The Obama adminstration announced it will largely continue the Bush administration’s plans for salmon recovery in the Columbia Basin, with the addition of an "insurance policy" for the fish that could include breaching dams on the Snake River.
Federal agencies have been reviewing the Bush administration’s plan to manage the network of hydroelectric dams on the river, known as the 2008 Biological Opinion, for the past five months. The review was in response to litigation by several parties, including the state of Oregon and the Nez Perce Tribe of Idaho, that claimed the plan was inadequate to recover the basin’s 13 endangered species of salmon and steelhead.
The new amendment – called the adaptive management implementation plan – addresses the concerns the litigating parties raised and provides a roadmap in the case of a dramatic drop in salmon numbers, said Jane Lubchenco, the administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Lubchenco and other regional federal executives announced their plan during a conference call with reporters on the morning of Tuesday, Sept 15.