Shoshone-Bannock Tribes - Idaho Power

Responses to CommentsIdaho Power CompanyRESPONSE TO COMMENT SBT1-88As described in this section, the sockeye salmon being referred to are downstream of the HCCand destined for the Salmon River. Factors that led to their decline are many but are not relatedto the HCC. Sockeye salmon that historically occupied areas upstream of the HCC wereextirpated by construction of Black Canyon Dam on the Payette River in the 1920s—beforeconstruction of the HCC.RESPONSE TO COMMENT SBT1-89Thank you for the comment. However, to add to your comment and to be more precise—allcreatures require water for life—not just fish. Please do not presume that IPC has little regard forlife or the water that all creatures require.Hatchery fish are not the only focus of IPC or of the regional scientific community.RESPONSE TO COMMENT SBT1-90The wild fish that are captured at the HCC likely originated from some of the smaller tributariesbelow the HCC. The current protocol for these fish is to release them back into the river belowthe dam.RESPONSE TO COMMENT SBT1-91The decision by the FPC in 1963 to relocate salmon and steelhead from the Snake River to theSalmon River stems from failed efforts to provide passage at the HCC. At that time, this wasbelieved to be the only viable means of preserving salmon and steelhead populations for thefuture.RESPONSE TO COMMENT SBT1-92This comment refers to a 1963 decision by the FPC to relocate anadromous fish from theSnake River to the Salmon River basin. Without baseline information to describe salmon andsteelhead populations in the Salmon River prior to relocation, it is impossible to evaluate theoutcome some 40 years later.RESPONSE TO COMMENT SBT1-93IPC is not clear what is meant by the statement that “the fish have not been saved.” The IPChatchery mitigation program has been successful at replacing harvest opportunities lost fromimpacts associated with the construction and operation of the HCC. The cost of this program hasincreased annually as necessary.RESPONSE TO COMMENT SBT1-94The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes provide no indication as to what other measures they aresuggesting.Page 62Hells Canyon Complex