Here’s why we must save the Snake River dams | Guest Opinion

Agriculture, transportation, tourism and clean, affordable hydropower are the foundation of the Tri-Cities economy. Preserving and growing that foundation demands the continued operation of the Columbia River dams, including those on the lower Snake River.

Recently, after more than three years of research in collaboration with over 30 agencies, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and Bureau of Reclamation released their long-awaited draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). This comprehensive, impartial study explored alternatives for how the Columbia River hydropower system could be operated in the future. A portion of the study includes impacts of breaching the lower Snake River Dams. You can view the draft EIS at comments.crso.info,

According to the draft EIS, breaching the dams will not provide a significant benefit to steelhead and salmon returns. However, it will spur tremendous negative impacts on agriculture, navigation and carbon-free electrical generation, both locally and throughout the entire Pacific Northwest.

Therefore, the CEO’s of the Tri-City Regional Chamber of Commerce, Visit Tri-Cities and TRIDEC are submitting comments to support the findings of the draft EIS and we ask all Tri-Citians to do the same. We will reference the following data in our comments:

▪ Irrigated farmlands that are connected to the lower Snake River dams in Central and Southeastern Washington cover nearly 50,000 acres and are the backbone of our local thriving agricultural, food processing and wine industries. These rapidly growing industries are responsible for nearly 15,000 jobs in the Tri-City area alone.

▪ More than $2 billion has been invested in improvements for fish passage at the lower Snake and Columbia River dams since 2001, creating the most advanced and environmentally friendly hydropower system in the entire world.

▪ Reduced steelhead and salmon returns since 2015 are heavily influenced by variables in the Pacific Ocean such as increased predation, commercial fisheries and water temperature increases than the operation of the lower Snake river dams.

▪ The lower Snake River dams generate over 1,000 megawatts of affordable, carbon-free baseload electricity that allows for the addition of renewables, such as wind and solar to the grid. In addition, the electricity generated at these dams is critical to minimizing the instances of brownouts and blackouts in our region.

▪ The draft EIS indicates that replacing the lower Snake River dams with natural gas plants would cost $200 million annually and add 3 million metric tons of carbon per year to the atmosphere.

▪ It would cost $1 billion annually to replace the capabilities of the lower Snake river dams with a carbon-free portfolio of wind, solar, and batteries. That would equate to a 50% jump in electricity bills for Tri-Cities customers.

▪ Between 50 and 60 million tons of cargo are transported each year on barges that can navigate the lower Snake River. Without this low-carbon and efficient transportation system, the Tri-Cities would be overwhelmed with increased truck traffic on our highways.

▪ The dams provide numerous outdoor recreation and tourist activities, from cruise boats, and science tourism, to fishing and watersports that drive significant economic impact through visitor spending.

As a voice for businesses, entrepreneurs and working families throughout our region, it is our duty to promote and protect the economic vitality of our community.

Our dams provide critical irrigation, clean and reliable electricity, and facilitate vital transportation routes — all of which support numerous jobs and enhance quality of life for residents of eastern Washington and beyond. We sincerely believe it is possible to promote healthy native steelhead and salmon returns and preserve this fundamental resource.

We hope you’ll join us in advocating for our dams. Please visit comments.crso.info, for more details on how to submit your comments online, by mail, or during public comment teleconferences scheduled for today and March 31st. The comment period is open until April 13th. For more information about the dams and their importance to the Tri-Cities, we invite you to visit https://www.tridec.org/damfacts/.

This story was originally published March 26, 2020 at 10:49 AM with the headline "Here’s why we must save the Snake River dams | Guest Opinion."