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6 l.liEBRDARY 19, 2014 NEWS I LATHEADBEACON.COM

Arbitration Panel fo Decide Kerr Dam Price TagTribes seeking

acquisition of massivehydroelectric facility

near PoisonFl

By DILLON TABISII oftheBeacon

An arbitration panel is preparing toannounce1hefinakpriceetag for-Korrr-Dam,i.he 194-megawatt hydroelectric plant atthe natural outlet of Flathead Lake nearPolsoii.

The American Arbitration AssociationIjpld a hearing late last month in Newport,Ca1if., involving the facility's current own-er, PPL Montana, and Energy Keepers,Inc., the new corporation tasked with ac-quimng and eventually operating the damfor the Confederated Salish and KootenaiTribes.

The CSKT is looking to acquire thedam, wTiich sits. on the&lathead Riverwithin the Flathead Indian Reservation,by September 2015 as part of an agree-ment dating back to 1985.The massive fa-cility, which began operating in.1938, canstore upwards of 1.2 million acre-feet ofwater Kiifi produce enough energy to pow-er nearly 150,000 homes. With the acqui-sition, the CSKT would become the firstAmerican Indian tribe to own and operatea major hydroelectric power plant.

A three-rriciiibgr panel was establishedafter both sides failed to reach an agree-ment on the purchase price. PPL Montanaset the total acquisition cost at $49.5 mil-lion, while the tribes claimed a much lowerprice of $13.5 million.

The arbitration panel reviewed argu-ments from both sides and settled on par-tial costs within the overall agreement anda finai decision on the overall agreement isexpected by March 5.

T!ie panel sided with PPL on the valueof Kerr Dam's hydroelectric lant, rough-ly $16.56 million, which was roughly $1.9milhoii more tlian CSKT's estimate..Re-garding flooding rights, the panel sidedwith CSKT and'rebuffed PPL Montana'sattempt at includmg $987,300 in legal feesrelated to a long-standing lawsqfit overflooding rights at. Flathead Lalce. The pan-el told t.he company that those coal.s would

Kerr Dem near Poison, wiconniirrroro

not be included in the tribes'cquisitionprice. Also, roughly $102,700 in employeeseverance costs proposed by PPL was alsorejected.

"We are pleased. Through these hear-ings, we got our day in court, and this par-tial award reflects some significant winsfor the Tribes," said Brian Lipscomb, CEPof Energy Keepers. "We feel optimis-tic that our position is solid, and that ourteam did an excellent job in presenting ourcase before the panel. Now we will waitand anticipate their ruling that we expectto reflect what we agreed to in 1985 fo theremainder of items in question."

The largest remaining question marlcrevolves around environmental mitiga-tion costs that PPL contends should beincluded in the agreement and valued at$31.7million.

PPL Montana purchased Kerr Dan: in1999 from Montana Power Company aspart of the utility giant's sell-off after thestate deregulated the power industry.

The CSKT has been the co-licensee forKerr Dam since 1985.Under terms of theircontract, the tribe has the right to acquirethe project at "original cost less deprecia-tion" in the fall of 2015 mid become thesole owner and operator. The dam pro-

duces an average annual output of 1.1mil-Iion~z~awatt-labours. The CSIfT formallybegan to negotiate the acquisition in 2010.

PPL Montana's hyclroelectric facili-ties include Kerr Dam; its Thompson Falls

am on the Clark Fork River; Madisonam on the Madison River; Hauser, Holt-

er, Black Eagle, Rainbow, Cochrane, Ryanand Morony dame along the Missouri Riv-

I er; and Mystic Lake Dam on West RosebudCreelc.

PPL has agreed to sell 11 facilitics, in-cluding Kerr, to the largest electric utilityin Montana. NorthWestarn&nergy, withmore than 340,000 customers, has agreedto pay an estimated $900 million for thefacilities.

Last week the Montana Public ServiceCommission voted 5-0 that Northwest-ern's init.ial approval request was inad-equate and asked the utility giant to pro-vide additional figures that explain theimpact of the deal on Montana custom-ers. The'compaiiy has said the acquisitionwould raise electric rates by about 4.2 per-cent..

NorthWestern has said the applicationalso contains commitments to transfer theI&err Dam to the CSIIT.

[email protected]


FLATHEADBEACON.COM NEWS MARCH 12, 2014115

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In

Kerr Oam near Poison, ordcoonitonoio

Kerr Dam Closer to TribalOwnership, New

Tribes poised tobecome first in the

nation to own majorhydroelectric facility

By BEACON STAI'I

The Flathead Reservation tribes arecloser Io becoming the first in the U.S. toown a malor hydroelectric facility.

An arbitration panel in Californiasettled on a price tag for Kerr Dam lastweek, setting the stage for the Confeder-ated Salish and Kootenai Tribes'cqui-silionof the 194-megawatt plant in Sep-tember 2015.

