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Save Our Wild Salmon

Portland, OR-- Save Our wild Salmon is disappointed in BPA’s draft proposal regarding policy on wind curtailments, to be publicly presented today in Portland. The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) continues to use salmon as an excuse for policy decisions regarding wind power cut-offs, despite a lack of scientific evidence supporting their claim.

BPA’s draft proposal fails to include two policy measures SOS has recommended that would help salmon and also help avoid unnecessary cut-offs of wind power. First, it does not include our recommendation that BPA use daily biological monitoring of migrating salmon, with more reliance on state and Tribal fish managers who track that monitoring, to decide case-by-case response at specific dams if and as problems arise. Such an approach would be better for salmon, and wind power, instead of a blanket policy regardless of whether the problem actually exists or not.

Second, BPA’s proposal fails to support changing Washington State’s total dissolved gas standard to be consistent with Oregon’s scientifically supported standard. This change would allow for more safe spill for salmon, and would also help to reduce the occasions when a wind power cut-off would need to be considered.

Said SOS executive director Pat Ford, “Restoring our endangered salmon and continued expansion of clean wind power are compatible goals. Northwest people support both, for their environmental and job creation benefits in rural and urban areas. BPA’s proposed policy does not take advantage of this synergy.” Read the full SOS analysis and statement regarding the impact of high water flows on fish last summer.

Contact:

Pat Ford, Save Our wild Salmon executive director: (208) 345-9067

Amy Baird, communications director: (503) 230-0421 X 13; media@wildsalmon.org

Erin Greeson, Renewable Northwest Project: (503) 223-4544; erin@rnp.org

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