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
Chair Elizabeth Moler, 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: martino@interserv.com