Reported By: Save Our Wild Salmon

Thank you, SOS supporters, for your major role in improving the regional recommendation for modernizing the Columbia River Treaty!

On September 20, Bonneville Power and the Army Corps of Engineers released a "draft regional recommendation" for modernizing the Treaty. It is also supported by the Treaty's Sovereign Review Team, composed of federal agencies, Northwest States, and Columbia Basin Tribes.

This regional recommendation is much improved from the previous "Working Draft" released in July. Over 1000 SOS supporters submitted comments on the "Working Draft", which was fully one-third of all grassroots comments received. And thirteen SOS fishing and conservation organizations submitted detailed comments. This level of public interest helped get SOS and other groups an hour to share our vision of the Treaty with the Departments of State and Interior, and with Bonneville Power and the Army Corps, on September 13 in Portland, OR. And it generated positive change in the recently-released "Regional Recommendation."

The most important change is that the new draft recommendation unambiguously states that ecosystem function should be added to the Treaty as a third co-equal leg joining power production and flood risk management. This is a big important step forward.

There are still some problem areas in the new recommendation, and we must still defend the positive changes that have been made. There is a 30-day comment period on the new recommendation, and you can expect a second alert from SOS soon asking for your help again on the Treaty. But for now, thank you! Your letters made a difference!