07. POWER - Columbia Basin Bulletin

Study Shows Outfitting Wind Turbines With New Audio Deterrent System Can Reduce Raptor Collisions

August 30, 2026/in 04. WILDLIFE, 07. POWER

Wind farms have received heat in recent years for their potential to harm wildlife, a notable issue in western North America where some farms are located near populations of protected bald eagles and golden eagles. A new study published in the Journal of Raptor Research, “Behavioral Responses of Large Soaring Raptors to Audio Deterrents at...

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This Month in 2006 | ADVISORY GROUP NAMED FOR WASHINGTON’S COLUMBIA RIVER PLAN

August 29, 2026/in 07. POWER

A panel representing a broad spectrum of interested parties will help Washington State launch a new water management program for the Columbia River aimed at balancing economic needs with the needs of fish and healthy watersheds.

BPA Says Off-Channel Hatchery Salmon Program Not Meeting Agency Goals, Funding Halt Puts 7 Million Chinook, Coho In Production At Risk

August 21, 2026/in 04. WILDLIFE, 07. POWER

The Bonneville Power Administration says it will stop funding its share of a program that supports the Select Area Fisheries Enhancement Program in the lower Columbia River as of September 30, the end of the federal power broker’s fiscal year.

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Council Draft Power Plan Says NW Federal Power Demand To Grow 50-100 Percent In 20 Years, Partly Driven Near-Term By New Data Centers

August 21, 2026/in 07. POWER

The Northwest’s federal power system demand is forecasted to grow by 50 to 100 percent over the next 20 years and will need a mix of new resources that could cost the region as much as $2.3 billion.

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Washington State’s Only Coal Power Plant Shifting To Natural Gas By 2028, Will Serve As Power Backup For Region

August 21, 2026/in 07. POWER

Washington’s only coal power plant will transition to natural gas by 2028.

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Bonneville Power Says Forecast For End-Of-Year Net Revenues Declined Since May, Now Expects To Be $49 Million Below Target

August 21, 2026/in 07. POWER

The Bonneville Power Administration’s forecast for end-of-year net revenues has declined since its last financial report in May. Bonneville now expects to end the year $49 million below the target of $509 million, compared to the Q2 forecast of $15 million below target. The primary driver, continuing from the previous quarter, is lower-than-expected transmission revenues […]

This Month in 2016 | Cooler Water Continues To Flow In Lower Snake River; Fish Ladder Cooling Now Also At Little Goose

August 20, 2026/in 04. WILDLIFE, 07. POWER, 08. LAW

Water in Lower Granite Dam’s tailwater continues to run several degrees cooler than the 68 degrees Fahrenheit upper temperature limit set by NOAA Fisheries’ 2014 biological opinion for Columbia/Snake salmon and steelhead, and the result has been improved passage for sockeye salmon.

This Month in 2006 | NEZ PERCE HATCHERY FUNDING RESTS ON ESA ‘CREDITING’ ISSUE

July 30, 2026/in 03. HABITAT, 04. WILDLIFE, 07. POWER, 08. LAW

A July 21 letter from the Bonneville Power Administration’s CEO Steve Wright reiterates the agency’s intent to defer funding for new Nez Perce tribal hatchery facilities while the project’s full biological benefits are weighed in an ongoing court-ordered process.

This Month in 2006 | COUNCIL STAFF AIMS FOR PROJECT RECOMMENDATIONS IN SEPTEMBER

July 23, 2026/in 07. POWER, 08. LAW

With advice from a variety of sources now in hand, Northwest Power and Conservation Council staff will begin piecing together a recommendation for how available fish and wildlife monies will be spent in fiscal years 2007-2009.

This Month in 2016 | BPA Selects Javier Fernandez As Chief Financial Officer

July 23, 2026/in 07. POWER

Javier Fernandez has been appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer for the Bonneville Power Administration.

Travis Kavulla Sworn In As 17th Administrator of Bonneville Power Administration

July 10, 2026/in 07. POWER

Travis Kavulla has been sworn in as the new administrator and CEO of the Bonneville Power Administration by U.S. Under Secretary of Energy Kyle Haustveit, becoming the 17th administrator in BPA's 89-year history.

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ODFW Says BPA Terminating Funding For Key Hatchery Program, Major Consequences For Commercial, Recreational Fisheries

July 10, 2026/in 07. POWER

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has been notified that the Bonneville Power Administration is terminating its share of funding for the Select Area Fisheries Enhancement (SAFE) Program in the Lower Columbia River effective September 30, 2026

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This Month in 2006 | CONGRESSIONAL HEARING FOCUSES ON POWER RATES, FISH COSTS

July 9, 2026/in 04. WILDLIFE, 07. POWER

The Endangered Species Act is often “used as a tool to drive up costs for our electricity ratepayers,” U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris said during a July 7 congressional oversight field hearing in Pasco, Wash.

