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Five reasons why the new Columbia-Snake salmon plan is a failure

Posted on October 31, 2007 | Filed Under Dam Removal, Northwest, River Renewal

Amy Kober
Northwest Outreach & Communications Director

The Bush administration, under court order, released its latest plan for Columbia-Snake salmon, and — surprise! – it’s another dud.

The plan includes no real steps to help recover imperiled salmon runs, and does nothing to help the basin’s communities forge a better vision for the future.

For our big-picture thoughts about the situation, read today’s press statement.

For those of you interested in more details, here are our initial impressions of the most glaring shortcomings of the Bush administration’s plan:

1) The draft BiOp fails to sufficiently reduce the percentage of upriver salmon runs killed by the hydrosystem as juveniles. Survival improvements through the hydrosystem appear to be marginal at best. This is an especially big problem for the Snake River runs, as there is relatively little that can be done to improve their spawning and rearing habitat – many of these fish spawn and rear in near-pristine wilderness in central Idaho.

We believe that removing the lower Snake River dams is the best way to reduce hydrosystem mortality, as replacing the dams’ benefits would be less disruptive in the long-run on the Northwest economy than annual implementation of “aggressive non-breach�? actions involving extensive reservoir drawdowns, increased “spill,�? and acquisition of large amounts of irrigation water for flow augmentation.

Restoring a free-flowing river would also improve recreation opportunities like fishing, hunting and boating, along with overall quality of life for river communities.

In developing this draft, NOAA Fisheries refused to study either dam removal or aggressive non-breach actions.

2) The draft BiOp fails to take the likely regional effects of global warming into account. It assumes that the period between 1980 and 2001, which generally featured below average ocean and river runoff conditions, is a reasonable surrogate for what the effects of climate change are likely to be.

No basis is provided for this conclusion. Given what the UW’s Climate Impacts Group and others have been saying, the future climate will likely be warmer (and “worse�? for salmon) than late 20th century conditions.

3) It appears that the plan will cost around $700 million per year, despite the fact that it likely won’t to lead to the recovery of Snake River spring/summer chinook and steelhead, which are the fish with the most remaining intact spawning habitat in the Columbia Basin. For the same amount of money, a more effective dam removal or aggressive non-breach plan could be implemented.

4) It fails to explain how minor tweaks to the hydrosystem will allow for the survival, let alone the recovery, of Snake River sockeye. Only four sockeye returned this year (after three last year), and all were taken directly to a life-support hatchery that the Northwest Power and Conservation Council’s Independent Scientific Review Panel noted in 2006 was becoming less and less viable due to the effects of domestication and a lack of downstream survival improvements.

5) The federal agencies overstate the importance of the energy produced by the four dams on the lower Snake River. The reality is, when power demands in the region are highest, the lower Snake dams can be counted on for only 425-525 megawatts. The power from these four dams can be affordably replaced through conservation and renewables.

The bottom line: we can remove these dams, revitalize communities, and enjoy a clean energy future in the Northwest.

A New Era Of Water Conservation

Posted on October 31, 2007 | Filed Under Water Conservation, Water Supply, Water for Life

Rebecca Wodder
President

It used to be that only people in the dry western part of our country had to worry about drought, and the rest of us could enjoy our lush lawns and long showers, believing that our water supply was endless.

Well, guess again. The extreme drought in the Southeast shows that no region of our country is immune to severe water shortages.

We’ve all seen the TV footage of the dry lake beds, and every day we hear about cities like Raleigh, NC that have less than 100 days of water left in their dwindling supplies.

As our country’s population grows, so do the demands on our rivers and lakes – where most of our drinking water comes from. Paving over watersheds with sprawl is paving our way to water shortages. Water runs off pavement rapidly, instead of soaking into the ground to replenish groundwater supplies. And, global warming is putting an added strain on communities’ water supplies.

Hoping for rain is not the solution. Building expensive new dams and engineering massive transfers of water from one watershed to another won’t solve our problems either.

We need a solution that will ensure sustainable water supplies for our communities, and keep our rivers, lakes and streams – the source of our drinking water – clean and healthy.

So it is time to call for a new era of water conservation in our country. We need to start treating water like the most precious resource we have – wherever we live. We need to realize that the more we waste water, the less water is available for our neighbors as well as the fish and wildlife in our local streams. Ultimately, wasting water hurts not only the environment but our local economies, recreation opportunities and our quality of life.

The director of one North Carolina water system told the Herald-Sun newspaper, “We should use water for essential uses only, because the water we don’t use for discretionary purposes, like watering your lawn, may be needed to drink or cook or shower next year.�?

Cities and states must step up and do their part. They should encourage water conservation through measures like tiered water pricing and by developing comprehensive water plans. And yes, they need to impose common sense restrictions. Austin, Texas is a good example – there, the city bans outdoor watering during the hottest part of the day, between 10am and 7pm, when water just evaporates rather than soaking in.

