Mike Simpson Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

‘The Very Essence Of Our Being’: Northwest Tribes (And Politicians) Gather To Discuss Future Of Salmon

By Courtney Flatt July 8, 2021

Colville Tribal member Crystal Conant releases the final salmon into the upper Columbia River on Friday, Aug. 9, 2019. Conant said salmon’s reintroduction to the upper Columbia will help heal the tribe and the ecosystem. CREDIT: COURTNEY FLATT/NWPB

Tribes across the Northwest called for immediate action to remove the four Lower Snake River dams during a two-day Salmon and Orca summit in western Washington. The group called on President Biden and congressional members to “take bold action, now.”Read More

One Idea To Remove Snake River Dams May Be Dead In The Water. Inslee And Murray Oppose It

By Courtney Flatt May 14, 2021

Tribal canoeists on the Memorial Bridge in Lewiston, Idaho, on the Clearwater River just before the confluence with the Snake River. The group joined the larger Free the Snake "flotilla" demonstration, Sept. 7-8, 2018. CREDIT: MIKE BEISER

A wide-ranging proposal to save wild salmon by removing the four Lower Snake River dams may be dead in the water. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and Sen. Patty Murray say any proposal for the controversial dams needs a “science-based,” “community-driven” approach.Read More

Newhouse And McMorris Rodgers Seek To Boost Hydropower After Idaho Rep’s Dam Removal Idea

By Courtney Flatt March 5, 2021

In this May 15, 2019 the Lower Granite Dam on the Snake River is seen from the air near Colfax, Wash. In early 2021, Republican Congressman Mike Simpson of Idaho proposed removing four hydroelectric dams on the Lower Snake River in Washington as part of a sweeping plan to save salmon populations and provide aid to farmers and others. CREDIT: Ted S. Warren

Republicans Dan Newhouse and Cathy McMorris Rodgers have long championed dams. This is their second go at passing legislation that would reclassify hydropower as a renewable energy source. That’s important, Newhouse says, because hydropower can generate energy when wind and solar farms might be offline.Read More

Idaho Congressman Hopes Politics Align In Proposal To Remove Snake River Dams In Washington

By NWPB News February 16, 2021

This month, Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson of Idaho issued a bold plan that called for removing those same dams to save the salmon. In between those two acts were decades of litigation that show no sign of ending and $17 billion worth of improvements to the dams that did little to help fish.Read More

Idaho Congressman Proposes $33.5 Billion Plan For Breaching Snake River Dams In Washington

By NWPB News February 8, 2021

A $33.5 billion stimulus package would breach the four dams by 2031. Much of the funding would go toward solutions for what would be lost, including hydropower, less access to irrigation, grain transportation and economic development for Lewiston and the Tri-Cities.Read More