* NEW* Columbia River Treaty Listening Session

Since 1964, the Columbia River Treaty, ratified by Canada and the United States, has governed the management of the Columbia River. The Treaty exclusively focused on flood control and power generation, ignoring the river’s fish, wildlife, and ecological requirements, as well as the interests of tribes and First Nations – salmon people – for whom the Columbia River Basin has been home from time immemorial.

The treaty was intended to last 60 years, with a 2024 deadline for renewal. Modernizing the Treaty is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to restore the river’s damaged ecosystem for the people of the Columbia Basin and especially the First Nations and tribes. Negotiations with Canada have been underway for almost 5 years, and now, both countries are signaling that an agreement could be reached as soon as this summer!

We can’t let the Columbia River Treaty continue to ignore everything except engineered flood risk management and power production. The new Treaty must include Ecosystem Function – the health of the river and its ecosystems – as a third primary purpose. And the Treaty’s governance system must be reformed to include voices for the river and Northwest citizens.

Wednesday, May 31 from 5 – 6:30 PST, the U.S. Negotiating Team will hold its second public event – a virtual ‘listening session’ following on the heels of the 17th round of negotiations with Canada last week.

It’s important to show federal decision-makers that there is strong public interest in the Treaty from the Northwest, so please…

To learn more about the Columbia River Treaty, please visit our website page: Modernising The Columbia River Treaty.