Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program--salmon recovery : hearing before a subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations, United States Senate, One Hundred Fourth Congress, first session : special hearing--Office of Management and Budget, Bonneville Power Administration, nondepartmental witnesses

United States. Congress. Senate. Committee On Appropriations. Subcommittee On Energy And Water Development

Sujets

• Wildlife management
• Columbia Basin

Informations

• Publié par: les_archives_du_savoir
• Nombre de lectures: 9
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 11 Mo

Extrait

S. Hrg. 104-642
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RECOVERYPROGRAM-SALMON
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HEARING
BEFORE A
THESUBCOMMITTEE OF
APPROPRIATIONSCOMMITTEE ON
SENATEUNITED STATES
FOURTH CONGRESSONE HUNDRED
SESSIONFIRST
SPECIAL HEARING
Management and BudgetOffice of
Bonneville Power Administration
Nondepartmental witnesses
of the Committee on AppropriationsPrinted for the use
OFFICEU.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING
WASHINGTON : 1996
For sale by the U.S. Government Printing Office
Documents. Congressional Sales Office. Washington, DC 20402Superintendent of
0-16-053676-6ISBN104-642[A S. Hrg.
^ WILDLIFEHSH ANDCOLUMBIA RIVER BASIN)
RECOVERYPROGRAM-SALMON
104-642S. HRG.AP 6/2:4.
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HEARING
ABEFORE
OF THESUBCOMMITTEE
APPROPRIATIONSCOMMITTEE ON
SENATEUNITED STATES
FOURTH CONGRESSONE HUNDRED
FIRST SESSION
HEARINGSPECIAL
Management and BudgetOffice of
Power AdministrationBonneville
Nondepartmental witnesses
Appropriationsof the Committee onPrinted for the use
PRINTING OFFICEU.S. GOVERNMENT
WASHINGTON : 199626-104 cc
sale by the U.S. Government Printing OfficeFor
20402Documents, Congressional Sales Office, Washington, DCSuperintendent of
0-16-053676-6ISBNCOMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
MARK O. HATFIELD, Oregon, Chairman
TED STEVENS, Alaska ROBERT C. BYRD, West Virginia
THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii
ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, South Carolina
PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico J. BENNETT JOHNSTON, Louisiana
PHIL GRAMM, Texas PATRICK J. LEAHY, Vermont
CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri DALE BUMPERS, Akansas
SLADE GORTON, Washington FRANK R. LAUTENBERG, New Jersey
MITCH McCONNELL, Kentucky TOM HARKIN, Iowa
CONNIE MACK, Florida BARBARA A. MIKULSKI, Maryland
CONRAD BURNS, Montana HARRY REID, Nevada
RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama J. ROBERT KERREY, Nebraska
M. JEFFORDS, Vermont HERB KOHL, WisconsinJAMES
JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire PATTY MURRAY, Washington
ROBERT F. BENNETT, Utah
J. Keith KE^fNEDY, Staff Director
Mark Van de Water, Deputy Staff Director
James H. English, Minority Staff
Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico Chairman
HATFIELD, Oregon J. BENNETT JOHNSTON, LouisianaMARK O.
THAD COCHRAN, Mississippi ROBERT C. BYRD, West Virginia
GORTON, Washington ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, South CarolinaSLADE
MITCH McCONNELL, Kentucky HARRY REID, Nevada
ROBERT F. BENNETT, Utah J. ROBERT KERREY, Nebraska
CONRAD BURNS, Montana PATTY MURRAY, Washington
Staff
Mark D. Walker
W. David Gwaltney
Lashawnda Leftwich
(II). .
CONTENTS
OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGETOFFICE
Page
1Statement of Alice Rivlin, Director
1 of Hon. Mark O. Hatfield
3procedureHearing
of Alice M. Rivlin 5Prepared statement
Murkowski 8Statement of Hon. Frank
10Prepared statement
58 of Hon. J. Bennett Johnston
62of Hon. Slade GortonStatement
63of Hon. Patty Murray .'.7.^^^^^^;^^.
65Conrad Burns .^m.,,....,,,^^. of
65statement Tr^^TnTTTr^^.,^^^^^,;^^^^^..Prepared ~
.7^~~7.Craig . . . .t:777T77777.tt.^tttttttttt ,^„.^^.^.,^c„^.„. GGStatement of Hon. Larry
Kempthorne 68 of Dirk
69Prepared statement
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
AdministrationBonneville Power
73Statement of Randall Hardy, Administrator
77Prepared statement
100Questions submitted by Senator Mark Hatfield
NONDEPARTMENTAL WITNESSES
145Ralph Cavanagh, director, Natural Resources Defense Council ...Statement of
147Prepared statement
chairman, Spokane Tribe of Indians 148 ofWarren Seyler,
150
utilities, Tacoma Public Utilities 151Statement ofMark Crisson, director of
153Prepared statement
Portland General Elec- of Richard E. Dyer, senior vice president,
154tric Co
156Prepared statement
officer, Reyn-Statement of Richard G. Holder, chairman and chief executive
158olds Metals Co
160Prepared statement
Act Coali-Statement of K.C. Golden, policy director. Northwest Conservation
161tion
165Prepared statement
ofStatement of Donald Sampson, chairman, Umatilla Indian Tribe, State
172Oregon, Columbia River Treaty Tribes
175Prepared statement
Northwest salmon campaign coordinator. SierraStatement of Jim Baker,
