THE DALLES, Ore. - Two Washington tribes made a historic move Monday, demanding drastic measures to save Northwest salmon and preserve Native American culture.
At Celilo Park, the Yakama Nation, along with Lummi Nation, called for the removal
THE DALLES, Ore. - Two Washington tribes made a historic move Monday, demanding drastic measures to save Northwest salmon and preserve Native American culture.
At Celilo Park, the Yakama Nation, along with Lummi Nation, called for the removal of three lower Columbia River dams.
Yakama Nation claimed the three dams - Bonneville, The Dalles and John Day - were built "without the Yakama Nation's free, prior, and informed consent as required by the Treaty of 1855." Along with violating treaty rights, the nation said it has decimated fishing and cultural sites.
Lummi Nation, supporting Yakama Nation's call, said removing the dams will heal the river, salmon runs and the endangered southern resident orca.
However, Bonneville Power Administration said the dams provide enough electricity to power more than two million homes in the Northwest each year. They are also part of a key route for transporting commercial goods down the river for export.
Yakama Nation's call is a bold vision of a free-flowing river where hydroelectric power is king, but the river was once a place where salmon was king before dams dominated t