[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3503 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3503

To ensure that proper information gathering and planning are undertaken 
to secure the preservation and recovery of the salmon and steelhead of 
 the Columbia River Basin in a manner that protects and enhances local 
 communities, ensures effective expenditure of Federal resources, and 
maintains reasonably priced, reliable power, to direct the Secretary of 
  Commerce to seek scientific analysis of Federal efforts to restore 
 salmon and steelhead listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 31, 2009

   Mr. McDermott (for himself, Mr. Petri, Mr. Blumenauer, Mr. George 
    Miller of California, Mr. Markey of Massachusetts, Mr. Moran of 
 Virginia, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Grijalva, Mrs. Capps, Mr. Farr, Mr. Olver, 
Mr. Stark, Mr. Schiff, Mr. Kennedy, Ms. DeLauro, Ms. Lee of California, 
Mr. Nadler of New York, Mr. Honda, Mr. Berman, Ms. Norton, Mr. Wexler, 
    Mr. Payne, Mr. Kildee, Ms. Eshoo, and Mr. Gordon of Tennessee) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committees on 
     Natural Resources and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To ensure that proper information gathering and planning are undertaken 
to secure the preservation and recovery of the salmon and steelhead of 
 the Columbia River Basin in a manner that protects and enhances local 
 communities, ensures effective expenditure of Federal resources, and 
maintains reasonably priced, reliable power, to direct the Secretary of 
  Commerce to seek scientific analysis of Federal efforts to restore 
 salmon and steelhead listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Salmon Solutions and Planning Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds and declares the following:
            (1) Certain species of wild salmon and steelhead in the 
        Columbia and Snake River Basin are on the brink of extinction 
        as a consequence of various factors, including the construction 
        and operation of hydroelectric projects, harvest management 
        practices, habitat degradation, altered in-stream flow regimes, 
        and unsound hatchery practices.
            (2) These salmon and steelhead have major economic, 
        ecological, educational, recreational, scientific, cultural, 
        and spiritual significance to the Nation and its people.
            (3) Thirteen salmon and steelhead species in the Columbia 
        and Snake River Basin are listed for protection under the 
        Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).
            (4) The Federal Government, including Bonneville Power 
        Administration's ratepayers in the Pacific Northwest, has spent 
        more than $8,000,000,000 on salmon recovery efforts in the 
        Columbia and Snake River Basin to date.
            (5) Salmon and steelhead are symbols of the Pacific 
        Northwest, support thousands of jobs in coastal and inland 
        communities, and serve as an indicator of the health of 
        Northern California, Nevada, Alaska, and Pacific Northwest 
        river ecosystems.
            (6) Salmon and steelhead of the Snake River are a vital 
        economic resource to communities in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, 
        Idaho, and California. Restoring Snake River salmon to healthy, 
        self-sustaining, harvestable levels will have significant 
        economic benefits for these communities as well as communities 
        in Nevada where these fish once returned.
            (7) The original range of Snake River salmon included not 
        only their existing habitat in central Idaho, northeast Oregon, 
        southeast Washington, the mid- and lower Columbia River, and 
        the coastal waters of Alaska, California, Oregon, and 
        Washington, but also habitat in the upper Columbia River and 
        the upper Snake River Basin, including southern Idaho, 
        southeast Oregon, and northern Nevada.
            (8) The United States Government has signed treaties with 
        Indian tribes in Oregon, Washington, Montana, and Idaho and 
        with the Government of Canada creating a legally enforceable 
        trust responsibility to restore salmon populations to 
        sustainable, harvestable levels.
            (9) Since the construction of 4 Federal dams on the lower 
        Snake River in Washington, salmon and steelhead populations in 
        the Snake River have significantly declined, and all salmon and 
        steelhead populations in the Snake River are either already 
        extinct or listed as endangered species or threatened species 
        under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 
        seq.).
            (10) Recent studies indicate that the window of time to 
        protect and restore Snake River salmon and steelhead is short, 
        with scientists estimating that, if changes do not occur, 
        several of the remaining Snake River salmon populations could 
        be extinct within the next 20 years.
            (11) A federally funded group of State, tribal, Federal, 
        and independent scientists found that removing the 4 lower 
        Snake River dams in Washington is the surest way to protect and 
        recover Snake River salmon and steelhead. Similar conclusions 
        have been reached in studies by the Army Corps of Engineers and 
        the Department of Commerce. At the same time, it is well 
        understood that removing these dams is not a ``silver bullet'' 
        for the recovery of all salmon and steelhead populations in the 
        Columbia and Snake River Basin and other actions are also 
        necessary to further protect and restore these fish.
            (12) Removal of the 4 lower Snake River dams would affect 
        electricity generation, freight shipping, and water supply 
        systems, and these benefits must be replaced through other 
        means in order to protect local communities, farms, and the 
        regional energy supply system.
            (13) The 4 lower Snake River dams currently produce 
        renewable electricity. Studies have found that the Northwest 
        has ample additional existing and potential clean renewable 
        energy sources to cost-effectively replace the power produced 
        by these dams in a manner that is compatible with broader 
        efforts to reduce regional greenhouse gas emissions.
            (14) In the event that the 4 lower Snake River dams are 
        removed, their energy benefits should be replaced with cost-
        effective, clean renewable sources, as well as energy 
        efficiency and conservation.
            (15) The removal of the 4 lower Snake River dams would 
        bring opportunities to inland Northwest communities by opening 
        up 140 miles of free-flowing river, and providing needed 
        resources for more effective and efficient freight 
        transportation systems.
            (16) A Federal court has found that the 4 lower Snake River 
        dams violate water quality standards under the Federal Water 
        Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.).
            (17) A significant amount of sediment has built up behind 
        Lower Granite Dam, posing a flood risk to the city of Lewiston, 
        Idaho, which now sits below the height of the lower Snake 
        River. A study by the Army Corps of Engineers found that nearly 
        $2,000,000,000 worth of buildings and infrastructure sit in the 
        Clarkston/Lewiston area floodplain where they face a growing 
        threat of major damage from levee breaching. The same Corps 
        study estimates that the costs of river-dredging and levee-
        raising needed to protect these areas could cost taxpayers 
        hundreds of millions of dollars.
            (18) Global warming is already having and will continue to 
        have detrimental effects on Pacific salmon populations. Snake 
        River salmon may be key to maintaining and rebuilding salmon 
        populations throughout the Columbia and Snake River Basin, as 
        their high-elevation spawning grounds are the most likely to 
        remain viable in the face of warming temperatures; thus, taking 
        action now to protect these salmon is vitally important.
            (19) The Northwest Power and Conservation Council 
        commissioned a report in 2000 that concluded that removing the 
        4 lower Snake River dams is a more cost-effective way to 
        restore wild salmon and steelhead populations to the Columbia 
        and Snake River Basin than strategies that do not include dam 
        removal.
            (20) Three of the last four biological opinions regarding 
        the Columbia and Snake River Federal hydrosystem have been 
        found illegal by Federal courts.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to ensure the protection and recovery of wild Columbia 
        and Snake River salmon and steelhead to self-sustaining, 
        harvestable levels, while providing for reliable, reasonably 
        priced, and clean renewable energy in the Northwest, a reliable 
        and affordable freight transportation system, and an 
        economically sustainable salmon recovery program, and to 
        maximize the economic benefits from potential dam removal while 
        mitigating for its impacts; and
            (2) to ensure that the Northwest and the Nation have 
        completed the necessary planning and evaluation to efficiently 
        manage salmon recovery by implementing biologically effective 
        measures and responding rapidly if and when major new actions 
        are determined to be necessary to protect and recover salmon 
        and steelhead in the Columbia and Snake River Basin.