178Club
181Prepared statement
Ph.D., executive director. Pacific NorthwestStatement of Glenn Vanselow,
191Waterways Association
193Prepared statement
Canal Co 194Statement of DeWitt Moss, director. North Side
197
(III)COLUMBIA RIVER BASIN FISH AND WILDLIFE
PROGRAM—SALMON RECOVERY
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15, 1995
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development,
Committee on Appropriations,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met at 2:05 p.m., in room SD-192, Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Hon. Mark O. Hatfield (chairman) presid-
ing.
Present: Senators Hatfield, Gorton, Bennett, Bums, Johnston,
and Murray.
Senators Stevens, Baucus, Craig, Kempthome, andAlso present:
Murkowski.
OFFICE OFMANAGEMENTAND BUDGET
RIVLIN, DIRECTORSTATEMENT OF ALICE
GLAUTHIER, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR FOR NATU-ACCOMPANIED BY T.J.
SCIENCERAL RESOURCES, ENERGY,AND
MARK HATFIELDstatement of HON. O.
Senator Hatfield. The meeting will come to order.
Today the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, the
variety ofAppropriations Committee, will receive testimony fi'om a
Power Administra-witnesses on issues relating to the Bonneville
tion and Columbia River basin.
North-The importance of these interrelated topics to the Pacific
west cannot be overstated, and, therefore, I have invited all my
Senate colleagues from the region and Alaska to participate in to-
day's proceedings.
The Columbia River is the stuff from which legends are made.
The story of the Columbia is the story of the Pacific Northwest.
The river's reputation has reverberated through the American
mind, first river of unimagined natural wealth, teeming withas a
species; as a river whose bounty sus-salmon, steelhead, and other
native Americans over thousands of years;tained generations of
resources and might were harnessed byand later as a river whose
structures of the 20thman to help build the economic and social
century.
history ofPerhaps it is inevitable that these two episodes of the
American mind,the Columbia basin would someday collide in the
salmon andand that the two symbols representing these eras, the
(1)Bonneville Power Administration, would ultimately meet in thethe
begin another chapter in history.Halls of Congress and yet
The situation today is this: We face a double crises—the demise
of both of these symbols of the Pacific Northwest. We all know that
the salmon reached the crisis stage with the endangered species
years ago.listings 2
however, is that the BonnevilleWhat is not as well understood,
Power Administration also faces the greatest crisis in its history.
We all share the desire to rebuild the salmon runs. Simply, it is
the right thing to do.
Likewise, we all should share the desire to see that Bonneville
survives. The collective benefits reaped from the generation of hy-
dropower for the past 60 years are immeasurable. We should not
in hurry throw away that portion of the region's legacy.be a to
legislative twist of fate in salmon and Bonne-Through a 1980,
ville became entangled in a budgetary bureaucracy. Fish and wild-
life mitigation in the Columbia basin became dependent on the rev-
enue-generating capabilities of Bonneville Power.
The Northwest Power Act of 1980 established the Columbia
directed that Bonneville reve-basin Fish and Wildlife Program and
the ar-nues be used to fund it. Depending on your perspective,
rangement is either a blessing or a curse.
It's a relationship not unlike that of a mail order bride and her
newly acquainted husband, incompatible, yet dependent.
The region needs toToday, we find ourselves at a crossroads.
save its salmon runs and ensure the long-term viability of the Bon-
neville Power Administration. On the one hand, the Federal hydro
of the salmon. On the othersystem has had a role in the decline
hand, it is a primary source of hard currency that will pay for re-
covery measures. It is in the region's best interest to see that both
survive.
Until recently, many believed that Bonneville could absorb the
cost of salmon recovery, meet all of its statutory and financial re-
sponsibilities, and remain a competitive supplier of electricity in
the region.
That scenario now, however, is very much in doubt. For a variety
recovery, Bon-of reasons, extending far beyond the cost of salmon
neville is losing its competitive edge. A series of unfortunate
events, some self-inflicted, some not, have rearranged Bonneville's
role in the Northwest electricity market.
The WPPSS nuclear plant debacle, 8 consecutive years of
the deregulation ofdrought, widely fluctuating aluminum prices,
the utility industry, access to low-cost natural gas, and other fac-
tors have created a very real competitive and financial crisis for
Bonneville.
With each passing it becomes more likely that legislationday
will be necessary to ensure Bonneville's viability over the long
term. The question, though, i