This Month in 2016 | As Many As 45 Percent Of Tagged Spring Chinook In Estuary Disappear Before Reaching Bonneville Dam

July 9, 2026/in 04. WILDLIFE, 07. POWER

NOAA Fisheries research indicates that after accounting for harvest, in some years as many as 45 percent of the salmon tagged in the estuary disappear before reaching Bonneville Dam, according to a presentation last week to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.

This Month in 2006 | . BPA RELEASES PROPOSAL ON SELLING LOW-COST POWER AFTER 2011

June 19, 2026/in 07. POWER

The Bonneville Power Administration released a proposal this week aimed at defining its electrical power supply role in the Pacific Northwest after 2011, when its current power sales contracts expire.

BPA Says Second Quarter Financials Project Net Revenues Falling Short Of End-Of -Year Target, Agency Stresses Continued Uncertainty

May 29, 2026/in 07. POWER

Similar trends from first quarter financial performance results continued for the Bonneville Power Administration into the second quarter for fiscal year 2026. While agency net revenues continue to fall short and the agency debt-to-asset ratio is higher than expected, BPA is on track to meet most of its end-of-year targets. The Q2 projection for end-of-year...

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WSU Researchers’ Model Identifies Vulnerable Transmission Towers In Extreme Wind Events, Determines Retrofits To Prevent Outages

May 8, 2026/in 06. SCIENCE, 07. POWER

A model developed by Washington State University researchers can predict how transmission towers might fail and collapse in extreme wind events. The work, reported in the journal, Engineering Structures, could someday help power companies identify the most vulnerable transmission towers in extreme wind events and determine which should have retrofits to reduce the power outage...

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Corps Completes Scoping of Proposed Underwater Transmission Line In Columbia River, Draft EIS Next

April 25, 2026/in 07. POWER

The public has had its say in the scoping round for the Cascade Renewable Transmission project, a more than 100-mile transmission line proposal that, if approved, would include 80 miles of line buried beneath the Columbia River from The Dalles to Portland. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which is currently writing the project’s draft...

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Corps’ ‘Building Infrastructure, Not Paperwork’ Initiative Aimed At Cutting Red Tape, Says Won’t Change Public Processes, NEPA, ESA

February 27, 2026/in 07. POWER

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland District, is vowing to become more efficient when approving and building infrastructure projects.

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BPA First Quarter Financials Show Mixed Results As Revenues Fall Short, Agency Closely Monitoring Such Variables As Snowpack

February 27, 2026/in 02. RIVER, 07. POWER

The Bonneville Power Administration’s first quarter financial forecast shows mixed results for the agency’s expected end-of-year performance.

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BPA Administrator Hairston Retires From Federal Service, Named As New General Manager Of Eugene Utility

February 13, 2026/in 07. POWER

John Hairston, who has served as administrator and chief executive officer of the Bonneville Power Administration since January 2021, is announcing his retirement from federal service. He’s headed to the Eugene Electric and Water Board as its new general manager.

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FERC Issues License For Proposed Pump Storage Project Near John Day Dam, Tribes, Conservation Groups Vow Continued Opposition

February 6, 2026/in 05. INDIGENOUS, 07. POWER

A proposed clean energy pump storage generating project near the John Day Dam on the Columbia River cleared another hurdle last week when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued the project a 40-year operating license, despite opposition by the Yakama Nation and environmental groups.

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Plaintiffs In Columbia Basin Salmon BiOp Case Counter Federal Defendants Motion To Dismiss, Argue Northwest Power Act Does Not Apply

January 23, 2026/in 07. POWER, 08. LAW

In a strongly-worded rebuttal to a December motion to dismiss by federal defendants in U.S. District Court, plaintiffs challenging the operation and maintenance of the Columbia/Snake river hydroelectric system of dams questioned why, after 24 years and eight complaints since 2001, that the federal government is now moving to dismiss the case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

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Corps Opens Environmental Review Of Proposed Transmission Line In Columbia River Bed From The Dalles To Portland

January 23, 2026/in 07. POWER

An environmental review of a nearly 80-mile high voltage transmission line that would be buried in the bed of the Columbia River from The Dalles to Portland was set in motion earlier this month with a public comment period that ends Feb. 4.

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Over 130 Northwest Utilities Sign Long-Term Wholesale Power Contracts With Bonneville Power Administration

January 9, 2026/in 07. POWER

The Bonneville Power Administration has executed new long-term wholesale electric power contracts with more than 130 Northwest public utility customers this fall.

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