189 



Adding Salmon Costs Still Leaves Crowing Gap Between Northwest Rales and Rates Nationwide 



Even with this rate increase, Northwest ratepayers would have the lowest electricity rates in the 

 nation by a sizeable margin. The average rate Northwestemers now pay for electricity is less than 

 4.8f per kilowatt hour, compared to an average rate in the rest of the country of 8Ai per kilowatt 

 hour. The difference between what Northwestemers pay and average rates for other parts of the 

 country has actually grov^n larger since 1987 BPA rates would continue to be competitive. 



Other Potential BPA Cost-Savings Outweigh Added Costs for Salmon 



Added annual costs of $116 million can also be compared toother potential cost-savings that have 

 been identified but not yet implemented. Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon chaired a congressional task 

 force that identified $150 million in potential budget savings to BPA from reductions in out-dated 

 subsidies and increased administrative efficiency. Implementing even some of the potential savings 

 identified by the BPA task force would make the cost of salmon measures imperceptible to 

 ratepayers. 



Special Subsidies for Commercial River Users Outweigh Salmon Costs 



Some special interest industries in the Northwest (most notably aluminum manufacturers) draw 

 power directly from the Bonneville Power Administration at subsidized rates. The rates paid by these 

 "direct service industries" now fall $179 million short of covering BPA's costs for providing the 

 power. This cost is passed on to Northwest utility customers along with an additional $50 million in 

 subsidized hydropower to pump water for irrigated agriculture. Reducing the extent of these subsi- 

 dies can help pay for measures to restore wild salmon — whose decline toward extinction has been 

 one result of the wasteful power and water use that the subsidies promote. 



The Time for Action is Now! 



T 



here is significant scientific consensus and supporting data to conclude that current efforts to save 

 wild salmon by collecting, barging, and trucking migrants past the dams, does not offer hope of 

 recovery. Even the Northwest Power Planning; Council's most optimistic assumptions about the 

 success rate of the transportation program led\ e endangered runs with only the barest margin of 

 survival, no margin of safety, and no likelihood of restoration (see chart). Science has finally caught 

 up to common sense — salmon belong in the river, not in the hold of a barge or tank truck. 



The region's fisheries professionals, using their knowledge of salmon biology, physiology, and 

 life cycles, plus knowledge of the conditions under which wild salmon thrived in incredible abun- 

 dance, say that a combination of drawdowns, flows and spill will give salmon the fighting chance 



they need to survive naturally in the Columbia 

 and Snake Rivers — even while Northwestemers 



Even Most Optimistic Assumptions About 



Barging Prog 

 Does Not Recovei 



am's Effectiveness 

 Snal(e River Wild Salmon 



£SiiiSltt£{ 



Northwest Power Planntng Council anat/sis of 

 Snake Rrver spnng Chinook produdivrty under 

 Oplon 1A (maximum Iransponation ol luveniiss) 

 1994 Fish and Wikjiife Amendments. Oct 1994 



continue to benefit from the hydropower system. 

 Implementing measures that will give the 1995 

 out-migration of juvenile salmon the best possible 

 chance of survival is critical — because by 1996 the 

 numbers of juveniles will drop precipitously, 

 reflecting the huge drop in returning adults this 

 year. 



To the extent that cost to the hydropower 

 system has been a significant barrier to regional 

 consensus on action for salmon, this report 

 identifies ways to more realistically estimate costs 

 based on real-world strategies for minimizing 

 them. The result shows the way for regional 

 decision-makers to end reliance on the failed 

 salmon barging program and implement a combi- 

 nation of drawdowns, flows, and spill at modest 

 cost to ratepayers. 



All this is good news for wild salmon 



in the Columbia and Snake Rivers, good news for 

 regional decision-makers, and good news for 

 Northwest ratepayers. It is good news for every- 

 one who values wild salmon in our rivers, on our 



grills, in the claws of an eagle, on the end of a line, and as part of our heritage: We can afford the 



changes to the hydrosystem that will save wild salmon from extinction! 



26-104 - 96 - 7 



