Loss of these four facilities will cause irreparable damage to the PNW economy, including Oregon’s wheat growers, not limiting to,

• Transportation and storage expense are likely to increase 50% to 100% for grain suppliers and shippers. These costs could increase by up to $0.80 per bushel if barging on the Snake River is removed as a transportation option.
• Diesel fuel consumption to increase by nearly 5 million gallons per year as barges are replaced by much less efficient truck-to-rail shipments.
• Highway, rail and grain elevator networks would need over $1.6 billion in capital investment.
• The loss of hydropower generation will reduce the baseload power available to balance the power provided by variable generation sources like wind and solar.
• Carbon emissions from transportation and replacement power generation would greatly increase, something the State of Oregon is supposedly trying to reduce with countless other policy initiatives.

We encourage your participation in the conversation about the community benefits provided by the hydroelectric dams and locks of the Columbia-Snake River System.

• Barging is the safest method of moving cargo, with a lower number of injuries, fatalities and spill rates than both rail and trucks. It is also the most fuel efficient and has the lowest emissions.
• The river system reduces traffic congestion and pollution. In 2019, it would have taken 39,204 rail cars or 150,784 semi-trucks to move the cargo that was barged on the Snake River.
• One standard barge on any of these rivers takes 134.5 semi-trucks off our roads, while one barge tow (4 barges!) takes 538 semi-trucks off our roads.
• At least 201 additional unit trains and 23.8 million miles in additional trucking activity would be required annually if the Snake River dams were removed.
• The installation of surface passage has reduced the percentage of fish that go through the powerhouse (turbine), also decreasing the fish travel time through the system. There is a 97 percent juvenile fish survival rate, which is reaching levels seen in rivers without dams and increasing overall survival rates.
• Texas Transportation Institute/MARAD study showed trucks at 169 miles for 1 ton of cargo moved on 1 gallon of diesel. Rail is 412 miles, inland barging is 475 miles.
• A better one is Corps of Engineers study of Columbia River barging. One 3600 ton barge of wheat, Lewiston to Portland is 2200 gallons of diesel. Rail is 5300 gallons, trucking is 16,400 gallons for the same tonnage.
• PNWA Fact Sheet