Our new Biological Assessment is out - Klamath Basin Crisis

Klamath Project Operations Biological Assessment
Coho Salmon: Effects of the Proposed Action on Coho Salmon
However, in Table 1, page 16, in the associated draft BO on the proposed
relicensing of the Klamath Hydroelectric Project 39 , FERC Project No. 2082, a
summary of USFWS proposed modified fishway prescriptions and timetable for
the Klamath Hydroelectric Project are listed. Within this table, fish ladders are
prescribed for IGD within five years and for the Copco Dams within six years
(USFWS 2007 Opinion).
By providing fish passage at these dams, anadromous coho salmon may be
reintroduced to habitats above IGD that they formerly occupied. Reintroduction
of coho salmon into the Upper Klamath River watershed may affect non-salmon
fish communities up to and including Spenser Creek. However, these species
coexisted for thousands of years before access to the Upper Klamath basin was
blocked in 1918 (USFWS 2007 Opinion).
Summary of the Effects of the Proposed Action on the ESU
Analysis of the Proposed Action’s effects was provided that corresponds to each
of the four VSP criteria: abundance, productivity, spatial structure, and diversity.
Life-cycle simulations were used to examine how the Proposed Action will
influence the four VSP criteria for the SONCC coho salmon ESU.
(1) Abundance: Simulation of the Proposed Action showed that a wide range
of flow releases from IGD had little effect on coho salmon smolt
production from the Klamath River Basin. The downstream effects from a
different set of meteorology and tributary flows had a far greater effect on
smolt production. The simulation results suggest that the population can
tolerate adverse environmental conditions in freshwater without collapsing
within four generations (12 years).
(2) Productivity: Simulations were completed for smolt production under the
Proposed Action and under historical flows conditions. Although the total
smolt production for the Klamath River Basin shows little change between
IGD release regimes, the breakdown for individual populations shows
39 On February 25, 2004, PacifiCorp filed an application with the Commission for a new license
for the 161-megawatt Klamath Hydroelectric Project, FERC No. 2082, located principally on
the Klamath River, between Klamath Falls, Oregon and Yreka, California. The existing project
consists of eight developments, one of which, (Keno) has no generating facilities. Major project
dams with generating facilities are Iron Gate, Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, and J.C. Boyle dams.
The existing project occupies a total of 219 acres of lands of the United States, which are
administered by BLM and Reclamation. PacifiCorp proposes to decommission two
powerhouses (East Side and West Side) and to remove Keno Dam from the project.
275