Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, the House Committee on Natural Resources hosted a field hearing in Richland, Washington, to discuss the importance of the Federal Columbia River Power System, in particular the Lower Snake River Dams, to the region and their impacts on commerce, agriculture, and reliable energy production. Congressional Western Caucus Chairman Dan Newhouse, and Western Caucus Members Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05) and Cliff Bentz (OR-02) participated.

“The four Lower Snake River Dams are the lifeblood of Central Washington and the Pacific Northwest, and it has been an honor to welcome my Congressional colleagues who recognize the benefits these dams bestow upon our region,” said Chairman Newhouse. “The facts presented by our expert witnesses made it overwhelmingly clear that salmon and dams do coexist, and breaching the dams would be devastating to my communities in Central Washington and across the Pacific Northwest. This visit serves as a key reminder that we must not be swayed by the emotional pleas of the ill-informed, but rather embrace the truth, grounded in science in sound policy.”

“There have been too many back room conversations recently at the highest levels of government focused on tearing out the Lower Snake River dams. What’s worse is that those who rely on them the most — the families, businesses, and farmers in Eastern Washington — have been shut out of the discussion,” said Rep. McMorris Rodgers. “We changed that with yesterday’s field hearing where the voices of our community were heard loud and clear. Thank you to the Natural Resources Committee and my colleagues for hosting this field hearing and showing the world that we will do whatever it takes to save our dams!”

“I am pleased to have had the opportunity to hold this important field hearing,” said Rep. Bentz. “The benefits the four lower Snake River dams provide to river communities, electric power cooperatives, the economy, and the environment cannot be overstated. Attempts to remove them or operationally decommission them are misguided, and inappropriate. I greatly appreciate Representatives McMorris Rodgers, Newhouse, and Collins for their participation. I look forward to continuing my efforts on this important issue as Chairman of the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries.”

These Congressional Western Caucus Members heard from the following witnesses during the field hearing:

• Ms. Jennifer Quan, West Coast Regional Administrator, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Seattle, Washington

• Mr. John Hairston, Administrator and CEO, Bonneville Power Administration¸ Portland, Oregon

• Ms. Beth Coffey, Director of Programs, Northwestern Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland, Oregon

• Mr. Scott Corbitt, General Manger, Port of Lewiston, Lewiston, Idaho 2

• Mr. Rick Dunn, General Manager, Benton Public Utility District, Kennewick, Washington

• Ms. Michelle Hennings, Executive Director, Washington Association of Wheat Growers, Ritzville, Washington

• Mr. Alex McGregor, Chairman of the Board of Directors, The McGregor Company, Colfax, Washington

• Mr. Todd Myers, Environmental Director, Washington Policy Center, Cle Elum, Washington

• Dr. David Welch, President & Founder, Kintama Research Services Ltd., Nanaimo, BC, Canada

“In July 2020, NOAA Fisheries issued its latest ESA biological opinion that assessed and concluded that the operations and maintenance of the Columbia River Systems’ 14 dams was not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of listed salmon and steelhead or result in the destruction or adverse modification of their critical habitat,” said Jennifer Quan.

“Last year Bonneville commissioned an independent economic study of the cost to the region for replacing the energy and reliability services of the 4 Lower Snake River Dams,” said John Hairston. “The study found that replacing these dams while meeting clean energy goals and maintaining system reliability is possible but doing so comes at a substantial cost to the region.”

“The Northwestern Division maintains and operates multiple-purpose dams that also provide benefits such as hydropower, water-supply storage, and recreation,” said Beth Coffey. “The dams also have modifications and operational changes to protect and mitigate the impacts of the systems’ construction and continued operation on fish and wildlife.”

“If the dams are breached, critical local infrastructure like water treatments, storm water and sewer will require major modification or replacement, these plants were designed to work with the rivers of today, again, who will pay the tens of millions for these modifications,” said Scott Corbitt. “Businesses like Clear Water Paper, Idaho's only papermill and one of the largest employers in the region, rely on the current level of the river for water intake and discharge.”

“I have lived in the Northwest almost my entire life and love all that our rivers provide,” said Rick Dunn. “Salmon and steelhead recovery is an unbelievably complex issue but from my chair, the science is far from settled and we need every drop of affordable and carbon-free hydropower we can get.”

“Farmers including myself and my family rely on barge transportation to ship goods to market, not only is the Snake River system critical for Washington State but farmers across the country rely on its transportation benefits as well,” said Michelle Hennings. “In fact, more than 60% of all U.S. wheat exports move through the Columbia Snake River system, specifically, 10% of wheat that is exported from the United States passes through the 4 locks and dams along the Lower Snake River.”

“The goal should be for people to come together and look for holistic solutions,” said Alex McGregor. “By working together we can make real and lasting progress improving prospects for salmon without endangering livelihoods, our economy, and the world-class crops that we must transport to feed a hungry nation and the world.”

“Just two years ago, dam opponents wrote in the Spokane Spokesman Review 'Imagine Snake River Without Any Salmon,' dam opponents claim that starting in 2019, wild Chinook populations would steadily decline and be 'functionally extinct' by 2025. The dam opponents have been wrong,” said Todd Myers. “For all Chinook, 2022 was the third year in a row of increases and the fifth highest returns since 2000, despite the predictions that they would decline, wild Chinook returns more than doubled last year.”

“Put simply, I think that the Snake River Dams never caused the major problems that people thought they did over half a century ago, they didn't understand the effect of the ocean back then and they overestimated what the construction of the Snake River Dams was going to do, I think we need to try to redress that,” said David Welch.

Click here to watch.