In a move that could save Idaho Power Co. millions of dollars, the utility and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency agreed to halt a lawsuit over Snake River water temperatures and federally protected salmon.
The litigation is related to the area of the Snake River below Idaho Power's Hells Canyon hydroelectric complex, which is an important spawning area for fall Chinook salmon. Once abundant, the fish now is listed as threatened pursuant to the Endangered Species Act.
Under the Clean Water Act, the EPA sets a maximum allowable water temperature in that stretch of the river to protect the fish during their spawning period. The agency's existing regulations stipulate a maximum water temperature that falls each year for a period that extends between Oct. 23 and the middle of the following April, while the fish are spawning, from 19 degrees to 13 degrees Celsius.
The conflict at issue extends back to 2012, when the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality proposed a new temperature standard for the area that would allow warmer water in the spawning grounds for a brief period during the fall months. To date, the EPA has not acted definitively on the DEQ's proposal, which would drop the temperature standard from 19 degrees to 14.5 degrees Celsius on Oct. 23 of each year and then to 13 degrees Celsius each Nov. 6.
The Hells Canyon complex comprises three hydroelectric projects spread over 38 miles of the Snake River: the 744.6-MW Brownlee, 221.5-MW Oxbow and 447-MW Hells Canyon generating plants. The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in 1955 issued the original 50-year license for the three facilities, the last of which went online in the late 1960s. The original license expired in 2005, and the Hells Canyon complex has been operating under annual licenses since that time.
As part of its quest to secure a new long-term license for the complex, Idaho Power in June filed a lawsuit seeking to compel the EPA to act on the state's site-specific temperature request. Claiming it has an obligation to shield ratepayers from unnecessary costs, the IDACORP Inc. subsidiary argued that the EPA's current standard is more restrictive than required. The utility also alleged the EPA was violating the Administrative Procedure Act by failing to issue a determination.
According to a Nov. 1 order from the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho, the EPA informed Idaho Power that it anticipates taking action to approve or disapprove the site-specific water temperature standard by no later than March 1, 2019. The agency also could submit the standard for further environmental consideration by that deadline, the order said. Under the terms of the agreement, the EPA is required to file status reports every 30 days until a court-ordered stay ends on March 11, 2019, or otherwise is terminated.
Idaho Power also must obtain water quality certifications from Idaho and Oregon in order to renew the operating license. As part of that effort, the company developed a mitigation program to reduce the project impacts on aquatic wildlife. Idaho Power spokesman Brad Bowlin on Nov. 12 said the temperature standard change would save customers an estimated $100 million in mitigation costs over the course of 50 years while still ensuring the health of the native fish.
"If we can resolve the issue in collaboration with the responsible agencies and outside the courtroom, that is to everyone's advantage," Bowlin said in a statement. "We think this is a positive step in the right direction."
During the 1950s, almost 130,000 adult salmon and steelhead returned to the Snake River in the spring and summer to spawn, but that number had dropped below 10,000 by 2017, according to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. The fish are vulnerable to many stressors and threats, including climate change, commercial and recreational fishing, and habitat degradation caused by dams and culverts, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The federal court case is Idaho Power Company v. EPA (No. 1:18-cv-255-REB).
