immediate coordinated and aggressive action that is known to benefit the fish while providing an agreed-upon mechanism for monitoring and subsequent adjustments.
Specifically, I am recommending:
Corps of Engineers, $159.8 million, additional funding for their Columbia River Fish Mitigation program. This program primarily funds the construction of fish passage systems and also provides dollars for the Corps to contract with the National Marine Fisheries Service to do anadromous fish research and monitoring.
An increase for operations and maintenance funding (O&M), which will also provide the money needed to barge all fish, rather than trucking salmon around the dams. O&M funding is essential to keeping fish passage systems operable and mitigation programs running. Furthermore, we must study the potential benefit to modernizing the region's flood control management.
Money for restoring estuary habitat in the Lower Columbia River and Tillamook Bay Estuaries. We have heard from all of the interests that we'll get a big bang for the buck for salmon and steelhead by restoring estuary habitat.
National Marine Fisheries Service, $243.5 million, additional funding for the operations and maintenance of fish hatcheries. In the past, our hatcheries have provided sport fishing opportunity, but have not yet benefitted wild salmon and steelhead recovery. We need to reform our hatcheries to produce fish that are not susceptible to disease and predation, and support recovery goals.
An increase for screening irrigation diversions. If we are to recover salmon and steelhead, we must keep juveniles in the river and out of irrigation systems. These diversion screens can cost up to $1 million apiece, which make them unaffordable to communities, irrigation districts, and individual farmers.
Full funding for the Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund. It is critical to the states of Idaho, Alaska, Washington, Oregon, and California as well as the Tribes that the federal government provide funding to help meet federal Endangered Species Act requirements for salmon and steelhead.
Bureau of Reclamation, $25.0 million, funding to provide for the purchase of one more year of Idaho State-authorized flow augmentation, which is the 427,000 acre feet of water that is used to facilitate salmon and steelhead migration, plus $10 million to fund a water bank to store water for the purposes of fish passage and temperature reduction during low flow periods. The Bureau of Reclamation would also receive money to implement offsite mitigation measures called for in the Biological Opinion.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, $56.9 million, increases for habitat improvements, habitat conservation planning, landowner assistance, Section 7 consultation, and hatchery retrofits.
In addition to the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service has major responsibilities for screening irrigation diversions. Its screening program provides help to individual landowners in the form of technical assistance and money to pay for fish screens over irrigation diversions.
There are many agencies with responsibilities for implementing salmon and steelhead recovery measures, and, frankly, these are just some of them. I also recommend funds for other agencies such as the Natural Resource Conservation Service and the Environmental Protection Agency to implement their piece of the anadromous fish restoration program.
This adds up to a grand total of $688.2 million.
I anticipate that regional interests will examine the details of my proposal and will offer suggestions to improve this appropriations package. I encourage that discussion and look forward to the input that others will offer. There are processes currently underway in the region that could well result in changes to this proposal.
It is my hope and expectation that this funding will change what has been a decades-long, torturous, and expensive process into a success that will make the Pacific Northwest a role model for how to recover endangered species. I look forward to working with colleagues in the House and Senate to provide funds to support a successful Columbia Basin Salmon and Steelhead Recovery Plan.
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