Tag: pnwa

Agreement in Principle Reached re: Modernizing Columbia River Treaty
Fishermen's News Online, News

Agreement in Principle Reached re: Modernizing Columbia River Treaty

An agreement in principle has been reached on key elements to modernize the 60-year-old Columbia River Treaty, reflecting changing climate and other needs of communities economically dependent on the river and its tributaries. A White House statement issued July 11 noted the importance of the Columbia River to the nation's economy, generating 40% of the nation's hydropower, irrigating $8 billion in agriculture products and moving 42 million tons of commercial cargo annually. The United States and Canada have jointly managed the waterways for 60 years. In May, 2018 the two nations began negotiating to modernize the treaty over the next 20 years. White House officials said that modernizing the treaty would elevate the voices of U.S. tribes and Canada's indigenous nations, with a...
Interior Dept., Waterways Association Spar Over Breaching Lower Snake River Dams
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Interior Dept., Waterways Association Spar Over Breaching Lower Snake River Dams

Federal criticism of the negative impact of hydropower dams and a call for affordable, clean energy options to aid restoration of restore wild fish to the Columbia River Basin is being challenged by a trade association with extensive interests in three Pacific Northwest states. The Biden administration on June 18 announced creation of the Columbia River Task Force and release of a landmark report acknowledging the harm that federal dams have continued to inflict on Native American tribes in the region. The interagency task force advances a historic agreement to work in partnership with tribes and states from the Pacific Northwest to restore wild salmon populations in the Columbia River Basin and develop a long-term strategy to meet the clean energy, transportation and other key n...