FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                                           

June 9, 2022


Contact: Heather Stebbings, Executive Director

                Heather.Stebbings@pnwa.net

                503-234-8556 (office)

                503-307-3776 (cell)



PNWA rejects conclusions of Lower Snake River Dams Benefit Replacement Draft Report


The Pacific Northwest Waterways Association (PNWA) has reviewed the Lower Snake River Dams Benefit Replacement Draft Report commissioned by U.S. Senator Patty Murray and Washington Governor Jay Inslee to help determine whether there are reasonable means for replacing the benefits of these federal projects.


The draft report, which was completed by Kramer Consulting and Ross Strategic, is an oversimplification of the impacts of dam breaching and lacks recognition of the inability and improbability of truly replacing their benefits. It underestimates breaching impacts on our Northwest communities and the needs of millions of people who rely on economic, transportation, energy, and other critical benefits provided by this federal system. It provides no conclusive evidence that spending billions of public dollars to remove four run-of-river dams with world-class fish passage would save salmon without crippling the Northwest’s economy and ability to fight climate change.


Over the past few months as the report was completed, PNWA voiced concerns regarding both the process and foundational assumptions, in letters directed to Senator Murray and Governor Inslee, as well as to the consulting firms drafting the report. With the release of the report today, PNWA continues to be concerned about a number of baseline assumptions, including that the value of the dams will decline in future and that all losses from dam breaching can be mitigated or compensated.


“There are significant gaps in the report as it relates to understanding the reality of shifting to alternative transportation modes, permitting and developing the infrastructure that would be required, impacts to Northwest and U.S. farmers, and the true ability to meet our regional and national climate goals without the dams in place,” said PNWA Executive Director Heather Stebbings. “The report itself recognizes that more analysis needs to be done to fully assess the economic, social and transportation impacts associated with dam breaching. It raises more questions than it answers and does not provide a solid foundation upon which a decision as substantial as this one could be made.” 


PNWA recognizes the critical importance of salmon recovery in the Columbia River Basin. As our region looks to improve salmon runs, it is imperative to thoroughly assess all the benefits and drawbacks of the various measures being considered to improve conditions for fish. Dam breaching is problematic, not only because of the serious environmental, social, and economic consequences it would unleash on the region, but also because breaching the Lower Snake River dams is unlikely to increase salmon returns in any meaningful way. Because of the many biological and sociological variables involved, any decision regarding dam breaching should be apolitical, the product of detailed analytic scrutiny, and grounded in science.


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The Pacific Northwest Waterways Association is a non-profit, non-partisan trade association of ports, businesses, public agencies and individuals who support navigation, energy, trade, and economic development throughout the region. Learn more at www.pnwa.net. 

Growing salmon counts demonstrate healthy rivers and healthy economies

By Mary Wiley • December 11, 2024
The numbers for 2024 are in, and salmon are having an amazing year as they return from the ocean to spawn in the headwaters of the Columbia and Snake rivers. Not everyone knows that the fish passage programs and facilities on the federally operated locks and dams of the Columbia Snake River System are some of the most effective in the world. Salmon famously travel hundreds of miles upriver to spawn, and that requires them to bypass the dams that power and irrigate our communities, and the locks that efficiently move our goods between local and global markets. Here’s a little report on what our communities do to steward healthy rivers and healthy economies.

Oktoberfest: brought to you in part by the Columbia Snake River System

By Mary Wiley • October 16, 2024
The fall harvest season gives us reason to celebrate in the Pacific Northwest, as farmers gather hops and wheat—key ingredients for beer—to support the booming brewing industry across the U.S. and abroad. At the heart of this success is the irrigation and transportation supplied by the federal locks and dams of the Columbia Snake River System. This vital infrastructure allows the Northwest to sustain its $3.5 billion beer industry, and the country’s $409 billion beer market.

Lessons from the 1992 Snake River drawdown

By Mary Wiley • August 19, 2024
The system of navigation locks and hydroelectric dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers has been the lifeblood of our region for over 80 years. Supporting agriculture, enabling efficient transportation, and providing carbon-free energy, the Columbia-Snake River System is indispensable to millions of people. But what if that infrastructure was no longer there? More than three decades ago, we caught a glimpse of that possibility during a test drawdown of the Snake River.

Our sustainable powerhouse: hydropower in the Northwest

By Mary Wiley • June 10, 2024
Hydropower has long been the backbone of the Northwest’s energy foundation. Since the first federal locks and dams were constructed along the Columbia and Snake rivers over 85 years ago, hydropower has been the primary energy source for millions across our region. This affordable, clean, reliable energy has offset harmful emissions, fueled economic growth, and is fundamental in our fight against climate change. Recognizing hydroelectric dams as a vital asset, many people advocate for the value of dams, and Northwest RiverPartners (NWRP) is one organization that firmly defends these assets. NWRP is a member-driven organization that serves community-owned electric utilities and other organizations that recognize the value of hydropower in the Northwest. Executive Director Clark Mather sat down to share about hydropower's vital role in Northwest communities.

The consequences of removing the lower Snake River Dams

By Mary Wiley • May 6, 2024
An initiative signed by the Biden administration is exploring a dangerous potential to remove the four lower Snake River Dams, which would simultaneously cripple our region’s economy and our fight against climate change. While the initiative argues dam removal could lead to the recovery of several salmon species, this action would have significant consequences, including serious impacts to irrigation, power supply, and transportation. A recent article in the Capital Press by Matthew Weaver examined these consequences in detail, highlighting the potential environmental and economic impacts of dam removal.

The low-cost, high-capacity system: a four-decade perspective on inland freight transportation

By Colleen Newell • November 16, 2023
Rob Rich is no stranger to the Columbia Snake River System. Having worked in transportation and commerce on the Columbia and Snake rivers for over four decades, he understands well the importance of the federal system of locks and dams that make navigation possible. Rich currently serves as the Vice President of Marine Services for Shaver Transportation Company, an inland freight transportation company based in Portland, Oregon. With a fleet of 16 tugs and 22 barges, Shaver operates many of the tugboats and barges that transport goods on the Columbia Snake River System. Rich got his start working with water machinery and transportation at Lake Coeur d’Alene in Northern Idaho, where he worked at a marina that was operated by a local tug company. Then in 1979 Rich headed to Portland to begin his career in the tug and barge industry. At that time, the region was experiencing significant expansion in inland freight transportation. “So many types of cargo were starting to move on the system because of the expansion into Idaho thanks to the Snake River Dams,” said Rich.

American Cruise Lines supports tourism, economic vitality along Columbia Snake River System

By Colleen Newell • September 28, 2023
American Cruise Lines supports tourism, economic vitality along the Columbia Snake River System

Hear from Columbia Basin farmer Blaine Meek

By Sidney Counts • August 25, 2023
The Columbia Basin boasts some of the nation’s most productive farmland, owed to its fertile soil, favorable climate, and abundant water from the Snake and Columbia rivers. This unique combination makes The Columbia Basin’s irrigated farmland up-to twice as productive as other regions in the country.

Current research is inconclusive regarding possible delayed mortality effects of Snake River dams

By Seth Baker • July 13, 2023
Research shows existing science fails to establish the magnitude and mechanism of delayed mortality hypothesis
A map of the dams and elevation changes on the Columbia Snake River Systems.

A word from Idaho's only seaport - 740 feet above sea level

By Mary Wiley • May 23, 2023
Port of Lewiston Commissioner Joseph Anderson has a long, multigenerational connection to the Columbia Snake River System. “Family farming is deeply ingrained in our community—my father, my daughter and I have all hauled wheat that shipped down the Snake River.”
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