Laura Sampson
Transboundary Waters
Presentation date: 2/16/2012
Columbia River Basin: Transboundary Issues in the Pacific Northwest
Background:
The Columbia River is the fourth largest river
in the United States and is one of the few
major rivers shared with other countries. The
1,243 mile long river originates at Columbia
Lake in the Rocky Mountains of British
Columbia, Canada, and then flows through
Washington before emptying into the Pacific
Ocean at Astoria, Oregon. It’s watershed is
about as big as France and touches seven
U.S. states (WA, OR, ID, MT, WY,UT, NV) and
a Canadian province (BC). While the river
starts in Canada, almost 85% of the basin’s
area and 75% of the runoff is contributed by
the United States. The largest tributary is the
Snake River, which starts in Yellowstone
Wyoming. The average annual discharge is
78,510,000 acre-ft putting more water than
any other N. American river into the Pacific
Ocean.
Both the culture and the economy of the Pacific Northwest have been heavily dependent on the
Columbia River and its tributaries for thousands of years. The many tribes in the region have been using
them for transportation, food and trading since ancient times. The economies of modern cities like
Portland are also based on the river system. The basin is home to many fish that migrate between
freshwater habitats and the Pacific Ocean and do not spawn elsewhere in the nation.
The Columbia has an elevation drop of 2,650 ft which is twice that of the Mississippi River in half of the
distance. This relatively steep grade combined with the heavy flow makes the Columbia River basin a
great place to produce and use hydroelectric power. There are 14 hydroelectric dams on the Columbia's
main stem and many more on its tributaries that together produce more hydroelectric power than those
of any other North American river. According to the Army Corps of Engineers, the Columbia has 250
reservoirs making it one of the most heavily engineered waterways in the world.
Interaction with Canada:
Many approaches to international water
management have been utilized in the
Columbia River system for almost eight
decades. Because Canada and the US are
both upstream and downstream
negotiations have been relatively tranquil.
The Kootenay River(shown to the Right) is a
good example of this. In general, the
agreements have focused on equality rather
than equity despite the disproportionate
populations and economies of the two
nations.
The Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 was the first time this attempt at legislation. The treaty covers the
“ Main shore to main shore of the lakes and rivers and connecting waterways, or the portions thereof,
along which the international boundary between the United States and the Dominion of Canada passes,
including all bays, arms, and inlets thereof, but not including tributary waters which in their natural
channels would flow into such lakes, rivers, and waterways, or waters flowing from such lakes, rivers,
and waterways, or the waters of rivers flowing across the boundary.” It established the International
Joint Commission(IJC) which was charged with making sure that international waters like the Columbia
remained “free and open”.
While the IJC was successful at settling disagreements over transboundary transportation,
disagreements over the the installment of dams and the principle of sharing downstream benefits
heated up along with concerns over flooding in the 1940’s and 1950’s. By 1964 the federal governments
had negotiated and signed the Columbia River Treaty (CRT) to reduce flooding and address the growing
demand for energy. The CRT required Canada to provide 15.5 million acre-ft of storage by building three
dams and states that the US and Canada will equally share the downstream benefits for hydropower
and flood control in the US that result from the three dams development. The United paid Canada 64.4
million dollars as payment for flood protection through 2024, which was estimated to be half of what
the flood damages would have been without the treaty. They also paid 254 million dollars for the first 30
years of Canada’s share of power produced downstream, a sum sufficient to pay for the construction of
the CRT dams. The CRT also allowed the US to build Libby Dam.
In September of 2024 the pre-determined flood control obligations in the treaty will expire. The treaty
requires ten years of advanced notice for changes making September of 2014 the First time either
country can request alterations to the agreement. As soon as two years from now, either country might
want to terminate the treaty, negotiate new flood control obligations and benefits or simply extend the
existing terms and conditions. Both governments are currently reviewing the treaty. Although the CRT's
hydropower and flood control objectives have been met for several decades, the nations might want to
address the increased value society places on endangered biota, environmental quality, and
sustainability.
Native American issues:
The United States and Canada have had very different relations with the original Columbia River Basin
Natives. Both pursued treaties with Indians to establish rights to land and resources; while negotiations
in the US started as early as the 1700’s, formal agreements in Canada did not appear until 1960. The
United States officially recognized the sovereignty of Indian peoples in 1832 when the United States
Supreme Court ruled in Worster v. Georgia that the “several Indian nations” had legal status as “political
communities within which their authority is exclusive.” On their reservations, created by treaties with
the United States, Indians had exclusive authority, and this authority and all rights to land within the
reservations were “not only acknowledged but guaranteed by the United States,” according to the
court.
This lasted for about a decade before manifest destiny fueled westward expansion. When settlers began
to pour into the Columbia River Basin in the 1840s, conflicts with Indian tribes led to hostilities. Despite
the specific direction of Worster v. Georgia, the United States government sought to push Indians off
their lands and onto reservations. Isaac Ingalls Stevens was sent to handle the treaties with the natives
and signed the treaty of Walla Walla to lessen the resistance to the reservations. The treaty which has
been referenced in several lawsuits between tribes and the US in recent history states, “The exclusive
right of taking fish in all the streams where running through or bordering said reservations, is further
secured to said confederated tribes and bands of Indians, as also the right of taking fish at all usual and
accustomed places, in common with citizens of the Territory.”
While there have been some water rights conflicts regarding the boundaries of reservations, the current
concerns of native populations are the availability and health of anadromous fish. Historically 15 million
Salmon returned to the basin to spawn every year, however this number has decreased dramatically as
both nations began to build dams. The Dams physically blocks the path of the fish, increase the
temperature as well as the nitrogen levels. In modern times, less than 2 million salmon return each year
and most are from hatcheries. Many of the historic species have become endangered or threatened and
the tribal nations feel that their fishing rights are being ignored.
The government, power companies and dam owners have attempted to alleviate the problem by
building fish ladders, juvenile bypass systems, and other creative fish moving techniques in addition to
downstream hatcheries. Studies are also being done on the potential impact of removing some of the
less efficient dams. One consequence of fish ladders and bypass systems is that sea lions have figured
out where the salmon leave the structures. Oregon and Washington approved a highly controversial
lethal injection program to manage the sea lion population in 2007.
The tribes of the Columbia River Basin have also become concerned about the bioaccumulation of
mercury and other toxins found in the Salmon. In 1996 the Model Toxics Control Act established cleanup
levels for surface waters assuming a fish consumption rate of 54.1 grams/day. Tribes in the area who
consume 389 grams/day on average began to campaign for their needs to be reflected by legislation in
2008. By 2010 the Oregon Water Quality standard was raised to 175 grams/d and 583 grams/day was
used as the consumption rate for the Rayonier cleanup.
Questions:
1)
2)
3)
How do you think the US and Canada will handle the expiration of the C.R. treaty in 2024?
Should environmental issues be considered in the revised Columbia River treaty?
How well do you feel that Native American water issues have been managed in the
Columbia River Basin? How do you think their needs should be addressed in the future?
Sources:
http://waterwiki.net/index.php/International_Managment_in_the_Columbia_River_System
http://www.nwcouncil.org/history/Hydropower.asp
http://www.epa.gov/osp/tribes/NatForum10/ntsf10_4t_Dunn2.pdf
http://www.nwcouncil.org/history/IndianFishing.asp
http://www.nwcouncil.org/history/fishpassage.asp
http://www.nwcouncil.org/history/IndianTreaties.asp
http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2010/05/at_bonneville_dam_the_sea_lion.html
http://www.ccrh.org/comm/river/index.php
http://www.ccrh.org/comm/river/legal.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_River
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_Lake