treaty rights guaranteed in the 1885 treaties, and the rebuilding 

 obhgation of the Pacific Salmon Treaty with Canada that must be 

 addressed in the Columbia River Basin. 



These will require measures beyond those needed to remove the 

 Snake River listed salmon stocks from the endangered species list. 

 Your questions also focus on recovery planning for Snake River 

 salmon but I assure you that the problem is much greater and it 

 is not limited to just those fish. 



In the Snake River only about 600 naturally spawning spring 

 chinook salmon returned to spawn above Lower Granite Dam this 

 year. That is an all time low and the predictions for the coming 

 summer and fall stock are no better. 



Salmon runs on the upper Columbia or the main stem are also 

 very low this year and they have been petitioned for listing under 

 the Endangered Species Act. What I am saying in short is the 

 Snake River Recovery Team's plan is an excellent plan for the 

 Snake River but the problem is bigger and it is coming to us in the 

 train wreck that Vice President Gore mentioned. 



Our problem is in excess and the existing strategy for salmon by 

 the Power Council is a recovery plan in place for the whole basin. 

 It needs to be upgraded and added to and we will be doing that 

 this summer. 



We also intend to take proposals from all interested groups, run 

 them through our public involvement process and be able to report 

 to you and Congress of the results of that. We know there are 

 many reasons for the decline of the salmon stocks and we can't 

 limit our recovery efforts to just dams or to just water as the Con- 

 gressman mentioned. 



We have overharvesting, we have poor hatchery practices, and 

 we have declining habitat, all of which must be addressed in order 

 to have any kind of a recovery plan with a chance of succeeding. 



The recovery efforts must continue to address all of these prob- 

 lems while the National Marine Fishery Service prepares its recov- 

 ery plan. We can't afford to delay waiting for "another plan to 

 come." And I hope it doesn't become an excuse for people to not do 

 their part in the interim. 



The comprehensive design of the plan is designed to enhance all 

 Columbia River stocks including those being protected under the 

 Endangered Species Act and the region must continue to imple- 

 ment the strategy while the Marine Fisheries Service prepares a 

 recovery plan. 



The Council appreciates the work of the Recovery Team. We are 

 already willing to work with them and the Fisheries Service to en- 

 sure the effective implementation of salmon recovery measures but 

 in order to be an effective partner the States and the Council must 

 be involved in the Section 7 consultations with the Federal agen- 

 cies. 



These consultations on dam operations, hatcheries, harvest, and 

 habitat concern impacts on salmon that we directly address and 

 the States, through the power planning councils, simply must be 

 given a meaningful participatory role. 



The governors have requested this and it can be done with the 

 stroke of a pen. Meanwhile we continue to refine the strategy for 

 salmon. We acknowledge that when we prepared that strategy the 



