The U.S. and Canada need to right historic wrongs and honor the Northwest’s consensus to restore the health of the river.
The Columbia River Treaty is a 1964 agreement between the U.S and Canada that controls the Columbia River’s flow across the border. It has a major impact on fish, hydro-electricity, flood protection, agriculture, navigation, recreation, and more.
The current treaty has an exclusive focus on maximizing hydropower production and engineered flood control. It ignores Indigenous rights, fish, water quality and the health of the river, principles of good governance, and the reality of present and worsening climate disruption.
After six years of negotiating to ‘modernize’ the treaty, the U.S. and Canada reached an “Agreement-In-Principle” as a high level framework for the new agreement on July 11th, 2024.
Unfortunately, the AIP excludes the addition of Ecosystem Function as a third primary purpose, as was called for in the Northwest’s formal recommendations and by Columbia Basin tribes and many stakeholders. In the face of struggling fish populations and climate change, this is unacceptable.
SOS is working with other NGOs and in coordination with Indigenous sovereigns to advocate for improvements before a new treaty is finalized.
Read more about the current work by the U.S. NGO Treaty Caucus and how you can take action at ColumbiaRiverTreaty.org