SEC. 3. SCIENTIFIC ANALYSIS OF FEDERAL SALMON RECOVERY EFFORTS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 3 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Commerce shall enter into an 
arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences providing for 
scientific analysis of Federal salmon recovery efforts and submission 
of a report on the results of the analysis in accordance with 
subsection (c).
    (b) Contents.--For purposes of this section, scientific analysis 
shall include, at a minimum, a review of Snake River dam removal and 
other actions that may be necessary to achieve recovery of salmon and 
steelhead populations of the Columbia and Snake River Basin listed 
under section 4(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
1533(c)).
    (c) Report.--Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the National Academy of Sciences shall submit to the 
Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the 
Interior, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and 
to Congress a report on the results of the scientific analysis 
conducted under this section.

SEC. 4. STUDY OF RAIL, HIGHWAY, AND BARGE IMPROVEMENTS.

    The Secretary of Transportation shall conduct a peer-reviewed 
analysis of which rail, highway, and Columbia River barge 
infrastructure improvements would be necessary to ensure a cost-
effective and efficient transportation system for agricultural and 
other shippers who currently use barge transportation between Lewiston, 
Idaho, and the confluence of the Snake and Columbia Rivers and would be 
unable to do so if the 4 lower Snake River dams were removed. This 
analysis shall include a review of cost increases, if any, of shipping 
rates and options for addressing any such cost increases so as to 
minimize the potential impact on shippers. This analysis shall 
incorporate input and feedback from farmers and other shippers, the 
Washington, Idaho, and Oregon State Departments of Transportation, and 
other relevant stakeholders in the agricultural, business, and public 
interest communities, and any suggestions or decisions arrived at 
through consensus deliberations of the same or similar participants. 
This analysis shall be completed and a report thereon submitted to 
Congress within 12 months after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. STUDY OF ENERGY REPLACEMENT.

    The Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the White House 
Office of Energy and Climate Change, shall conduct a peer-reviewed 
analysis of what energy replacement options exist to replace the power 
currently generated by the 4 lower Snake River dams in the event the 
dams are removed. The analysis shall include a review of existing, 
planned, and potential clean renewable energy resources, in addition to 
energy efficiency, energy conservation, and combined heat and power 
projects. This analysis shall be completed and a report thereon 
submitted to Congress within 12 months after the date of enactment of 
this Act.