We as individuals can really make a difference in our daily actions. Here are five things you can do to save water, save money, and ensure that we have sustainable water supplies and healthy rivers in our future:

Hold your elected officials accountable: Has your city taken steps to encourage water conservation? If not, urge your elected officials to take action. Cities should provide incentives for low-impact development and water-saving plumbing fixtures; improve pricing systems for water; implement appropriate guidelines for water use; and, develop sustainable long-term water plans.

Be water-wise around the house: Simple things, like running the dishwasher only when it’s full, washing only full loads of clothes, and taking shorter showers can save hundreds of gallons over the course of a week. And don’t forget to fix those leaky faucets — this can save you up to 100 gallons a day!

Install water-saving plumbing fixtures: The Environmental Protection Agency has launched its WaterSense program and some cities – like Seattle, San Francisco, Austin, New York, and many others – are providing rebates for installing high-efficiency toilets, low-flow faucets and shower heads.

Make your brown lawn a source of pride: How about we start a new trend –making a brown lawn a source of pride? A badge of honor that says, “Protecting my community’s drinking water supply and the health of our rivers is more important than a little patch of grass.�? We must come to grips with the fact that watering the lawn wastes a lot of water. As Sally Bethea with the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper in Atlanta, has pointed out, outdoor watering may account for at least 20 percent of the Atlanta region’s total water usage.

Use attractive, drought-friendly landscaping: If a brown lawn isn’t your thing, consider getting rid of your lawn altogether and creating a drought-friendly landscape. There are many beautiful plants that don’t require a lot of water. When you do need to water, turn to rain barrels – these simple containers collect the water from your gutters and downspouts.

With the combined realities of population growth, paved-over watersheds, and global warming, we are facing, and will continue to face, unprecedented water challenges. But the future doesn’t need to be bleak. I’m actually quite hopeful — I believe we are going to see more and more communities across the country embracing a new era of water conservation, ensuring their citizens – and their rivers – are healthy and thriving for years to come. To learn more, visit our Watr for Life campaign page.

* This article was first posted on Treehugger, A New Era Of Water Conservation

We forget… — Jacques Cousteau

Posted on October 31, 2007 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“We forget that the water cycle and the life cycle are one.” — Jacques Cousteau

Our Gary Belan joined the Blog discussion on stormwater runoff in Maryland. More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

If you grew up in the country… — Darlene Donaldson

Posted on October 30, 2007 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“If you grew up in the country, chances are you have fond memories of lazy days down by a river, creek or pond.” — Darlene Donaldson

American Rivers is working to build a constituency for protecting local rivers by establishing blue trails—a great way to connect people to their hometown rivers while boosting tourism, civic pride and a conservation ethic. More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

Coming of age… on the river

Posted on October 29, 2007 | Filed Under Endangered Rivers, Global Warming, Outreach, Stories

Chelsea Lane-Miller, Associate Director of Outreach
Outreach Events and Activities

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to spend several hours in a coffee shop reading. Having that time made me envious of those who have the time to read the newspaper everyday (or even on the weekends) — it really is amazing the amount of high-quality writing that is out there.

But I digress. There were two things that struck me while I was reading. First, nearly every magazine, newspaper, and newsletter has at least one article on global warming and how it will affect things that their readers care about. For example, Backcountry had an article about lower snow packs, and Audubon had an article about how less ice in the arctic will impact sea birds. You’ve probably observed the same thing, but I found it especially interesting, and also hopeful. And, I’m pretty well convinced that global warming will impact just about everyone and everything in some way (including river trips).

The other interesting thing I read about was a coming of age ritual on a river. One family was taking a trip down the Yellowstone River (pdf) (one of America’s Most Endangered Rivers: 2006 Edition) to mark the coming of age of one of their sons. They called the Yellowstone his birth river because his mother was pregnant with him during a river trip on the Yellowstone. Amazingly, she took a river trip while she was pregnant with each of her children. She and her husband noticed the coincidence, and decided to assign these as birth rivers to their children.

The article, in Audubon’s November-December issue (I believe), was a neat one, and talked about this family river trip. I really liked the idea of a river trip serving as a coming of age celebration (after all, you can learn a lot on a river), but also of taking a family river trip. I sure hope that I am able to do this one day (or perhaps many days on many rivers!) with my family.

Do you have any river traditions or celebrations?

What river trips have you taken with your family?

Stormwater Legislation & The Chesapeake Bay

Posted on October 29, 2007 | Filed Under Clean Water, Green Infrastructure, Healthy Waters, Mid-Atlantic, Policy Review

Gary Belan, Director of Healthy Waters Campaign
Healthy Waters, Catching the Rain

I was reading a recent post on the Baltimore Sun’s Bay & Environment Blog today, and I have to admit, I’m a little torn. The blog outlines new legislation in the Maryland legislature that would implement a fee on all households in order to pay for projects that would reduce or mitigate stormwater runoff going into the bay. I think this is a good idea, because in many cases, there just isn’t enough (or in many cases any)money being spent to reduce polluted stormwater runoff. This legislation would charge a fee to a homeowner based on the size of their home. The larger the home, the more runoff it produces, and the higher the fee.

