Washington Business Winter 2018 | Washington Business | Page 13

advertisement Columbia-Snake River Irrigators Association December 5, 2017 CSRIA Open Letter Hon. Sect. of Interior Ryan Zinke Hon. Sect. of Energy Rick Perry Hon. Sect. of Defense James Mattis Hon. EPA Adm. Scott Pruitt Hon. Sect. of Ag. Sonny Perdue Lt. Gen. John Kelly, WH Chief of Staff RE: Protecting the Columbia-Snake River System, a Great National Asset Dear Cabinet Secretaries and Gen. Kelly: It would seem inconceivable that we should have to request your intervention to protect one of the greatest national assets, the economic engine that comprises the Columbia-Snake River Federal Hydropower System. But events prod this correspondence. The Federal Hydropower System is a testament to what good men and women can achieve, when guided by reason and the pursuit of economic prosperity and social well- being. The System’s non-carbon emitting turbines electrify the region’s commerce, serving some of the most influential companies in the world—like Boeing, Microsoft, Intel, Amazon, Nike, and others—and energize the homes of millions of Northwest and California citizens. The System creates an accessible water source for the most productive and efficient irrigated farms on the planet; it offers commercial navigation to ship the nation’s wheat to coastal sea ports; it provides for unique recreational opportunities. And the scientists from NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have developed protective measures for salmon and steelhead that overcome harsh river system conditions in unfavorable water-years. But the political, and bureaucratic, leviathan created by the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has nurtured twenty-five years of Columbia-Snake River litigation, now being encouraged by a single, federal district court judge (Oregon). Worse yet, this judge now refuses to review evidence that points toward the destruction of about two-thirds of Idaho’s wild spring chinook run, the lethal product of inept ESA management regimes and failed oversight of the so-called fish managers. Our prayer for relief is vested in the statutory power of the ESA (ESA Committee review and the exemption process), where an executive directive can be invoked to shield Hydropower System operations from further, abusive litigation, and to adopt System measures that will more than sufficiently protect ESA-listed fish. While CSRIA is in communication with senior agency and DOJ staff, who are being respectful of our legitimate concerns, the national asset at risk is worthy of your personal attention, and we would request an opportunity to meet directly with you, to better inform your understanding of the situation. Respectfully, CSRIA Board of Directors 3030 W. Clearwater, Ste. 205-A, Kennewick, WA 99336 509-783-1623, [email protected]