Our Klamath Basin Water Crisis
Upholding rural Americans' rights to grow food,
own property, and caretake our wildlife and natural resources.
Our Klamath Basin
Water Crisis
Upholding rural Americans' rights to grow food,
own property, and caretake our wildlife and natural resources.
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Eureka Times-Standard http://www.times-standard.com/Stories/0,1413,127%7E2896%7E1637231,00.html Board wants Klamath dam removals considered The Times-Standard The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors has asked a Klamath River hydroelectric dam operator to look at removing some dams. The board authorized staff on Tuesday to send a letter to PacifiCorp, which operates seven dams on the Klamath and one of its tributaries, saying dam removal should be considered as part of its 50-year federal relicensing application. "The board recognizes that decommissioning of any project is a difficult decision, but believes, in this day and age, that option should be seriously considered," the letter reads. The dams produce only about 150 megawatts, and the California Energy Commission has said that the power could be replaced by new and upcoming projects. The commission has also asked that PacifiCorp study removing the dams. PacifiCorp, owned by ScottishPower, has ignored the subject in its draft application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Its license to operate expires in 2006. The dams have played a role in the demise of the Klamath's once strong spring run of chinook salmon, which once spawned in the rivers feeding Upper Klamath Lake. In its draft application, PacifiCorp acknowledges that some of its reservoirs pose problems for water quality. Lowermost Iron Gate Dam has no fish ladder, cutting off more than 100 miles of spawning grounds, leaving the spring run to spawn only in the Salmon River and the South Fork of the Trinity River. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, any copyrighted material herein is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml |
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