Salmon and steelhead are on the brink of extinction. Meanwhile, the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is rushing a major decision to join a new energy market that will negatively impact our Northwest energy landscape, critically endangered salmon and steelhead, and undermine treaties and commitments made to Tribes. 

The Columbia River Basin was once the most productive salmon fishery in the continental United States, with as many as 18 million fish returning to spawn every year. In 1855, the four Lower Columbia River Treaty Tribes (the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, and the Nez Perce Tribe) explicitly reserved their right to fish at all their “usual and accustomed places” in treaties that also ceded millions of acres of their traditional territory to the United States. 

The federal government’s management of the Columbia River, through agencies such as BPA, has severely harmed Northwest Tribes' economies, spiritual and cultural identities, and health and well-being. The Biden Administration recently released a ‘Tribal Circumstances Analysis,’ highlighting “the historic, ongoing, and cumulative damage and injustices caused to Columbia River Basin Tribes by federal dams on the Columbia River”. The analysis acknowledges the U.S. Government’s obligation to uphold its trust responsibilities and address these impacts with action. 

BPA markets the power generated from the federal dams on the Columbia and Snake Rivers. Despite recent commitments made by the U.S. Government to “help restore and conserve Snake River salmon and steelhead runs, expand clean energy production, increase resiliency, and provide stability for communities throughout the Columbia River Basin”, BPA continues to disregard these commitments.

BPA should NOT rush a decision that could have devastating impacts to salmon, Tribal Treaty Rights, and our Pacific Northwest clean energy production. 

What are energy markets? 

Energy markets are formal structures through which electric utilities can buy and sell energy. BPA is currently deciding which of the two energy markets to join: Extended Day Ahead Market (EDAM) or Markets+. BPA is rushing to join Markets+. This is problematic for several reasons:  

1. The Extended Day Ahead Market (EDAM) is a better path to begin transitioning away from our region’s dependency on the changing and less reliable hydro system. The broad base of clean resources available through EDAM will allow BPA to generate less power from the federal hydro system and allow for the development of new carbon-free resources and transmission.  

2. BPA is needlessly rushing to join Markets+. Their decision will ultimately cement the energy landscape in the Northwest for decades to come. BPA ought to take careful consideration before making a decision.  

3. Should BPA join Markets+, the region will split, and the benefits will be diluted. Western utilities and BPA should be encouraged to organize into a single market, not a bifurcated and limited system. A single Westwide power market will allow broader use and development of lower cost, carbon-free power sources that will aid in decarbonizing the energy system and lowering electricity costs for consumers. 

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