Half a century after their fishing grounds were
flooded by a federal dam, four Northwest Indian tribes will be
compensated with replacement sites along the Columbia River. On
June 23, the Interior Department and Army Corps of Engineers agreed
to spend about $57 million to create access to 31 new fishing areas
in Oregon and Washington for the Yakama, Warm Springs, Umatilla and
Nez Perce tribes. Construction of the Bonneville Dam in the 1930s
inundated 37 tribal fishing grounds, but only five have been
replaced as mandated by 1850s treaty rights and a 1988 act of
Congress. “I’m happy we finally got it settled,” said Mike Farrow,
director for the Umatilla Tribes’ department of natural resources
in Pendleton, Ore. The $57 million will build roads, boat ramps,
docks, and campground facilities. Now that they’re getting access
to the rivers, the Northwest tribes only have to worry about
whether there will be any salmon left.
*Diane
Kelly
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Tribes settle for new fishing sites.
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