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| Dear Friend, |
| In December 2023, the four lower Columbia River Treaty Tribes, the states of Washington and Oregon, nonprofit plaintiffs, and the Biden administration reached a historic agreement to pause litigation over dam operations on the lower Snake and Columbia Rivers and begin implementing a set of federal commitments to restore salmon and other native fish populations and begin to honor Tribal treaty and trust obligations. |
| A critical component of this agreement is a $300 million commitment over 10 years from the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), a federal agency that markets the power generated by dams in the Columbia River Basin, for fish restoration projects. BPA agreed to these critical investments – which will help restore salmon and therefore imperiled Southern Resident orca – as a party to the Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement. |
| Unfortunately, the House of Representatives is advancing legislation that contains a poison pill rider that could drastically limit BPA funding for salmon restoration efforts. If enacted, it would sabotage the important commitments the United States made just months ago to honor Tribal treaty rights and restore native salmon species in the Columbia Basin. |
| Attempts to undermine this landmark salmon recovery effort are especially unacceptable considering the Department of the Interior’s recent Tribal Circumstances Analysis that acknowledges the U.S. government’s moral and legal responsibility to address the historic and ongoing devastating impacts to Tribes caused by federal dams in the Columbia River Basin. |
| Urge your Members of Congress to oppose this poison pill rider and any similar language that could undermine efforts to restore endangered species and honor Tribal treaty rights by limiting BPA funding for salmon restoration projects. |
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Sincerely,
Cameron Walkup
Associate Legislative Representative |
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| Photo Credits: A sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) in Little Redfish Lake Creek, Sawtooth National Recreation Area, Idaho. (Neil Ever Osborne / Save Our Wild Salmon / iLCP) |
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