There are two reasons I’m torn:

1. This legislation doesn’t seem to have any incentive for homeowners to reduce their footprint. There are incentives for businesses to reduce their impervious surfaces, but I feel like homeowners should have a fee reduction if they manage to build rain gardens or other green techniques to reduce their homes’ stormwater footprint.

2. This bill doesn’t do anything to help curb sprawl, which is a major contributor of stormwater pollution. There was a previous bill that tried to limit sprawl, but unfortunately it ran into too much resistance.

In general, I support this legislation because I think the Bay needs a dedicated source of funding to reduce stormwater pollution, and this bill is doing that by spreading costs around. Therefore it has pretty broad support from homebuilders. I think this is a good first step in reducing stormwater pollution, but I don’t think any progress can be made on saving our water, in particular the bay, until we start to manage our regional growth better.

I’m curious as to how other people feel about this. Is this good legislation? How can we better manage growth without running into resistance from farmers and builders? I’d like to hear your comments.

While progress should never come to a halt… — Paul Newman

Posted on October 29, 2007 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“While progress should never come to a halt, there are many places it should never come to at all.” — Paul Newman

*At a time when our nation’s natural splendor is facing a rising tide of threats, securing Wild and Scenic designation for our last, best rivers is a powerful way to preserve their beauty, health and wonder for current and future generations. More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

Blog Round Up: Week of October 19-October 26

Posted on October 26, 2007 | Filed Under Weekly Round Up

Chas Offutt, Director of Internet Strategy
Technology & Rivers

Welcome to our inaugural blog round up. With every River Blog post, we’re sharing with you digestible chunks of the work being done to protect and restore our rivers. However, with every good conversation, we realize that we need to listen too.

On a weekly basis, my goal is to share with you the conversations already happening in the blogosphere that are shaping the river movement. River enthusiasts around the country are talking about the health of their river, sharing river adventures and highlighting the community effort to protect local rivers.

We want to capture the online “chatter” with the ultimate goal of adding more voices (that’s you!) to the existing conversations concerning the current and future health of our rivers.

Without further ado, here’s the river round up for 10-19-07 - 10-26-07:

Long Island Women talks about donating the photo used in an award given to Congressman Tim Bishop of New York. The award was given out at this year’s River Action Day.

Berry Street Beacon participated in River Action Day for the second consecutive year. She details her trip and the local impacts of the national issues she discussed with her members of Congress.

Food & Water Watch brought some adorable babies to Capitol Hill in support of clean water. They were joined by Peter Raabe of American Rivers.

Environmental Blogging proves why the Neuse River was listed in America’s Most Endangered Rivers by American Rivers in 2007.

Quiet Paths has a picture of a not so wild river. They have a slight theme of posts with wild river pictures.

Commissioner Sam, from Portland, OR was on hand when the city received two awards for their Rain Garden and Stormwater work.

gbNYC reports that the Boston Red Sox will be going green under the Green Monster. In addition to working their magic on the Colorado Rockies, the team is working to control stormwater runoff from the historic stadium.

News on past most endangered rivers

Posted on October 26, 2007 | Filed Under Endangered Rivers, Mid-Atlantic, Outreach, Southeast

Chelsea Lane-Miller, Associate Director of Outreach
Outreach Events and Activities

Sometimes news on rivers listed in our past America’s Most Endangered Rivers reports comes in waves. Today is another one of those days.

A story came out on the Big Sandy River, listed as the #7 river in the 2001 Edition of our report for unstable coal slurry impoundments. Three states - Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia - have signed an agreement to help cleanup the river, which is polluted by sediment from years of coal mining, and also raw sewage. This is great news to see states working together to clean up a shared resource.

Also, the Neuse River, #8 on America’s Most Endangered Rivers: 2007 Edition, is gathering volunteers to monitor construction site runoff. This effort is organized through the Neuse River Foundation’s Muddy Water Watch.

It’s always good to learn that ongoing efforts are making a difference for these rivers, and we salute those who are working to make that difference.

We call upon the waters… — Chinook Blessing Litany

Posted on October 26, 2007 | Filed Under Quotes

Lindsay Martin, Web Editor
River Quotes: Your Daily Escape

“We call upon the waters that rim the earth, horizon to horizon, that flow in our rivers and streams, that fall upon our gardens and fields, and we ask that they teach us and show us the way.” — Chinook Blessing Litany

*Get your River Facts straight - learn what’s the longest river or how many miles of rivers there are in the United States. More

River Quotes are posted weekday mornings. Want to see your favorite river quote here? Email it to lmartin@AmericanRivers.org.

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