Science Based Approach to Outstanding Resource Issues: PacifiCorp's North Umpqua Project—Watershed Analysis Settlement Process

The North Umpqua Hydroelectric Project is one of the most complex hydroelectric developments in the country. Eight separate developments are located on three rivers that converge just above a designated Wild and Scenic River. Since the hydroelectric developments are all located within US Forest Service lands of the Umpqua National Forest, the terms of the new license will also have to comply with the Aquatic Conservation Strategy of the President's Forest Plan. At the time of filing the license application, January 1995, the most significant environmental issues were unresolved — anadromous fish passage, instream flows, resident fish passage, reservoir and forebay management, and water quality issues, such as eutrophication and instream flows related to temperature. Based on the complexity of the issues at hand and the volume of study information already available, PacifiCorp committed to conduct a cooperative watershed analysis to interpret the existing data on a watershed scale and reach resolution of the outstanding issues that are driven by the best available science. The analysis is intended to: (1) assist relicensing of the hydro project; (2) improve understanding of the watershed and the effects of the hydro project as well as other land uses on the ecosystem; (3) assist development of strategies for maintaining and restoring the long-term ecological health of the watershed; and (4) guide the allocation of PacifiCorp's resource enhancement budget.