This week, President Donald Trump issued a Presidential Memorandum titled “Stopping Radical Environmentalism to Generate Power for the Columbia River Basin,” which overturns the Biden administration’s actions that harmed local communities by threatening to eliminate hydropower generation and river commerce on the river. House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) issued the following statement in response:

"President Trump’s announcement is a return to commonsense for the Columbia River system and overturns disastrous policies made by the Biden administration without local support. The Lower Snake River dams in the Columbia River Basin provide clean, reliable and sustainable baseload power and support vital river commerce. President Trump’s actions further his commitment to lowering energy costs and promoting economic opportunity for hardworking American families across the country."

Background

President Trump’s memorandum overturns a previous Biden administration action that was guided by radical environmentalists and ignored local community needs.

In June 2023, the House Committee on Natural Resources traveled to the Pacific Northwest to hear from the local community about the threat posed by radical environmental groups to the region’s energy security and economic well-being. There, the Committee toured the Ice Harbor Facility, one of the four dams under attack by environmental groups, and held a field hearing on the environmental groups’ efforts to destroy navigation, transportation, and access to reliable baseload hydropower.  

In August 2023, Committee members sent letters to former U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Administrator Richard W. Spinrad seeking further answers on these issues and the severely flawed 2022 NOAA report, “Rebuilding Interior Columbia Basin Salmon and Steelhead.” The Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries also held an oversight hearing in December 2023 on the Biden administration’s abuse of the administrative process and secret work on the initial agreement and memorandum of understanding. 

Dams, like the one members toured in June 2023, play a critical role supporting the local economy through trade and tourism in addition to generating reliable and affordable renewable energy. 50 to 60 million tons of cargo are barged through the Columbia River system annually. In 2019, it would have taken 150,784 semitrucks or 39,204 rail cars to move the cargo that was barged on the Snake River. This river system also supports a robust tourism industry in the region with more than 25,000 passengers visiting the region on cruise ships and contributing nearly $15 million to the local economy in 2019 alone. Finally, the Columbia River dams have the combined capacity to generate approximately 3,033 megawatts of carbon-free electricity, enough to power over 2 million homes. 

Committee Republicans remain committed to continuing oversight of the Biden administration’s actions related to the Columbia River and lessening the influence of radical environmental groups in impactful decision-making.