Washington Business Spring 2017 | Washington Business | Page 11
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Columbia-Snake River Irrigators Association
Policy Memorandum
March 01, 2017
TO: Ryan Zinke, Secretary of the Interior
FROM: Ron Reimann, President, CSRIA
Darryll Olsen, Ph.D., Board Representative, CSRIA
cc: Mr. David Ponganis, SES, Director Programs,
Federal Columbia River Operations EIS ([email protected])
Br. Gen. Scott Spellmon, Division Commander, USACE
Mr. Elliot Mainzer, BPA Administrator
Ms. Lorri Lee, Regional Director, USBR
U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, WA
U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse
SUBJECT: CSRIA Response to the Federal Agencies’ Columbia River System
Operations (CRSO), Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The very justification for the current Federal Agencies’ Columbia River Operations
EIS is flawed natural resources policy, and it should be corrected by invoking an Action
Agencies’ (Biological Opinion) “re-consultation,” with the new Administration’s Secretary of
Interior convening the Endangered Species Act Committee (“God Squad” Committee).
This renewed EIS process emanates from Oregon Federal Judge Michael Simon’s
incomprehensible decision ignoring two decades of federal agency work to improve
Columbia-Snake River fish runs, about $15 billion of rate payer funding, actual fish run
survival through the hydro system, and factors outside the Columbia-Snake River System
that overshadow fish production. Further disregarded are extensive technical analyses,
and the tens-of-millio