At the Council’s May 1, 2009 request, the ISRP reviewed the Columbia River Fish Accord proposal titled Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation’s Ceded Area Priority Stream Corridor Conservation and Protection (Umatilla Tribe Protection and Capital Acquisition; BPA project #2008-207-00). The project intends to focus on securing permanent protection of priority anadromous fish core habitats in the Grande Ronde, Umatilla, Walla Walla, and John Day River watersheds through conservation easement and capital acquisition of fee title. The proposal states that continued pressure from development and commodity based resource management threatens to seriously degrade watershed productivity and function.
The ISRP recognizes that the project is potentially beneficial to both anadromous and resident species. However, the ISRP finds that not enough detail is provided in the proposal to fully assess potential benefits to fish and wildlife. Thus, the ISRP asks for a response.
