Fish & Wildlife
Rocky Barker: Snake River dams expendable?
An informed counterpoint to the flawed EarthFix “Dams or Salmon?” video Idaho Statesman reporter, Rocky Barker, a speaker at the NW Energy Coalition’s spring conference last April in Boise, has published the second piece in his series on the question of whether Columbia River salmon will ultimately survive. This installment offers hope based on the fact that, as grid…
Read MoreEarthFix/OPB video, “Dams or Salmon?”, never gives fish a chance
“Explainer” video doesn’t explain, it distorts. We love short, animated explainer videos. They entertainingly and quickly reduce complex issues to their simplest possible terms. The problem is they sometimes overshoot the mark and, instead of the simplest possible terms, they instead present issues in ways that are something less than simple. That’s what we get…
Read MoreNew bill threatens salmon, would weaken Endangered Species Act
(Today, the NW Energy Coalition issued the following press release in conjunction with Save our Wild Salmon, the Sierra Club, and Earthjustice.) Northwest business and conservation leaders oppose legislation to overturn 2016 federal court decision and push imperiled wild salmon populations closer to extinction. House bill would weaken the Endangered Species Act and increase costs…
Read MoreNWEC releases new Lower Snake River Dam fact sheet
As the Bonneville Power Administration and other federal agencies convene a hearing process concerning the fate of the lower Snake River dams and ongoing efforts to save threatened wild salmon populations, the NW Energy Coalition has released a new fact sheet that describes an affordable clean energy alternative to the dams. The fact sheet also outlines the steps that BPA and the federal agencies should take to assure that the process of creating a new environmental impact statement is thorough, fair and transparent.
Read MoreRemarks of Nancy Hirsh Executive Director, NW Energy Coalition Lower Snake River Dam Rally December 1, 2016
“All of us who live in the Northwest are being threatened. We’re being told that, if we remove the lower Snake River dams to restore wild salmon, we’ll have to build natural gas-fired power plants that will spew carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and drive up electric rates. In short, we’re being told, we can save wild salmon or we can have clean, abundant, affordable electricity, but we can’t have both.”
Read MoreNWEC Executive Director to speak at Save the Salmon Rally.
NWEC Executive Director Nancy Hirsh will speak this afternoon at 4PM at a rally to call on the Bonneville Power Administration and other federal agencies to conduct a thorough and fair investigation to determine whether the electricity generated by the lower Snake River dams that inhibit salmon migration can be replaced by other clean, renewable power options.
Read MoreNW Energy Coalition presents "Columbia-Snake River Salmon BiOp" 7/28 11:30 am
Join the NW Energy Coalition for a conversation about the latest federal court rejection of the government’s plan (biological opinion) for recovering salmon harmed by the Columbia-Snake hydropower system. The decision is a big win for Columbia Basin wild salmon.
Read MorePRESS RELEASE: Court strikes down feds' salmon plan again
The U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon today invalidated the federal government’s 2014 Columbia Basin salmon biological opinion (salmon plan or BiOp). Judge Michael Simon ruled that this latest plan – like each of its four predecessors — violates the federal Endangered Species Act and additionally the National Environmental Policy Act. The Court sided with plaintiff fishing businesses, conservation groups, clean energy advocates, the State of Oregon, and the Nez Perce Tribe.
Read More7th Plan hearing in Seattle
Thursday (Nov. 19) the Northwest Power and Conservation Council will hold a public hearing on the draft plan at the Hilton Airport Conference Center, 17620 International Blvd, 5-7 p.m., one of eight hearings the Council is conducting around the Northwest. Click here for the Coalition’s short talking points developed to prepare advocates for the regional 7th…
Read MoreWeigh in on the 7th Power Plan
The Northwest Power and Conservation Council, the region’s official power planning agency, has just released the draft of its seventh regional power plan. The public now has 60 days to provide written reactions and opportunities to attend and testify at public hearings in all four Northwest states.
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