Seattle proposes fish passage on its dams

The braided channels of the Skagit River, which were created by sediments washed down the river, are vital juvenile salmon habitat. The dams on the river have starved the lower river of sediments. Credit: David Moskowitz

For years, the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe and other groups have pushed the city of Seattle to find a way for fish to get past its three dams on the Skagit River. Now, the city says it is committed to doing so.

For nearly a century, Seattle has argued that fish passage wasn’t necessary because the natural features below the dams already acted as barriers, despite a preponderance of evidence to the contrary. Even in the final license application — and despite announcing that it is now willing to provide passage — the city continued to claim that anadromous fish never historically ascended above the dams.

The decision is “a first step toward restoring the system to the most naturally functioning system we possibly can,” said Scott Schuyler, Upper Skagit Tribal elder and policy representative. The tribal nation continues to push for the removal of Gorge Dam, the lowermost on the river. Seattle acknowledged that it would be possible to replace the dams’ energy production with solar and wind power, although the city has declined to study that option.

The species that could be affected include all five species of Pacific salmon, steelhead, bull trout, sea-run cutthroat trout, Dolly Varden, Pacific lamprey and Salish sucker. The city proposed a four-phase approach for providing fish passage. The first two phases are estimated to cost $34.8 million and take up to 15 years after license approval. They include determining which species need passage and installing temporary structures below the Gorge powerhouse – which is three miles downstream from Gorge Dam – and above the uppermost Ross Dam, to collect upstream- and downstream-bound fish for transport. Seattle may also construct a temporary barrier to the stretch of river between the powerhouse and the first dam, an area sacred to the Upper Skagit Tribe that no longer flows due to the dam operations. The city has also proposed allowing water into this dry stretch of the river as part of the new license; if no temporary barrier is constructed and water flows resume, salmon and steelhead would likely be able to swim to the base of Gorge Dam.

Ross Dam on the Skagit River, Washington. Seattle officials said they would need to build a road to the dam, a process which would take an estimated six years. Credit: Wirestock, Inc./Alamy

The city said it would need to build a road to Ross Dam, in order to truck in supplies for the fish passage. The road, which would take an estimated six years and require environmental permitting, would also allow officials to replace the 80-ton transformers that are necessary to the dam’s continued operation.

Once all that is done, the city would move on to phase three: the construction of permanent upstream and downstream fish passage structures at the lowermost and uppermost dams. Phase four would include the construction of permanent fish passage structures at the other Skagit dams and reservoirs. Seattle officials provided no cost estimates for the last two phases.

As it stands, the process could take decades, and Schuyler says that it needs to move much faster. “The salmon are in dire shape and dire need, as are the Upper Skagit people,” he said.

In the meantime, the license application will need environmental assessments and approval from federal agencies to proceed.

Rico Moore is a freelance journalist based in Port Townsend, Washington. Follow him on Mastodon @rico_moore@journa.host. We welcome reader letters. Email High Country News at editor@hcn.org or submit a letter to the editor. See our letters to the editor policy.