SEC. 6. STUDY OF LOWER SNAKE RIVER RIVERFRONT REVITALIZATION.

    The Army Corps of Engineers, in consultation with relevant State 
and local governments and interested parties, shall conduct an analysis 
of what riverfront revitalization and restoration opportunities would 
exist in the event of the removal of the 4 lower Snake River dams and 
what costs would be incurred to implement such revitalization and 
restoration measures. This work shall focus on riverfront 
revitalization for Lewiston, Idaho, and Clarkston, Washington, but may 
include other impacted communities along the 140 miles of the lower 
Snake River. This analysis shall be completed and a report thereon 
submitted to Congress within 12 months after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, shall include determination of engineering options and 
costs, and shall be peer-reviewed generally in accordance with section 
2034 of Public Law 110-114 to determine the accuracy of the preferred 
engineering options and costs determined by the Army Corps of 
Engineers.

SEC. 7. STUDY OF IRRIGATION PROTECTIONS.

    The Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of 
Reclamation, shall conduct a peer-reviewed analysis of the options and 
costs regarding any needed modifications to affected irrigation 
systems, cooling systems, and private wells if the 4 lower Snake River 
dams were removed. This analysis shall be completed and a report 
thereon submitted to Congress within 12 months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION AND STUDY OF SALMON RECOVERY.

    (a) Dam Removal Authorization.--Congress hereby determines that the 
Secretary of the Army may remove the four lower Snake River dams.
    (b) Review and Update of Feasibility Study.--The Secretary of the 
Army shall re-evaluate and update the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' 
Final Lower Snake River Juvenile Salmon Migration Feasibility Report/
Environmental Impact Statement (February 2002) pursuant to new 
information. The updated feasibility study shall incorporate and 
address, at a minimum, the following:
            (1) Current and expected future climate change impacts on 
        Columbia and Snake River salmon and steelhead populations and 
        their habitat.
            (2) Replacement of the 4 lower Snake River dams' average 
        energy output (not nameplate capacity) with clean renewable 
        energy resources, including energy efficiency and conservation.
            (3) Options for keeping currently irrigated acreage intact 
        and under irrigation in a dam removal scenario.
            (4) Costs associated with Lower Granite Dam reservoir 
        sediment/flood risk mitigation in a non-dam-removal scenario.
            (5) Passive Use Values associated with both dam removal and 
        non-dam-removal scenarios.
            (6) Alternate methods for removing the 4 lower Snake River 
        dams in addition to the method analyzed in the 2002 
        environmental impact statement, including but not limited to 
        full dam removal and removing or notching the dams' concrete 
        portions.
    (c) Completion; Report; Peer Review.--The Secretary of the Army 
shall--
            (1) complete the re-evaluation and update and submit a 
        report thereon to Congress within 20 months after the date of 
        enactment of this Act;
            (2) include in the report determination of engineering 
        options and costs; and
            (3) shall submit the results of the re-evaluation and 
        update (including such determination of engineering options and 
        costs) to peer review generally in accordance with section 2034 
        of Public Law 110-114 to determine the accuracy of the 
        preferred engineering options and costs.

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the following definitions apply:
            (1) Clean renewable energy resources.--For the purposes of 
        this bill the term ``clean renewable energy resources'' means--
                    (A) incremental electricity produced as the result 
                of efficiency improvements to existing hydroelectric 
                generation projects, including in irrigation pipes and 
                canals, where the additional generation in either case 
                does not result in new water diversions or 
                impoundments;
                    (B) wind;
                    (C) solar energy;
                    (D) geothermal energy;
                    (E) landfill gas;
                    (F) wave, ocean, or tidal power;
                    (G) gas from sewage treatment facilities; and
                    (H) biomass energy based on animal waste, food 
                waste, yard waste, or solid organic fuels from wood, 
                forest, or field residues, or dedicated energy crops, 
                other than--
                            (i) wood pieces that have been treated with 
                        chemical preservatives such as creosote, 
                        pentachlorophenol, or copper-chrome-arsenic;
                            (ii) pulping liquor from paper production;
                            (iii) wood from old growth forests; or
                            (iv) municipal solid waste.
            (2) Federal salmon recovery actions.--The term ``Federal 
        salmon recovery actions'' means Federal actions required to 
        protect, recover, and restore salmon and steelhead in the 
        Columbia and Snake River basin that are listed under section 
        4(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(c)).
            (3) Lower snake river dams.--The term ``4 lower Snake River 
        dams'' means the following dams on the Snake River, Washington:
                    (A) The Ice Harbor dam.
                    (B) The Lower Monumental dam.
                    (C) The Little Goose dam.
                    (D) The Lower Granite dam.
            (4) Peer review.--The term ``peer review'' has the meaning 
        that term has in section 2034 of Public Law 110-114.
            (5) Populations.--The term ``populations'' means the 13 
        evolutionarily significant units of salmon and steelhead in the 
        Columbia and Snake River basin that are listed under section 
        4(c) of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1533(c)).
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