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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (May 1, 2019)
A5 THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, MAY 1, 2019 Tiny Micro-Chip Now In The Ear: Available! Now You See It... Now You Don’t! AP Photo/Gosia Wozniacka Federal legislation to assess 31 tribal fi shing sites in Oregon and Washington state and make critical improvements to sewer and water systems has passed the U.S. House after three years of delays. Tribal fi shing bill clears US House By GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press Pacifi c Northwest tribes fi ghting to get the U.S. gov- ernment to fully compen- sate them for the loss of dozens of homes and tradi- tional fi shing encampments to fl ooding caused by hydro- electric dams rejoiced Tues- day after federal legisla- tion to address their cause cleared a fi rst hurdle. A key bill that cleared the U.S. House on Mon- day would provide $11 mil- lion for improvements at alternative fi shing sites cre- ated by the U.S. govern- ment after several massive dams built on the Columbia River caused fl ooding that destroyed tribal fi shing sites beginning in the 1930s. Over the years, the gov- ernment has created 31 so-called “in lieu” fi sh- ing sites to compensate the tribes, but demand is high and several hundred tribal members now live year- round at camps that were intended to be seasonal, said Charles Hudson, director of government affairs with the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission. Conditions at some of the larger sites are unsani- tary, with sewer problems, crowding and unsafe drink- ing water, he said. The commission has identifi ed 18 sites that need particular attention in both Oregon and Washington state, including a site called Lone Pine, near The Dalles, and another called Cooks on the Washington side of the river. “There are often multi- ple generations living on the sites,” he said. “The term ‘usual and accustomed fi sh- ing places’ is a term of law and culture and people want to live close to where their right to fi sh is — and for many of the people living in these areas, they are liv- ing as close as they possibly can.” The bill also calls on the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs to assess all 31 sites dedicated to enabling the Nez Perce, Umatilla, Con- federated Tribes of the Warm Springs and Yakama to carry out their federally protected right to fi sh the river. U.S. Rep. Earl Blume- nauer, an Oregon Demo- crat, introduced the House bill after visiting Lone Pine in 2016 and seeing the con- ditions there fi rst-hand. His visit was prompted by an investigation by The Ore- gonian newspaper that described the U.S. govern- ment’s failure to meet its promises. “Thanks to this bill, tribal communities will see much- needed, tangible improve- ments that will improve their quality of life and for- tify their connection to the Columbia,” Blumenauer said in a statement. “We must ensure the life-blood of their heritage is protected and respected.” The bill now heads to the U.S. Senate, where similar legislation is pending. A study undertaken by the Army Corps of Engi- neers determined that around the massive Bon- neville Dam alone, tribal members had lost more than 80 homes that have not been replaced, Hudson said. The construction of major dams in John Day and The Dalles also caused signifi cant losses, although those have not been quantifi ed, he said. An inter-tribal group is working to document how much housing was lost and come up with a proposal for adequate mitigation more than 70 years later, he added. Affordable housing close to fi shing grounds is a critical need, Hudson said. “There is a lot of histor- ical mining of documents that has gone on, but a lot more is needed,” he said. “Quantifi cation is a tricky one, because is a one-for- one replacement the right thing 70 years hence? Is there a survivor of that who was directly impacted by the loss of his or her home? Are there descendants who con- tinue to be impacted?” Large grid storage project near Klamath Falls gets federal approval By JES BURNS and COURTNEY FLATT Oregon Public Broadcasting Federal energy regula- tors granted approval and a license Tuesday to an energy storage project near Klam- ath Falls . It’s the fi rst facil- ity of its kind in decades to be licensed in the Pacifi c Northwest and, if built, will be the largest energy storage facility in the region. Developers of Swan Lake North pumped storage plan to build a new reservoir system to store electricity from the grid. When elec- tricity is plentiful and inex- pensive, pumps will push water to a 60-acre reservoir high on a hill. Then when demand rises, the facility will release that water over turbines to a lower reser- voir. As with a hydroelectric dam, the spinning turbines generate electricity that can then be fed back to supple- ment the grid. The $800 million project has a 393-megawatt capac- ity — enough to meet the instantaneous demand of up to 390,000 homes. Tuesday’s approval comes one day before the public gets a chance to weigh in on a separate, potentially much larger pumped-hy- dro project elsewhere in the Pacifi c Northwest. That project would be developed outside Golden- dale, Washington. Rye Development and National Grid Ventures are working to develop both the Swan Lake and Goldendale e nergy storage projects. “We are very pleased that the (Federal Energy Reg- ulatory) Commission has Tiny micro-processor • One of the smallest custom hearing aids ever made. • 48 channel digital signal processing. • Digital engineering allows 1,000’s of custom settings. • Controlled by state-of-the-art software. Spaces are Limited Call Today for your FREE* Hearing Evaluation! 5 Days Only! Mon, Tues, Wed, Thur & Fri Mention Code: 19MayMicro Miracle-Ear Center Miracle- Ear Center Youngs Bay Plaza 173 S. Hwy 101 Warrenton, OR 97146 (503) 836-7921 2505 Main Ave N, Suite C Tillamook, OR 97141 (503) 836-7926 One More Thing Jes Burns/Oregon Public Broadcasting Rye Development plans to build a new pumped hydro energy storage facility at this site. The lower reservoir would be located on the low hill to the left, while the upper reservoir would be built up on the snowy ridge to the right. issued a 50-year construc- tion and operational license for the project and we look forward to the next phase of development,” Erik Steimle, Rye Development’s vice president, said in an email statement. Bringing this kind of grid storage online has widely been seen as neces- sary to the development of alternative energy sources like wind and solar, which don’t continuously produce electricity. Swan Lake North is located about 10 miles northeast of Klamath Falls in a rural farming area. Neigh- bors organized to oppose the project. Their primary con- cern is the planned construc- tion of 33 miles of new high voltage power lines that will run across federal and private land. The lines are likely to disrupt farm prac- tices and local views. Dan Cohan, who lives along the power line path, said the approval of the project has been expected in the community. Cohan’s primary concern is the effect the power lines will have on migratory birds in the area. The region is a major stop- over for the Pacifi c Flyway, one of the major migratory bird paths in the country. “I think there is going to be an impact,” Cohan said. “They’re going to have bird strikes on the infrastructure and the power lines — just because of the sheer density of waterfowl and migra- tory birds that occur in this area.” He still hopes, despite Swan Lake being granted a license, the company will do more to protect birds and farm life in the area. Steimle said Swan Lake North will move into the pre construction phase, which includes contracting and equipment procurement for the project. The proposed pumped hydro storage project in Gol- dendale would have three times the storage capacity as Swan Lake. 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