Klamath Settlement Agreements information released

According to an e-mail sent to the KMUD News Department by Ed Sheets, Facilitator for the Klamath Settlement Agreements, dated May 3, 2011:
The Klamath Basin Coordinating Council today released its first annual report highlighting its accomplishments since the Klamath Agreements were signed in February 2010.  I have attached the press release and Annual Report.
 
The Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement (KBRA) and the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (KHSA) were forged by Klamath Basin stakeholder groups including the Klamath Basin tribes, irrigators, fishermen, conservation groups, the dam owner PacifiCorp, the governors of California and Oregon, the U.S. Secretary of the Interior and the director of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. Also participating were agencies within the states, the Department of the Interior, the National Marine Fisheries Service, Humboldt County, CA, and Klamath County, OR.  Forty-five organizations have signed the Klamath Agreements.
 
The Restoration Agreement is intended to result in effective and durable solutions which will: 1) restore and sustain natural fish production and provide for full participation in ocean and river harvest opportunities of fish species throughout the Klamath Basin; 2) establish reliable water and power supplies which sustain agricultural uses, communities, and National Wildlife Refuges; and 3) contribute to the public welfare and the sustainability of all Klamath Basin communities.
 
The Hydroelectric Settlement lays out the process for additional studies, environmental review, and a decision by the Secretary of the Interior regarding whether removal of four dams owned by PacifiCorp: 1) will advance restoration of the salmonid fisheries of the Klamath Basin; and 2) is in the public interest, which includes but is not limited to consideration of potential impacts on affected local communities and tribes.  The four dams are Iron Gate, J.C. Boyle, Copco 1 and Copco 2 dams on the Klamath River.  The Hydroelectric Settlement includes provisions for the interim operation of the dams and the process to transfer, decommission, and remove the dams.
 
This annual report describes the accomplishments during the first year in implementing the agreements.  For more information on the Klamath Settlement Agreements and the Klamath Basin Coordinating Council please see:www.klamathcouncil.org.
 
Ed Sheets
Facilitator for the Klamath Settlement Agreements
503-222-1700

Click on the links below to view the associated Press Release and Klamath Basin Coordinating Council Annual Report:
2011-5-3 press release for KBCC annual report.pdf
Klamath Basin Coordinating Council Annual Report 5-3-2011.pdf