Dam removal is expected to improve the health of the Klamath River, the route that Chinook salmon and endangered coho salmon take from the Pacific Ocean to their upstream spawning grounds and from which young fish return to sea. The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued an order surrendering the dam permits and authorizing the removal of the dams. The project has long been the target of many indigenous tribes whose ancestors lived off salmon for centuries, but whose way of life was disrupted by European settlement and the demand for rural electrification in the 20th century. “The Klamath salmon is coming home,” Joseph James, chairman of the Yurok tribe, said in a statement. “Humans have won this victory, and with it we continue our sacred duty to the fish that have sustained our people since the beginning of time.” Climate change and drought have also put stress on salmon habitat. the river has become too warm and too full of vermin for many fish to survive. The dams on federal land, which at full capacity provide enough electricity for 70,000 homes, will be delivered by power company PacifiCorp, a unit of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. Faced with costly new regulations that included building fish screens and ladders, the company instead struck a deal with the tribes and the US government to decommission the dams. PacifiCorp is contributing $200 million to remove the dam, paid for by surcharges on its customers in Oregon and California, said Bob Gravely, a company spokesman, and California voters approved a bond measure for the state to provide an additional $250 million.
