Proposal would breach the four lower Snake River dams at the cost of suspending bedrock environmental laws and exposing communities across the Columbia River basin to environmental and health hazards.
Idaho Representative Mike Simpson has proposed a legislative concept to breach the four Lower Snake River dams, in exchange for, among other things, suspending the Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act, and FERC licensing for dams and agriculture across the vast Columbia River basin for 25‒35 years.
Removing the Lower Snake River dams is vital to restoring wild salmon and steelhead populations on the Columbia and Snake Rivers and honoring the treaty and human rights of Northwest Tribes. To this end, we have serious concerns over these compromises in Rep. Simpson’s proposal that would undermine the benefits of dam removal and deprive communities of their right to equal protection and equal enforcement of environmental laws.
Wild Fish Conservancy has joined with a coalition of organizations who share concerns over the environmental and health hazards these risky compromises pose to the future of our wild salmon, water quality, and communities throughout the Columbia River basin.
To learn more, read the joint statement supported by a diverse group of environmental and public health advocates.