Northwestern Division / ColumbiaRiver

Other Columbia River Info

News and Features

Corps begins expanded navigation lock times for recreational boaters
Portland District
5/15/2025
Beginning today, recreational boaters navigating the three lower Columbia River dams—Bonneville, The Dalles, and John Day— will have expanded access to pass through the navigation locks...
As temps rise, officials implore recreators wear simple life-saving device
Northwestern Division
5/6/2025
When the Pacific Northwest sees increasing outdoor temperatures, many people flock to their favorite lakes and streams to cool off. Tragically, this also leads to avoidable drownings and...
Agencies extend comment period for Columbia River System environmental review
Northwestern Division
5/1/2025
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), or co-lead agencies, are extending the public comment period for the Columbia River System Operations Supplemental...
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Columbia River Basin

A barge transits down a river(Above) A barge makes its way down the Columbia River.

The Columbia River Basin is a large and complex system with variable stream flows and weather patterns. Fourteen federal projects (dams) in Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington make up the system. The economic vitality of the region and its Tribes, communities, industries, and fish and wildlife species all depend on the system's ability to provide for multiple uses, including flood risk management, hydropower generation, navigation, irrigation, recreation, water quality, and fish and wildlife. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is committed to managing the Columbia River System in a responsible way in accordance with the Congressional authorized purposes of the projects.

 

Environmental Compliance

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation, or co-lead agencies, issued a notice of intent in the Federal Register on December 18, 2024 that announced the intent to collect public comments.

The co-lead agencies intend to supplement the 2020 Columbia River System Operation (CRSO) Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), including the selected alternative, to address new information and circumstances since it was published in 2020. The 2020 CRSO EIS analyzed the coordinated operation and maintenance of fourteen Federal multi-purpose dams and related facilities located throughout the Columbia River Basin. As part of scoping, the co-lead agencies will seek input from the public to inform an SEIS as they recognize the need for additional collaborative dialogue about the system.

The co-lead agencies made the decision to supplement the 2020 CRSO EIS after a review process that considered available facts and input from Tribal partners, stakeholders, and federal and state agencies in fall 2024. After this review, the co-lead agencies determined initiating a SEIS was appropriate to evaluate the updated and changed circumstances that include, but are not limited to:

  • Changes to operations, maintenance, and configuration of the fourteen projects that make up the Columbia River System.
  • New species that have been listed or proposed for listing under the ESA (e.g., Wolverine).
  • Relevant new reports, studies, or other information published since the CRSO EIS was completed.

In the interim, the co-lead agencies will continue to operate the Columbia River System to meet its congressionally authorized purposes, including flood risk management, water supply, navigation, hydropower generation, recreation, and fish and wildlife. 

UPDATE as of May 1, 2025. View the news announcement.

The co-lead agencies, are extending the public comment period for the Columbia River System Operations Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) to August 15, 2025.

USACE and Reclamation are committed to transparency and meaningful public engagement, and both agencies remain available to discuss the SEIS and provide information related to this process. The co-lead agencies’ goal is to ensure the use of updated information to continue balancing the Columbia River System’s authorized purposes in accordance with all relevant laws and regulations and to continue operating and maintaining their facilities to meet Congressionally authorized purposes.

The co-lead agencies continue to seek public input and invite federal and state agencies, Native American Tribes, local governments, and the public to submit comments relevant to the supplemental NEPA process. The agencies will also publish the end date of the comment period in the Federal Register and will post an updated schedule for the public scoping meetings on the project website.

Public Comments

We value your feedback! Please provide substantive comments* about new information and changed circumstances since the 2020 CRSO EIS. 


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*Substantive comments are:

  • Clear and specific.
  • Provide new information.
  • Question assumptions.
  • Propose alternatives.
  • Include supporting evidence.
  • Include personal information.
  • Include location information.
  • Are not form letters: Form letters are treated as one comment.

If you do not see a confirmation notification please send your comment to: columbiariver@usace.army.mil.

Phase II Implementation Plan

The Phase II Implementation Plan (P2IP) is a 20 year, $300M plan developed by the Upper Columbia Unified Tribes (UCUT) to conduct studies to inform the feasibility of salmon reintroduction above Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee Dams on the Columbia River. In 2023, the Bonneville Power Administration, Bureau of Reclamation, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) agreed to provide funding and technical support for the P2IP. 

