Seattle, Washington
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NORTHORTH UMPQUAMPQUA HYDROELECTRICYDROELECTRIC PROJECTROJECT SEATTLE, RESTORING NORTHWEST ECOSYSTEMS WASHINGTON THE NORTH UMPQUA RIVER IS A JEWEL OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST, BUT ITS SCENERY AND WILDLIFE ARE THREAT- ENED BY THE NORTH UMPQUA HYDRO-PROJECT.LAST YEAR, THE FOREST SERVICE IGNORED THE ADVICE OF ITS OWN SCIENTISTS WITH A POLITICALLY DRIVEN DECISION TO APPROVE A PROJECT LICENSE THAT WILL HARM SALMON. THE RIVER occupies about 3,000 acres of Forest Service land on the North Umpqua and The North Umpqua River originates two of its tributaries. The 1950s-era on the western slope of the central Cas- project is a system of eight dams, three cade Mountains in southwest Oregon and reservoirs, more than 30 miles of flumes drains about 1,350 square miles before and canals, six miles of penstocks and joining the South Umpqua River west of tunnels, and approximately 100 miles of Roseburg. The river flows through a nar- project-related roads. The project de- row canyon with steep bedrock steps and sign, however, gave little thought to benches. Five anadromous fish species− maintaining ecological river processes chinook salmon, steelhead, coastal cut- such as sediment and large woody debris throat trout, coho salmon, and Pacific transport, or impacts from project oper- lamprey−live in the North Umpqua, and ations such as flow fluctuations. As a re- the river is renowned for its world-class sult, the project has harmed aquatic and steelhead fly fishing. Most of the river be- terrestrial species and habitat within the NORTH UMPQUA RIVER low the hydroelectric project is designated North Umpqua River basin and on and protected as a Wild and Scenic River Umpqua National Forest lands. Photo by Dan Callaghan for its outstanding water quality and quantity, recreational opportunities, and SODA SPRINGS DAM fisheries. from most of the North Umpqua main- Soda Springs dam is the lowermost of stem, reduces the supply of sediment and THE PROJECT the eight dams within the project. At 77 spawning gravels to downstream habitat, feet, it is the second highest dam on the adversely affects downstream water qual- The North Umpqua Hydroelectric project, but generates only around 6 per- ity, and provides habitat for a large num- Project is a 185.5-megawatt project that cent of the project's total output. It is ber of brown trout, an exotic species that used to maintain a relative- preys upon native fish. The watershed ly constant flow in the analysis prepared in connection with the North Umpqua River be- relicensing of the North Umpqua Hydro- low the project. electric Project concluded that removing the Soda Springs dam would be the high- The Soda Springs dam est priority action to improve the inter- causes a substantial part of connection of fish habitat and restore the project's adverse ef- the natural hydrological integrity of the fects on fish and other North Umpqua River. Based on that con- aquatic life. It inundates clusion, the Forest Service and the U.S. one of the most important Fish and Wildlife Service initially recom- mainstem spawning areas, mended that the dam be removed as a blocks upstream and condition of relicensing the project. SODA SPRINGS DAM downstream passage of Photo by Tom Turner fish, cuts off Fish Creek Continued on back www.earthjustice.org RESTORATION EFFORTS Earthjustice is working with a coalition of environmental groups to compel the government to heed its own scien- tists recommendations to remove or breach Soda Springs Dam and to issue a hydropower license that fulfills the government’s obligation to protect species and their habitat. THE NEGOTIATIONS Scottish Power, an international energy conglomerate, has been unwilling to give up the 11 megawatts of gener- ating capacity that would be lost if the dam is removed. After Scottish Power, MOTT BRIDGE ON THE NORTH UMPQUA RIVER NEAR STEAMBOAT CREEK through its subsidiary PacifiCorp, filed its li- Photo by Dan Callaghan cense application in 1995, it entered settlement negotiations THE CHALLENGE for relicensing. Because the Forest Service, concerning the new license with federal rather than FERC, establishes those terms and state agencies, as well as several con- Because this project is located prima- and conditions, the Forest Service is inde- servation groups. In late 1999, Scottish rily on national forest land, the Federal pendently required to comply with NEPA Power announced that it intended to with- Power Act requires that the hydropower in connection with its own decision. In this draw from the negotiations because the license contain terms and conditions set instance, however, the agency attempted to Forest Service and the U.S. Fish and by the Forest Service for project reli- pass the buck to FERC. Although FERC Wildlife Service were insisting on removal censing. Those terms and conditions did prepare an environmental impact state- of Soda Springs dam. must, in turn, fulfill the agency's re- ment under NEPA, FERC's EIS did not sponsibilities to manage the land under consider alternative terms and conditions After Scottish Power withdrew from the the National Forest Management Act open to the Forest Service under the Fed- settlement negotiations, the Forest Ser- and the Umpqua Forest Plan, which was eral Power Act, nor did it evaluate whether vice's position on the removal of Soda amended to include the Northwest For- the terms and conditions chosen are ade- Springs dam changed dramatically, and the est Plan's provisions for protecting quate to meet the requirements of the for- negotiations were reconvened. The con- aquatic habitat. est plan for North Umpqua River fish and servation groups withdrew from further other aquatic life. settlement discussions in September 2000. Based on the watershed analysis and On June 21, 2001, Scottish Power filed an other scientific information, Forest Ser- Representing seven conservation groups− offer of settlement describing an agree- vice biologists concluded that removing Umpqua Valley Audubon Society, Umpqua ment between Scottish Power and state the Soda Springs dam was necessary to Watersheds, The North Umpqua Founda- and federal agencies for the issuance of a meet those obligations. Nevertheless, tion, Steamboaters, Oregon Natural Re- new license. The settlement agreement the Forest Service ignored that conclu- sources Council, Pacific Rivers Council, does not require the removal of Soda sion in favor of a political judgment and American Rivers−Earthjustice filed a Springs dam. The Federal Energy Regula- that the dam was acceptable. petition for review of the decisions of tory Commission adopted the settlement both FERC and the Forest Service with agreement and issued a new 35-year li- The Forest Service also failed to comply the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on cense for the North Umpqua Hydro Pro- with the National Environmental Policy May 24, 2004. ject on November 18, 2003. Act in setting the terms and conditions For more information on restoring healthy ecosystems in the Pacific Northwest, contact Earthjustice’s press office at (510) 550-6700 or www.earthjustice.org.