PacifiCorp move to transfer ownership of four hydroelectric dams greenlit by Oregon PUC

The transfer of four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River, currently owned by PacifiCorp but soon to be operated by the Klamath River Renewal Corporation (KRRC), was approved by the Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) this week, moving the facilities another step toward removal.

Ultimately, PacifiCorp will transfer approximately 8,000 acres of property associated with the dams, plus the facilities themselves, to the KRRC. The arrangement is part of a negotiated agreement to decommission and remove these dams, collectively known as the Lower Klamath Project, from operation. The issue is that these structures were originally built only with power generation in mind and failed to accommodate irrigation, flood control, or the safe passage of fish.

Two other dams further to the north — the Keno and Link River dams — have fish passages and irrigation allowances and thus are not being targeted for demolition.

“Our decision to approve the transfer is one step on a long and winding path that will continue through the next phases,” PUC Chair Megan Decker said. “It keeps in motion efforts to restore the Klamath Basin and improve the health of a river vital to indigenous communities and others that depend on it.”

The Lower Klamath Project has received similar approvals from the California, Idaho, and Wyoming utility commissions. This followed an agreement reached between PacifiCorp, the states of California and Oregon, the Karuk and Yurok Tribes, and the KRRC last year.

Decker added that relicensing and continued operation of these four dams would be quite costly and likely lead to less energy generation thereafter. With declining costs among alternative power sources on top of this, the chair determined that dam removal would be the least costly and risky option for PacifiCorp and its customers.