The federal government approved the regulatory framework for the removal of four dams on the Klamath system. The dams do not provide irrigation or drinking water. The hydropower generated is about half of what could be generated in better climate conditions. A larger factor in the decision is the dams’ effect on the salmon population and drought.
According to Jefferson Public Radio (JPR), a service of Oregon State University, fish kills alarmed Tribal stakeholders in 2001 and 2002. “By 2010, a diverse group of stakeholders, which included tribes, federal and state agencies, farmers, fishing groups, and conservation organizations, had signed two agreements. The first, called the Klamath Basin Renewal Agreement (KBRA), was a basin-wide blueprint for restoring habitat, establishing reliable water supplies, and spurring economic development. The second, the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (KHSA), laid out a path for dam removal,” writes JPR. These agreements failed to receive necessary Congressional approval. JPR reports that in 2016, a smaller coalition of stakeholders regrouped and decided on an alternative path to dam removal that didn’t require Congressional approval. A newly created entity called the Klamath River Renewal Corporation would take over ownership and oversee the decommissioning of the dams. The amended KHSA, which was signed in 2016, left out many of the provisions that protected agricultural producers. Faced with the potential cost overruns associated with dam removal, the states of Oregon and California agreed to share the financial burden with Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway, which owns PacifiCorp., a major stakeholder in the dams. The agreement was formalized in a Memorandum of Understanding in late 2020.
On November 17, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, approved the surrender of PacificCorp’s license for four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River. The order is the last major regulatory step before these dams can be decommissioned. According to JPR, this marks the start of the largest dam removal project in U.S. history. The four dams to be decommissioned include:
- Iron Gate Dam (the first to be removed);
- Copco Dams 1 and 2 (slated for removal in 2024); and
- J. C. Boyle Dam.
Image Description and Credit:
“Klamath Basin Tribes and allies from the commercial fishing and conservation organizations stage a rally at the bi-annual meeting of the international hydropower industry- Hydrovision 2006. The Tribes are calling for the removal of PacifiCorp’s four Klamath River dams to help restore Klamath Salmon runs.” Patrick McCully from Berkeley, United States, August 2006. Wikimedia Commons.
Serikali ya shirikisho iliidhinisha mfumo wa udhibiti wa kuondolewa kwa mabwawa manne kwenye mfumo wa Klamath. Mabwawa hayo hayatumi maji ya umwagiliaji wala ya kunywa. Nishati ya maji inayotokezwa ni karibu nusu ya ile ambayo ingeweza kutokezwa katika hali bora za hali ya hewa. Sababu kubwa katika uamuzi ni athari za mabwawa juu ya idadi ya samaki wa samaki na ukame. Kulingana na Jefferson Public Radio (JPR), huduma ya Chuo Kikuu cha Jimbo la Oregon, samaki huua wadau wa kabila waliohusika katika 2001 na 2002. Kufikia mwaka 2010, kikundi cha wadau mbalimbali, ambao walitia ndani makabila, mashirika ya shirikisho na ya serikali, wakulima, vikundi vya uvuvi, na mashirika ya uhifadhi, walikuwa wamesaini makubaliano mawili. Mkataba wa Klamath Basin Renewal Agreement (KBRA) ulikamilishwa mnamo mwaka wa 2015 na kuimarisha mazingira ya asili, kuimarisha usambazaji wa maji, na kuimarisha maendeleo ya kiuchumi. Mkataba wa pili, Mkataba wa Makazi ya Umeme wa Maji ya Klamath (KHSA), uliweka njia ya kuondoa bwawa, JPR inaandika. Mikataba hiyo ilishindwa kupitishwa na Bunge. JPR iliripoti kwamba mnamo 2016, muungano mdogo wa wadau ulijumuisha tena na kuamua njia mbadala ya kuondoa bwawa ambayo haikuhitaji idhini ya Bunge. Shirika jipya lililoundwa lililoitwa Klamath River Renewal Corporation lingechukua umiliki na kusimamia kuondolewa kwa mabwawa hayo. Sheria ya KSA iliyobadilishwa, iliyosainiwa mnamo 2016, iliacha mbali masharti mengi ambayo yaliwalinda wazalishaji wa kilimo. Kwa sababu ya gharama za kuondoa mabwawa hayo, majimbo ya Oregon na California yalikubali kushiriki mzigo huo na kampuni ya Buffett ya Berkshire Hathaway, ambayo inamiliki kampuni ya Pacifica. Mkataba huo ulifanywa rasmi katika Memorandum of Understanding mwishoni mwa 2020. Tume ya Udhibiti wa Nishati ya Shirikisho (FERC) imepitisha uamuzi wa kuachilia leseni ya PacificCorp ya ujenzi wa mabwawa manne ya umeme kwenye Mto Klamath. Amri hiyo ni hatua ya mwisho kubwa ya udhibiti kabla ya mabwawa haya kuondolewa. Kulingana na JPR, hii ni mwanzo wa mradi mkubwa zaidi wa kuondoa bwawa katika historia ya Marekani. Mabwawa manne yatakayoondolewa ni pamoja na: Bwawa la Iron Gate (la kwanza kuondolewa); Bwawa la Copco 1 na 2 (linatarajiwa kuondolewa mnamo 2024); na Bwawa la J.C. Boyle. Maelezo ya picha na Mikopo: <unk>Klamath Basin Tribes na washirika kutoka mashirika ya uvuvi wa kibiashara na uhifadhi wa mazingira huandaa mkutano katika mkutano wa kila mwaka wa tasnia ya umeme wa maji ya kimataifa - Hydrovision 2006. "Mashirika ya kimataifa ya uokoaji ya maji ya Pasifika yamepiga kura ya kuondoa mabwawa manne ya mto wa Klamath, na kuanzisha ""Mashirika ya Uokoaji wa Maji ya Pasifika"" (PACF) katika mji wa Berkeley, Marekani." Wikimedia Commons.