Ian Brickey, ian.brickey@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Biden Administration released a report on the historic and continued impacts of dams on the Columbia River and its tributaries on Columbia Basin Tribes and salmon populations.
The new report, authored by the U.S. Department of the Interior, chronicles more than a century of negative effects on the region’s salmon populations and the impacts to Tribal Nations whose religious, cultural, and economic legacies and interests depend on abundant salmon. The construction and operation of dams across the Columbia Basin have had a devastating effect on salmon, steelhead, and lamprey populations. The dams have also flooded significant areas, displacing Tribal members and submerging important cultural sites. These impacts continue to place the federal government in breach of treaties it signed with Columbia Basin Tribes guaranteeing them access to salmon.
In December 2023, the Biden Administration announced an agreement with the Six Sovereigns (Nez Perce, Yakama, Umatilla and Warm Springs Tribes, along with the states of Washington and Oregon) that would invest more than $1 billion in salmon recovery and identify a path forward that replaces the services from the lower Snake River dams, and restores native fish populations to abundant levels.
In response, Ben Jealous, Sierra Club Executive Director, released the following statement:
“This report confirms what Tribes and experts have long known: it is past time to address the long-ignored injustices felt by Columbia Basin Tribes and take immediate actions to right these historic wrongs.
“The Biden Administration took the first steps in this process in December. This report must now serve as a guide in finishing those efforts, shaping the federal government’s work with the Tribes to achieve restoration and abundance for fish populations, secure the region’s clean energy needs, and meet treaty obligations.
“This report demonstrates a need for urgency in completing the federal government’s commitments, plans, and investments in the Columbia Basin included in the agreement as well as the Columbia Basin Restoration Initiative. The federal government made a solemn promise to the Lower Columbia Tribes when it signed those treaties more than a century ago. It is long overdue that we honor these commitments.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.