NEWS
Wallowa.com
Wednesday, January 8, 2020
A7
Plunge: More than 100 show up for Wallowa Lake New Year’s event
Continued from Page A1
At least 80 of them vol-
untarily galloped into the
really, really cold water.
“It’s a bracing way to start
2020,” said Enterprise art-
ist Leita Barlow. “I think
it’s going to be a year we all
need to brace for, anyway.”
The weather cooperated.
At the 10 a.m. plunge time,
the sun shined brightly and
it was 38 degrees. A blus-
tery wind and temperamen-
tal clouds provided the only
motivation for complaints.
Rich
Wandschneider,
Ralph Swinehart, and oth-
ers started the plunge tra-
dition in 2007, with only
about ten participants. It’s
grown every year since
then. “It’s a way of clearing
off the grime and concerns
of the old year, and start-
ing fresh,” Wandschneider
said, noting that there are
similar events in Boston
and elsewhere. “This year
we had more people than
ever. It’s a way for new-
comers to get to be part of
the county, and for people
who’ve lived here to cele-
brate.” People of all ages
and interests took to the
water. Parents trouped into
the water carrying their
two-year-olds. Old timers
stripped into swim trunks
and plunged in. Two dogs,
a black lab and a yellow
Ellen Morris Bishop
Leita Barlow (center, in black suit) and her friends plunge into
Wallowa Lake at 10 a.m. for the annual New Year’s celebration
at the county park. More than 100 people showed up for the
event, and more than 80 of them took the plunge.
Photos by Ellen Morris Bishop
SELFIE CELEBRATION — Three New Years Wallowa Lake plungers record the happy moments
of emergence and survival in a selfi e.
lab mix, were among the
wiser in the crowd. They
stayed on shore where
things were warmer and
saner. It was the fi rst time
in for Janis Carper, who
was conned into participat-
ing by her friends. Despite
initial misgivings, Carper
seemed thrilled and invig-
orated by the chilly dunk-
ing. “I don’t get to swim
in the lake very often,” she
said. “So I thought I should
give it a try. I’ll probably
be back next year if the
weather isn’t too awful. It
was really fun.”
Ellen Morris Bishop
Kate Forster (left) and Janis Carper emerge from their New
Years dunking invigorated and happy. It was Carper’s fi rst
Wallowa Lake plunge. She said she’d consider doing it again
next year.
Dams: Summarizes existing opinions, suggests opportunities for discussions
Continued from Page A1
confi gurations for the 14
federal dams in the Colum-
bia River system including
the four Lower Snake River
dams. The Snake River dams
affect four listed salmonid
species: Snake River Chi-
nook and sockeye salmon,
as well as Snake River steel-
head. Pacifi c lamprey, which
are rare, but not listed, also
are affected by the dams.
The report released Dec.
20 included comments on
tribal connections to the
dams and salmon, ecolog-
ical effects of salmon and
orcas, energy, agriculture,
transportation,
recreation
and economics. It suggested
opportunities for each side
to increase understanding
and engage in productive
discussions.
They include:
• What is known and
can be reasonably predicted
about how the Snake River
might respond to breach-
ing of the dams? What steps
could be taken to infl uence
how the river responds?
• What are the current
impacts of management
(e.g., spill or hatcheries) on
salmon returns? How dura-
ble are those management
efforts in terms of maintain-
ing and increasing salmon
populations?
• Can/How can energy
effi ciency, demand response,
wind and solar or other car-
bon-free energy sources
replace the fl exibility and
reliability currently provided
by the dams.
• It needs to specifi cally
defi ne that if there is con-
tinued interest to understand
the implications of breach-
ing the dams, what it would
mean to make agriculture
“whole” if river transporta-
tion is not available through
the dams.
for Thursday, Jan. 9 in Van-
couver, Wash., from 6 p.m.
to 9 p.m. at Washington
State University Vancou-
ver — Dengerink Admin-
istration Building (VDEN)
located at 14204 NE
Salmon Creek Ave. in Van-
couver and Monday, Jan. 13
in the Tri Cities, from 6 p.m.
to 9 p.m. at the Red Lion
Hotel & Conference Center,
located at 2525 N. 20th Ave.
in Pasco, Wash.
The report was prepared
by independent consultants
Ross Strategic, Kramer
Consulting, and White
Bluffs Consulting.
It is available for pub-
lic comment until Jan. 24.
A link to the report is avail-
able at https://tinyurl.com/
SRDamStudy.
Happ y
New Year!
Offi ce of the Governor, Washington state
The four dams on the lower Snake River provide hydropower, irrigation and commodity
transportation, but are also detrimental to listed Chinook and sockeye salmon. They are
controversial and the subject of a recently released report that summarizes their pros and cons.
Importantly, the report
also noted that to reach a
consensus on the fate of the
four dams, careful framing
of conversations is import-
ant and that an increase in
mutual respect is needed.
This is especially true for
both east-side communities
and tribal communities. Dam
supporters feel the coast is
telling eastern Washington
communities what to do in
a way that lacks respect and
understanding of local values
and economies, the report
states. For tribal communi-
ties, it notes “Tribes have
essentially lost the salmon
they protected in their trea-
ties with the United States.”
Previous reports on the
economic and ecological
effects of the Lower Snake
River dams include the 2018
ECONorthwest report that
concluded removal of dams
would have a positive eco-
nomic effect regionally,
a 2016 Bonneville Power
Administration study that
buoyed the economics of
dam-supported commodity
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transportation and the 2015
Lower Snake River Dam
Navigation Study, which
called for dam removal.
Rather than calming contro-
versy, they generally aggra-
vated it.
A public workshop pre-
senting the contents of the
report was held in Clark-
ston, Wash. on Tuesday, Jan.
7, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at
the Quality Inn & Suites and
Quay Convention Center,
700 Port Drive. Additional
presentations are scheduled
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