For Immediate Release: April 10, 2003
For the Klamath portion of the American Rivers Report, click here (pdf, 83k)
For More Information Contact:
Steve Rothert, (530)478-5672
Eric Eckl, (202) 347-7550 ext. 3203
Jim Waltman, The Wilderness Society, (202) 429-2674,
jim_waltman@tws.org.
Wendell Wood, Oregon Natural Resources
Council, (503) 283-6343
Glen Spain, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's
Associations, (541) 689-2000, fish1ifr@aol.com
Steve Pedery, WaterWatch of Oregon,
(503) 295-4039, steve@waterwatch.org.
Felice Pace, Klamath Forest Alliance,
(530) 467-5291, klamath@sisqtel.net.
Tim McKay, Northcoast Environmental
Center, (707) 822-6918, nec@northcoast.com.
Larry Laitner, Riverhawks, (541)
482-1672, llaitner@rocketmail.com
Susan Holmes, Earthjustice Legal
Defense Fund, (202) 667-4500, x 204, sholmes@earthjustice.org
Washington, DC - American Rivers today named the Klamath River as one of the nation's Most Endangered Rivers for 2003, citing excessive irrigation diversions and hydropower dams that are causing the ecological collapse of the river and its salmon fisheries. The Klamath River, which was on the list in 2002, moves up to the #2 spot for 2003. The annual America's Most Endangered Rivers report highlights acute threats to the listed rivers rather than their chronic problems. The groups warned that the next 12 months would be crucial in determining the Klamath River's long term future.
"The Klamath River and its fisheries are the real victims when too much irrigation demand chases too little water," said Rebecca R. Wodder, president of American Rivers. "These chronic water shortages in the river are compounded by the hydropower dams that block many miles of salmon spawning habitat."
The highly publicized Klamath basin water crisis is entering it's third year, and the groups noted that several important decisions looming in the next 12 months could intensify the conflict or lead to improvements. In particular, a White House-appointed Klamath River Basin Federal Working Group is expected to report on solutions for this troubled river basin and Congress will take up legislation that proposes to bring water supply and demand back into balance. Conservationists are concerned that the Bureau of Reclamation is doing little to avoid a repeat of last year's massive die off of 33,000 salmon due to low river flows as it plans operations for the coming year.
"We have simply promised too much water to too many interests in the Klamath Basin, and even in good years there isn't enough to go around," said Bob Hunter, staff attorney with WaterWatch of Oregon. "The only way we are going to solve this mess is by buying back water rights and reducing the demand for water."
The conservation and commercial fishing groups called on the White House and Congress to take steps towards buying out irrigation rights from willing sellers and to phase out commercial farming on federal wildlife refuges in the headwaters. Water saved by these measures should be left instream for the benefit of the fish, wildlife, and communities that depend on the river.
"Additional restoration of the basin's wetlands are needed to provide increased water quality and quantity necessary to sustain and revitalize river and fishing community economies," said Wendell Wood with the Oregon Natural Resources Council.
Also on the horizon in the next twelve months, Pacificorps will file its formal application for a new 30-50 year operating license for its five dam hydropower complex on the river. These dams plug the river between the river's agricultural headwaters and its mouth, blocking salmon and steelhead from reaching more than 100 miles of historic spawning habitat. The groups called on Pacificorps to commit to either installing fish passage removal of the dams, and to implement other measures to improve water quality in the river when it files its formal license application this year.
"Behind every salmon and steelhead in the Klamath River is a Native American family, or a family that depends on the commercial or recreational fishing industries," said Glen Spain of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations. "Restoring this river will bring jobs back to the coastal and river communities that have been decimated by the decline of salmon."
Across the nation: Water waste and watershed destruction compound drought The situation on the Klamath River is particularly dire, but hardly unique. In a special chapter of this year's report, American Rivers explored how the destructive combination of rising water demands and the destruction of wetlands and other freshwater habitats threatens the nation with a future where many rivers regularly run dry. To prevent this, the group issued a series of recommendations to help the nation establish an "ecological reserve" of minimum river flows. Steps toward this goal include helping farmers acquire modern irrigation equipment that use less water to grow the same amount of crops and employing "smart growth" strategies to curb sprawl development and reduce the rate at which wetlands and streams are paved over.
"Saving rivers is not just about keeping pollution out of the water anymore, increasingly we have to fight to keep water in the river at all," Wodder said.
About America's Most Endangered Rivers Each year, American Rivers requests nominations from thousands of river groups, environmental organizations, outdoor clubs, and taxpayer watchdogs for the America's Most Endangered Rivers report. The report highlights the rivers facing the most urgent and imminent threats. It is not a list of the nation's most chronically polluted rivers. The report presents alternatives to proposal that would damage rivers, identifies those who will make the crucial decisions, and points out opportunities for the public to take action on behalf of each listed river.
For a copy of the Klamath portion of the American Rivers Report, click here (pdf, 83k)
For more information on Klamath basin, go to: www.klamathbasin.info