TAKE ACTION FOR CETACEANS!

Additional information regarding breaching the lower Snake River dams:
 

• List of policy & factual points for breaching the four lower snake river dams by Damsense: https://damsense.org/policy-factual-points-breaching-four-lower-snake-river-dams/
   

• Breaching the LSRDs will help combat climate change.  The warm stagnant reservoirs behind the dams emit significant methane gas, which will end with breaching.  After the dams have been breached, the restored vegetation along the 140 mile river corridor will sequester a lot more carbon than the current barren banks. Breaching will also bolster carbon storage in the forests and grasslands upstream of the dams, with more salmon bringing more nutrients to these inland areas. Breaching the lower Snake River dams will be a big boost to the Biden Administration's 30x30 program (protecting 30% of US lands and waters by 2030).  A 140 mile corridor from Tri-Cities WA to Lewiston ID, over 14,000 acres of valuable wetlands and riparian areas will be restored, providing crucial habitat and connectivity for native wildlife and plants.
   

• The Snake River was once one of the most productive salmon rivers on the West Coast. It produced more than half of the Northwest’s Spring Chinook and significant portions of Northwest sockeye, coho, Fall Chinook, and steelhead trout, totaling 4-6 million fish returning to the Snake River Basin each year. These fish are iconic in their own right but they also fed ecosystems and economies from the Pacific to the Continental Divide. Salmon, and especially Chinook, feed Southern Resident Killer Whales off the coast of California, Oregon, and Washington. These orcas are also in decline due to the loss of this primary food source. Salmon similarly benefit more than 130 other species in the region, ranging from grizzly bears and bald eagles to mayflies and Ponderosa pines. Removing them from the ecosystem has already led to troubling signs in the health of Idaho’s forests. Salmon are also a primary component of indigenous Tribes’ diets, cultures, religions, and economies. Where once Northwest Tribal members ate more than a pound of salmon per day, they’d now be fortunate to eat one fish per year. Tribal jobs and revenue have declined with the fish populations. Restoring these ecosystems and economies requires a significant increase in the number of wild salmon and steelhead returning to the Snake River. According to both the Columbia River System Operations EIS and the NOAA “Rebuilding Interior Columbia Basin Salmon and Steelhead” report, that’s only possible by breaching the lower Snake River dams and restoring a free-flowing river. That’s what restoration of the lower Snake River means - there are no compromise alternatives. The Biden Administration must take this action, replace the services provided by the dams, and watch as salmon bring a river back to life.