462 



Science indicates that there are a number of factors that have contributed to the decline of salmon and 

 that all these factors must be addressed to assure recovery. 



MYTH #2. The river operators have done nothing for fish, or "the river operators won't yield." 



This is clearly not the case. Water has been provided for fish flows and spill since 1982 even though the 

 biological value of these measures has not been established. In 1982, 3.45 million acre feet of water was 

 set aside for salmon. The amount of water has continually escalated since that time, although no 

 scientific information was collected to evaluate the effectiveness of providing this water. In 1993, over 

 10 million acre-feet of water (twice the storage capacity of Grand Coulee Dam) was provided for fish. 



Since 1982, the electric customers of the Pacific Northwest have spent over $1 billion on fish and wildlife 

 measures and in foregone electric revenues. These funds have not only been spent to redress the impacts 

 of hydropower development and operation, but also to restore habitat degraded by timber harvest, 

 agriculture, mining, and grazing. In and of itself, providing water for fish has resulted in a reduction 

 in the annual firm energy generating capability of the hydropower system of about 3,000 megawatts 

 (enough electricity to supply three cities the size of Seattle). This has drastically changed the way we 

 plan and operate the hydropower system and will require construction of new resources to replace this 

 lost energy. 



MYTH #3. Ninety-eight percent of the fish are killed at the dams. 



Figures such as these are based on old and unreliable data collected 20 years ago in a hydropower system 

 that no longer exists. This data was collected before implementation of the water budget, fish flows, 

 spill, bypass systems, transponation, turbine efficiency, etc. Substantial improvements have been made 



PNUCC September 21, 1993 -7- PB212 



