'Historic' new Columbia River Treaty in sight

Photo: Parliament of Canada

South Okanagan-West Kootenay MP Richard Cannings

After six years of negotiations, Canada and the United States have signed an agreement in principle to modernize the Columbia River Treaty.

In part, this agreement would mean that B.C. would provide less pre-planned flood-risk management to the U.S. and gain more flexibility in how we operate our dams.

The original Columbia River Treaty, signed in 1964, covered only two benefits to managing the flow of the river—flood control and power generation. The treaty led to the construction of three major dams in British Columbia—the Duncan, Mica, and Keenleyside dams—and allowed for the creation of the Libby dam in Montana.

In return for the construction of the three Canadian treaty dams and the ongoing management of flow to maximize downstream power generation and flood control in the United States, Canada receives half of the additional power produced at U.S. dams due to regulated flows from Canadian reservoirs, known as the “Canadian Entitlement.” The dollar value of the Canadian Entitlement varies every year depending on energy pricing and electricity production, but generally exceeds $100 million.

As an important aside, this Canadian Entitlement is not connected to the funding provided annually to the Columbia Basin Trust. That trust was set up by the B.C. government in 1995 to compensate the region for the social and economic impacts of the Columbia River Treaty but receives its funding from sales of power from hydroelectric projects in Canada, not the U.S.

Over the years, it has been clear that, while Canada and the United States see the tremendous benefits of the Columbia River Treaty, there has been a great deal of discussion on both sides of the border about what a new treaty should cover. The Americans wanted to pay a lot less to Canada for downstream benefits. Canadians wanted more flexibility in regulating reservoir levels to provide better recreation opportunities and ecosystem management. First Nations wanted a real place at the table so that their voices would be heard in a new treaty process.

Over the past six years, the B.C. and Canadian governments and the Ktunaxa, Secwepemc and Syilx Okanagan Nations have worked hard to negotiate a modernized treaty that reflects B.C. Columbia Basin interests.

This new agreement accomplishes just that, creating a framework for a new treaty under which Canada would provide less flood management to the U.S. and have more flexibility in how we control the level of our reservoirs and the flow of our rivers. That would mean less drastic shifts in reservoir volumes, so that communities, such as Nakusp, would enjoy more stable lake levels and beach shorelines.

It would also allow planning for the reintroduction of salmon into the upper Columbia to go ahead, re-creating salmon runs that have been extinct for almost a century. It would provide mechanisms to adapt the treaty provisions to the uncertain but serious impacts of climate change. The new treaty would also create an Indigenous and tribal advisory body to ensure that river management operations can better support ecosystem needs and Indigenous. cultural values.

The agreement in principle is not the new treaty, but it is a road map that sets out the key elements of the new treaty. It is a big step forward, but for the moment the old treaty remains in place. As Jill Smail, the U.S. negotiator said in a meeting I attended last week, the agreement is a “meeting of the minds” and what is needed now is to put those terms into treaty language.

As that drafting work on the treaty continues, there will be an engagement process that will explain to Columbia Basin residents what the agreement includes and seeks their feedback. People will have their say before any modernized treaty is finalized.

I think we can say that after years of public meetings and hard negotiations, we have another historic Columbia River Treaty in sight—a more comprehensive treaty that will provide a better future for residents on both sides of the border for decades to come.

Richard Cannings is the NDP MP for South Okanagan-West Kootenay.

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.