Power company, states, feds reach tentative deal to breach dams

The Agreement in Principle (AIP) released yesterday marks the first step toward removal of the dams by setting the framework for the transfer of the dams from PacifiCorp to a government-designed dam removal entity (DRE) that would undertake the removal process. 

The agreement mandates four years of scientific research to determine that dam removal is in the best interest of the public, which will include looking at sediment that has built up behind the dams, and what will happen if it’s released downriver. In a teleconference Thursday with Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski, California Secretary for Resources Mike Chrisman and Pacificorp CEO Greg Abel, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne said that if the data collected over the next four years proves that dam removal is “environmentally prudent,” the target removal year is 2020.

Only after that research is completed will the Department of Interior make the final determination as to whether the dams will be removed. According to the agreement, that decision will be made no later than March 31, 2012. The Interior Department will continue to dialogue with state, local and tribal governments, along with other stakeholders during the research process. The 2020 target date for removal, Kulongoski said, allows time to build a decomissioning fund without rate-shocking consumers.

Though the Bush administration has opposed the removal of hydroelectric dams elsewhere, Kempthorne said President Bush “has made it very clear that he wants a solution. Therefore, we had our directive from the president to find a collaborative solution where we don’t pit people against one another, but do all we possibly can to find an agreement. This marks the first step in a future process, but it’s a giant step.”

The agreement came after federal biologists reported that in order for PacifiCorp to relicense the dams, which provide electricity to customers in both Oregon and Northern California, the company would need to spend around $300 million to install fish ladders and other improvements.  

Abel said on Thursday that there is a $200 million cap on removal costs to be born by ratepayers, and California voters will also be asked to approve a $250 million bond that will directly assist with removal costs. If it’s determined that removal costs will likely exceed $450 million in non-federal contributions, the agreement says, a subsequent written agreement must be met before going forward with the removal.  

PacifiCorp’s 500,000 customers in Oregon and 45,000 customers in California will see a maximum 2 percent rate increase, Abel said. He added that the company is committed to spending $500,000 annually on incremental fish programs through the year 2020. 

“This agreement protects our customers and delivers fair and balanced outcomes to all our stakeholders,” Abel said. “We’re proud to be moving forward to more detailed framework, and we invite all interested parties to work with us ... as we move to provide a sustainable Klamath Basin.” 

Many tribes, conservationists, commercial fisherman and farmers support the project, citing the reintroduction of salmon to the upper basin, dependable irrigation to farmers and an end to feuds about water rights as reasons for dam removal. 

Some landowners along the Klamath, however, fear that  dam removal will harm their property, and may lead to flood danger. Others still fear that the “clean” energy from the hydroelectric dams will be replaced with less environmentally-friendly forms of energy. 

Kulongoski said the state of Oregon will assist PacifiCorp in replacing the hydroelectric energy these dams produce with “even better renewable energy.” 

Gov. Schwarzenegger did  not participate in the teleconference, but offered his support of the project in a written statement on Thursday, saying that “the health of the Klamath River is critical to the livelihood of numerous Northern California communities, and with this groundbreaking agreement we have established a framework for restoring an important natural resource for future generations.”