Act for the Willamette River: Hold the U.S. Army Corps Accountable

Dear elected official,

I am writing to urge Congress to hold the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) accountable on the Willamette River. Congress must ensure that the Corps promptly completes long overdue steps necessary to safeguard threatened salmon, steelhead, and bull trout in the Willamette Basin and to save families and businesses money on expensive power. We need Congress to ensure the Corps:

1) Submits a full hydropower disposition study on time to Congress, and
2) Considers a no-power alternative in its Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the Willamette Valley System.

The dams in the Willamette are uneconomical. The Corps’ own analysis found that the dams would lose $939 million over 30 years because the costs of hydropower far outweigh the revenue.

As you know, Congress has twice directed the Corps to study the effects of deauthorizing hydropower at eight dams in the Willamette River Basin.

— In the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) 2020, Congress asked the Corps to study deauthorizing hydropower at Cougar, Detroit, and Big Cliff dams. The Corps, however, failed to submit a report, denying lawmakers the evidence they needed to make an informed decision.
— Then, in WRDA 2022, Congress required the Corps to complete this study at all eight hydropower dams by July 2024. The Corps, however, plans to submit an incomplete disposition study and has made no assurances that they intend to complete the study.

The Corps must adhere to Congressional timelines and Congressional directives.

In addition to missing deadlines and delaying studies, the Corps failed to include a no-power alternative in its PEIS for its 30-year plan to operate the dams. Instead, the Corps proposes a $1.9 billion plan, which includes installing ineffective fish collectors, to prevent salmon extinction. This plan is expected to double the cost of the little power that is generated–costs that will be passed on directly to American businesses and households.

The longer the Corps waits, the more our iconic wild salmon will be harmed, and the more families and business owners will lose money on a costly and inefficient power source.

We have an opportunity to save nearly a billion dollars while saving salmon runs that are critical to our region. This should be an easy decision. The Corps must complete the full hydropower disposition study and consider a no-power alternative in its final PEIS.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.