Idaho farmers who rely on Snake River water for irrigation fear they could one day be stuck with a $1 billion-plus bill for a plan by the State of Oregon to help endangered fish.
As a condition of relicensing Idaho Power Co.’s three Hells Canyon dams on the Idaho-Oregon border, Oregon leaders have proposed reintroducing endangered steelhead trout and salmon into Pine Creek, which originates in Oregon and spills into the Snake River upstream of Hells Canyon Dam. Under Oregon’s draft Clean Water Act certification proposal, Idaho Power would be expected to trap the fish upstream of the dam and truck them for release downstream, enabling them to migrate to the Pacific Ocean.
LINK (via: Capital Press)
