On November 17, 2022, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
(“FERC”) voted unanimously to issue an Order Modifying
and Approving Surrender License and Removal of Project Facilities
Order (“Order”) for the Lower Klamath Project
(“Project”). The Order allows the dams'
private operator to surrender its operating license and was one of
the final hurdles for the largest dam removal project in United
States history. The $450 million project involves the removal
of four dams along the Klamath River near the border of Northern
California and Southern Oregon.
A noteworthy aspect of the Project that its advocates and the
press have failed to acknowledge is that it is expected to result
in the loss of thousands of endangered Lost River and shortnose
sucker fish in the hopes of providing benefits for native
salmonids. The federal and state wildlife agencies rarely
approve of this type of triage of native, at-risk species.
But because this dam removal project has the
