Oregon Law Review : Vol.100, No.1 (2021)

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Fighting an Upstream Battle: Fish Recovery in the Federal Columbia River Power System
(University of Oregon School of Law, 2021-12-15) Mikell, Noah
Part I of this Comment addresses the legal obligations of the major actors in the Federal Columbia River Power System (FCRPS) and explores how these participating federal agencies play their own unique roles in the regional efforts for fish recovery. This section also compares and contrasts key goals and obligations of federal actors with those of the Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program. This section concludes with a discussion of the various legal obligations that have led fish recovery efforts to where they are today. Part II analyzes systemic deficiencies in fish recovery efforts within the FCRPS, focusing on the most threatening challenges within the physical infrastructure of the hydropower system. This section also analyzes the systemic mismatch in law and policy that results from the differing obligations of the action agencies. Part III discusses flexible spill operations, cooperative developments following litigation, and ways in which these solutions have fallen short to date. Finally, Part IV turns to the most aspirational solution capable of addressing climate change, fish recovery, and economic stimulus: removal of the four lower Snake River dams.