On the recordJune 23, 2022
I rise today to discuss and express my support for the Columbia River Federal Power System. The federal dams on the Columbia River System are a boon to the Pacific Northwest and stands as an example to other hydropower projects across the country and the world. Its capacity to generate always-on, baseload carbon-free power is vital not just to the Northwest, but relied upon by our friends in surrounding regions as well. The dams also bring substantial benefits for flood control, local recreation, irrigation, navigation, wildlife conservation, and industry. Even Idaho, my landlocked home State, is able to have a working seaport because of the navigation benefits provided by these dams, sending Idaho's products all around the world in an efficient, cost-effective, and low-carbon manner. As additional challenges have risen, scientists and managers at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have adapted to ensure the dams are still beneficial to humans and our natural environment. In the Water Resources Development Act before the Senate today, there is a seemingly innocuous but rather consequential and far-reaching study directed at aquatic habitat restoration in the Columbia River Basin. Other studies in this section are small enough to be measured in acres or at largest, a portion of a state. The Columbia River Basin spans nearly 260,000 square miles and reaches into seven States.…





