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on making their way to the ocean and have had improved salmon runs over the last three years.” • Dam breaching poses signi? - cant, and negative, energy-environ- mental impacts. PNWA calculates it would take 162,153 semis or 42,160 rail cars to move the 4.2 million tons of cargo currently barged on the SR. “That means an increase in CO2 and other harmful emissions by over 1,251,000 tons per year – the same as opening a new coal plant every six years,” Stebbings writes.

• Finally, there’s energy: hydro- power provides the baseload function necessary to integrate intermittent solar and wind into regional trans- mission and distribution systems. If lost, there’s no system, no grid.

Peter Schrappen, CAE, is VP for

The American Waterways Operators

Paci? c Region, based in Seattle. AWO is zeroed-in on these various propos- als. In response to the Murray/Inslee report Schrappen wrote the following: • The loss of the Snake River dams would “devastate regional and national food security, the supply chain, and clean energy generation.” • Schrappen challenged the report’s claim that dams’ signi? cant bene? ts could be replaced or mitigated.

• Northwest rail and truck capac- ity are challenged to meet current demands. “It is unrealistic to believe that these two modes can absorb the additional 4 million tons of cargo moved through the Snake River locks each year.”

Regional and day-to-day challenges

In addition to these looming mega- www.marinelink.com MN 35|