Once the UCUT complete the study, there would be a recommendation on implementation, which would require additional funding. This would be phase three, in approximately 2042. USACE has signed a Finding of no Significant Impact (FONSI) as part of the National Environmental Policy Act compliance process for the P2IP, April 21, 2025. It is available here: https://usace.contentdm.oclc.org/utils/getfile/collection/p16021coll7/id/27780. The FONSI documents that there would be no significant adverse effects on the quality of the environment from implementation of the P2IP.   Bonneville Power Administration and the Bureau of Reclamation participated as co-leads on the NEPA process.

Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement and Litigation Stay

A concrete dam on the Columbia River spilling water over spillways.

Above: Lower Granite Dam releases water from the lower Snake River through its spillways. Lower Granite is one of four lower Snake River dams in the Columbia River Basin.

The U.S. Government entered into two memorandums of understanding (MOU) with various parties to stay litigation, both of which happened in 2023.

One MOU is with the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Spokane Tribe of Indians, and the Coeur d’Alene Tribe to support the implementation of the Upper Columbia United Tribes’ (UCUT) Phase 2 Implementation Plan (P2IP) for testing the feasibility of reintroduction of salmon in the Upper Columbia River Basin over a period of 20 years. This resulted in a 20-year stay in litigation.

The second MOU is with Oregon, Washington, the Nez Perce Tribe, Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, and the National Wildlife Federation plaintiffs that is intended to pause the Columbia River System (CRS) litigation for up to 10 years. We refer to this MOU and the commitments made by the U.S. Government as the Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement (RCBA). Here are several things it does:

  • It shifts the focus away from litigation and the uncertainty that litigation brings and allows for additional focus on planning and completing projects.
  • Enables the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to leverage regional partnerships to expand its contributions to improvements in conditions for salmon and other native fish in the CRS which are a vital resource for the people of the Pacific Northwest.
  • Provides an opportunity to make improvements to system infrastructure and address maintenance backlogs.
  • Leverages the programs and resources of multiple federal agencies to accomplish shared goals in collaboration with regional sovereigns.

Our Commitments: 

A man in a hard hat talking to others and illustrating his point with his hands.

As part of the MOUs with Tribes, States, and other parties, the U.S. Government developed a package of actions and commitments that it believes will provide meaningful improvements for native fish in the basin while still providing affordable and reliable clean energy, supporting the local economies of communities that rely on the CRS, and meeting the many resilience needs of the region.

It is important to note that USACE’s commitments do not call for breaching dams, nor does USACE have authority to take that action. Breaching the lower Snake River dams would require authorization and appropriations from Congress.

Left: Brian Vorheis, Operations Project Manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Ice Harbor Lock and Dam, provides a tour on top of the Navigation Lock of the project. Ice Harbor is one of four lower Snake River dams in the Columbia River Basin.

USACE commitments include:

  • Expanded spill operations to support juvenile salmonids, while maintaining our ability to continue to meet other authorized purposes of the system and with appropriate monitoring and studies to avoid impacts to adult salmonids and other native fish.
  • Seeking increased funding to address the Operations and Maintenance backlog as well as improvement of fish-related infrastructure on the system.
  • Expanded portfolio of ecosystem restoration studies and projects under existing authorities, including Cold Water Refuge projects.
  • Studies to further transportation and recreation analyses related to the lower Snake River projects. Learn more by reading this news release.
    • Recreation study: State and federal officials estimate the recreation study will cost $1.2 million and expect to complete it by 2026. The recreation study will seek to identify the potential loss of existing recreation opportunities associated with the draw down of reservoirs on the lower Snake River as well as necessary investments to accommodate potential future recreation opportunities under a dam breach scenario.
    • Transportation study: The transportation study will add $750,000 to an existing $4,000,000 Washington State study and expand the limits of the study into Idaho and Oregon. Officials expect to complete it in late 2026. The transportation study will analyze future transportation needs, volume estimates of goods to be transported, and evaluate changes in infrastructure that would be necessary to shift away from river-based transportation methods.
  • Review of existing environmental compliance documents to determine whether additional compliance is necessary.

USACE will continue engaging with our regional Tribes, partners, stakeholders and the public as we undertake this important work. We recognize we have an important job to do, and we will continue meeting all authorized project purposes at the dams in the Columbia River System as we implement these agreements.