A Brief Overview of EPA Involvement and Authorities EWRI Dam Removal: Lessons Learned Portland, OR

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A Brief Overview of EPA Involvement and
Authorities EWRI Dam Removal Lessons
LearnedPortland, OR
Mary Lou Soscia U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency November 8, 2004 Portland, OR
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EPAs Role in Dam Removal

• Clean Water Act
• 401 Water Quality Certification
• NEPA Review
• Other water quality restoration efforts
• Case Study Snake River Dams
• Contemporary work UAA work efforts for federal
  dams

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Clean Water Act

• Goal restore and maintain the chemical,
  physical and biological integrity of the Nations
  waters.
• Where attainable, provide for protection of fish,
  shellfish, wildlife, and recreation in and on the
  water

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CWA Water Quality Standards

• Water Quality Standards are provisions of
  state/tribal/or federal law which consist of
• designated use or uses of a water body
• criteria necessary to protect that use
• Antidegradation requirements
• CWA says
• EPA develops criteria guidance
• States and tribes designate uses, set criteria,
  and establish antidegradation requirements
• EPA reviews standards approval or disapproval

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CWA Section 401 Water Quality Certification

• Section 401 Any applicant for a Federal
  license or permitrequires States (not EPA) to
  certify compliance with water quality standards.
• Currently being used for FERC relicensing - may
  recommend dam breaching

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National Environmental Policy Act

• EPA has responsibility under Section 309 of the
  Clean Air Act to review Environmental Impact
  Statements.
• NEPA and it implementing regulations require that
  Federal agencies discuss all the environmental
  consequences of a proposed action and all EIS
  project alternatives.

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2000 Federal Columbia River Power System
Biological Opinion

• Controversial Dam Removal Lower Snake Dams
• Final Decision - No dam removal
• Focus on off-site mitigation
• habitat, hatchery, harvest, hydro measure
• 700 million to 1 billion a year
• Performance Standard
• 3 yr- agency actions
• 5 yr and 8 yr- salmon returns
• breaching triggers

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Columbia River Decision - Timelines
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Columbia River Decisions - Complex Issues

• Environment
• Tribal Culture/Treaties
• Economics
• Political Complexity

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Columbia River-Complex Issues

• Economics
• Low cost power
• Navigation/ Transportation
• Irrigation
• Fishing industry/ Recreation

• Political Complexity
• 4 states
• 13 tribes
• 9 federal agencies
• Congress
• NW delegation
• Presidential campaign

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Columbia River-Complex Issues

• Environment
• Future of Salmon
• Health of Columbia River System

• Tribal Culture/Treaties
• Federal trust responsibility
• Salmon-Spiritual Meaning for Tribes

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2004 FCRPS Biological Opinion

• Remand Final Due November 30th
• September 2004 Draft - No jeopardy
• Breaching triggers are removed
• Focus on aggressive hydro, predation and hatchery
  improvements

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EPA Current Efforts

• CWA Use Attainability Analysis
• Focus on Federal dams in Oregon
• EPA working with Oregon in the development of
  guidance for UAAs
• Bureau of Reclamation and Corps of Engineer at
  table
• Decision on Pilot Project shortly

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What is a UAA?

• a structured scientific assessment of the factors
  affecting the attainment of the use (designated
  for protection) which may include physical,
  chemical, biological, and economic factors as
  described in 40 CFR 131.10(g)
• A UAA is the tool used to evaluate the attainable
  uses for a waterbody.

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.Remove Designated Uses

• Designated uses are the uses specified in the
  state or tribes WQS.
• A designated use might or might not be an
  existing use.
• A UAA can be used to remove a designated use or
  establish sub-categories of a use

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...attainable

• The attainable level of water quality is
  determined taking into account the capability of
  the natural system as well as the physical,
  technical and economic limitations of the water
  body and the human sources throughout the basin
  that affect the site, as described in 40 CFR
  131.10(g).

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40 CFR 131.10 (g) Categories

• Naturally occurring pollution.
• Natural, ephemeral, intermittent, or low flow
  conditions..
• Human caused conditions..
• Dams.not feasible to restore.
• Physical conditions related to the natural
  features of the water body.
• Controls more stringent ..result in substantial
  and widespread economic and social impact.

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UAA Next Steps

• Guidance being developed in Oregon, Washington
  and Idaho
• Major implications for dams
• Evolving future some dam removal decisions and
  some WQS change decisions

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Conclusions

• Dam removal issues are very difficult issues
  since removing a dam reflects a change in values
• EPA will continue be engaged in community
  supported efforts to restore rivers
• Clean Water Act will remain a key focus for river
  restoration efforts

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• Mary Lou Soscia
• Columbia River Coordinator
• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• 811 SW Sixth Avenue
• Portland, OR 97294
• [phone]
• Soscia.marylou_at_epa.gov