DOCUMENT: SKOKRIVR.TXT DEATH OF A RIVER... AND RESURRECTION by Marsha Shaiman "Skokomish means People of the River. For thousands of years the Skokomish People have depended on the River for their livelihood. It is our umbilical cord, the lifeline to our people...Years ago the Tribe lived in balance and harmony with the River...the fish runs were plentiful, enough for all." -Gale Longshore, Skokomish Tribal Council "The City of Tacoma built the dam and we lost the River." -Jeanne Evernden, Skokomish Tribal Elder "We had a wonderful river there and now we have nothing." -Joseph Pavel, Skokomish Tribe Sixty-five years ago when the City of Tacoma built their Cushman Hydropower Project on the Olympic Peninsula and began diverting the entire North Fork of the Skokomish River out of its channel to a power plant on Hood Canal to produce electricity, they began the destruction of the Skokomish watershed which continues to this day. Once again American Rivers has included the Skokomish on their list of North America's most endangered and threatened rivers. This year it ranks as sixteenth worst. Their recent press release states the Skokomish is listed because, "the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [FERC], for 20 years, has taken no action to modify hydropower operations that dewater the North Fork of the river." Most heavily impacted by the project is the Skokomish Indian Tribe, whose reservation was placed at the mouth of the Skokomish River because of their cultural, spiritual and economic dependence on the River. In a press release highly critical of FERC's proposal to allow Tacoma to continue diverting the North Fork, the Environmental Protection Agency states that one of the risks in continued diversion is, "Continued negative impacts on the Skokomish Tribe and their associated Treaty/Trust resources (the land adjacent to the Skokomish River was originally designated as the Tribe's Reservation because of the abundant fish and shellfish)." Past Skokomish Tribal Chair Joseph Pavel points out that the energy of the River, now used by Tacoma to produce electricity, was already in use when Tacoma took the River. "That energy was used there...to create and produce life. It produced a homeland for the Skokomish People and for all the creatures, the finned, the four-legged, and the winged. You've stolen and robbed that away from the cycle of life." Diversion of the River has harmed not only the Skokomish People but everyone dependent upon a healthy Skokomish watershed for their lives and livelihood. "We hold it unacceptable to continue the dewatering of the North Fork of the Skokomish," stated Lanny Carpenter of Puget Sound Gillnetters at a recent public hearing on the Cushman Project. He continued, "For too long, federal and state governments have turned a blind eye to the needs of those of us who depend upon healthy natural systems for our well being." In the early 1920's the Washington Department of Fisheries considered the North Fork and mainstem Skokomish "among the most important and valuable food salmon spawning streams in the State of Washington." Salmon and steelhead ran almost the whole year. Now, the dams illegally block fish passage to 84% of the North Fork, and the riverbed below the lower dam is nearly dry most of the year. A 1991 report from the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife lists sockeye, spring chinook, summer steelhead, and pink salmon as the anadromous fish stocks most adversely affected by the Cushman Project, stating they are threatened with extinction. Another report, from American Fisheries Society, states spring and summer races of chinook salmon are already extinct. They also list winter run Skokomish steelhead and sea run cutthroat as "of special concern." Skokomish Elder Helen Rudy says of her Tribe, "This is a fishing community. Fishing in the River was their whole living." She explains what Tacoma's taking of the River means to them, "It would be like taking away your livelihood." Skokomish Valley resident Mark Sleeper raised another important issue at public hearings, "I am one of the residents that's unfortunate enough to live at the bottom of the bathtub, where most of the flooding water comes down to from up above." Diversion of the North Fork has dewatered the mainstem Skokomish by 40%, drastically reducing its sediment carrying ability which has caused it to silt up. The current channel is about one third its original size, resulting in severe overbank flooding during the heavy winter rains. Mark Sleeper's home is under water between one week and one month each year. Also at "the bottom of the bathtub" is the Skokomish Reservation. The Tribe's Natural Resources Director Jim Park states that nearly 1000 acres of the 5000 acre Reservation has been lost to the River. As Gale Longshore said at a hearing, "If our interests aren't looked at, we will no longer be People of the River, we will be people of the swamp." Skokomish Tribal Elder, Joe Andrews, Sr. remembers what the area was like before the Cushman dams and knows how to restore it: "This River of ours has provided a lot of fish, trout, and enjoyment. I miss my enjoyment of pulling up there in my canoe and camping. The game was plenty and the berries. It was a paradise. If I had my way, I'd say, 'Put that water right back where she belongs and leave it alone.'" Tacoma's license to flood 8.8 acres of federal lands, the only license the project has ever had, expired in 1974 and the whole project is currently under consideration for a new license by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Federal, state and local resource agencies, along with the Skokomish Tribe, conservation groups such as American Rivers, Mountaineers, and Seattle Audubon Society, and religious organizations such as Washington Association of Churches and the Church Council of Greater Seattle all oppose Tacoma's license application to continue diverting the River. These organizations and many others call for restoration of flows to the North Fork. In partnership with resource agencies, conservation groups, and local residents, the Skokomish Tribe is completing a plan for healing the Skokomish River. Restoration of substantial flows to the North Fork is a critical component. The Tribe recommends putting the water back in phases with monitoring and testing to develop a long-term plan. Their target, supported by scientific studies, is to restore up to 95% of average annual flows by the end of 30 years. Saving the Skokomish River depends on convincing the government that the public interest lies in returning the water to the River and restoring the watershed for everyone's benefit, rather than allowing the City of Tacoma, an hours drive away from the Skokomish River, to continue diverting its waters for their own profit. To help with the Skokomish River's "resurrection" write government officials. Tell them to act in the public interest by requiring Tacoma to return the North Fork to its riverbed. Inform them of the diverse groups that oppose continued diversion and the harm being done to the general public in the name of Tacoma's profits. Be sure to cite FERC Project #460, Cushman Hydroelectric Project. Write to: Washington State Governor Mike Lowry Legislative Bldg. Olympia, WA 98504 Senator Patty Murray U.S. Senate Washington, DC 20510 Representative Norm Dicks U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515 Tacoma Mayor Brian Ebersole 747 Market St., Suite 1200 Tacoma, WA 98402. Elizabeth Moler, Chair Federal Energy Regulatory Commission 825 North Capitol St. NE, Room 3110 Washington, DC 20426. For more information or for a showing of the Skokomish Tribe's video about the watershed and their plans for restoration, contact: Victor Martino, Skokomish Tribe Project Manager 8424 NE Beck Road Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 Phone: (206) 842-5386 Fax: (206) 780-5332 Email: -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :: -= THE FOURTH WORLD DOCUMENTATION PROJECT =- :: :: A service provided by :: :: The Center For World Indigenous Studies :: :: www.cwis.org :: ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Originating at the Center for World Indigenous Studies, Olympia, Washington USA www.cwis.org © 1999 Center for World Indigenous Studies (All Rights Reserved. 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