The CSET must pay nearly $18.3 mil-lion for the dam located at the naturaloutlet of Flathead Lake near Poison.

The dam was been a source of con-troversy and opposition when it wasbuilt in the 1930s, and several peopledied during its construction.

Nearly 80 years later, the tribes fileda forinaj notice on March 4 with the

Fede-

rall Energy ReguTator~yommission ex-pi ensign their intent to take over the fa-cility as a part of a mission to maintainand manage important natural resourc-es within the Flathead Reservation.

"Today we enjoy historic success inour diligent effort to acquire the KerrProject," said B&taILLipScoinfbu CFO ofE ~K . anal dconrporation established to mapage thefacility's takeover.

With less than 19 months until theacquisition date, Elf I is preparing for thefuture management and~ceration of thehydroelectric facility, as well as craftuiga new name for the dam with the input oftribal leaders. The dam, which was com-p l d» » df:d.

p CE IK.EI CEKE III Ewill make a final decision on the newname, according to EI&I.

By taking over Iferr Dam, the CSKTwill become the first tribe in America toown and opeiate a major hydroelectricfacilLty as well as becoming the only en-tity in Montana to own an in-state dam.PPL is based out of Allenlown, Pa.

The American Arbitration Associa-tion paneTlanded on a fiitbai~rice morefavorable to CSKT thaii PPL Montana,the site's current owner. PPL, whichpurchased the dam from Montana Pow-er in 1999 argued 1he tribes should haveto pay $49 4 million for the entire facil-ity The tribes countered it should be$14.7milhon.

The arbitration panel agreed with

PPL that the facility's plant should cost$16.5 million, nearly $2 million morethan CSKT estimated due to deprecia-tion. The panel shot down PPL*s pro-posed $987,000 as part of its legal de-f» I n=dd~dover flooding rights at Flathead Lake.

Kerr Dam is a concrete arch darrQSI,feet in len d 2'eet high. It curiotrois the elevation of the top 10 feet ofFlathead Lalce, and has an average pro-duction of 1.1million megawatt liours ofenergy'pezjrear,

In 1985, FERC issued the dam's op-erating license to both Montana. Power.and the tribes to settle a contested pro-ceeding. Montana Power, which sold itsutility assets in 1997,was to operate theproject for at least 30 years after whichthe tnbes would have the option to buy.

"This day represents an unwaver-ing and long-standing commitment bythe Salish, Pend d'Oreille and Kool.enaiTrilies to restore tribal stewardship overresources afi'ected by the Iferr Project,"said CSKT Tribal Chaiianan RonaldTrahan. "This is a big day in"our tribalhistory that is especially meaningful toour communities because it representsself-sufficiency, resilience and vision bythe tribes. Today we telic a big step for-ward in acquiring the Iferry Project."

newsCmffafbeadbeacon.corn


FLATFIEADBEACON.COM MAY 21,2014'

NEWS ' 0 R D S '-'f

the Werjf

Tribes Move Forward withGill-Netting in Flathead Lake

Experimental suppres-sion of lake trout shows

positive results

AN IN]REF

NEWS

Theanwr

P

5

By TIEISTAN SCOTT ofEltc Beacon

The C mfederated Salish and Koote-noi Tmbes have begun efforts to removeabout. 100,000 non-native lake trout fromFlathead Lake in 2014, using gill netting,recreational angling and fishing conteststo acliieve flic goal.

The decision to move forward withgill-netting, which generatere intense con-troversy between state a~nfer]eral agen-cies, comes after an extensive environ-inenta] analysis of the effect of the prac-tice, as well as other methods of lake troutsuppression, which are outlined under theFlathead Lake and River Fisheries Co-IV1anagement Plan.

The 2014 plan sets a harvest. target ofbetween 90,000 and 100,000 lake trout,and separates harvest by methods Lhatinclude general recreational harvest, theMack Days fishing contest and netting.This target figure represents about. a 30percent increase in the harvest measuredover the last several years.

CSICT fisheries biologist Barry Han-sen, who led the Environmental Im-pact Statmnent process, said the tribeslaunched the first phase of netting duringlhe last two weeks of Apml.

An experienced nening team trainedtmbal ofiir ials and, in eight days of netting,caught 5,232 lake trout. One bull trout wasinadvertently captured and immediatelyreleased, ko no mortaliLy of bull trout re-sulted from the netting —a major bench-mark of success, Heusen said.

Since ihe explosion of non-native laketrout in Flathead Lalce, the fish have out-

competed native bull trout populations,which have diminished.

Addi ~itl tek ki fwere netted. Like Mack Days, Ihe fish weredonated to local food hanks.

Hansen said the high rate of bycatchof whitefisli wa", unfortunate, but. that thecrews adjusted the depth of their gill net-ting and significantly reduced the numberof wlutefish inadvertently caught.

The major points of contention be-tween the state FWP and l.he tribes arewhether bull trout populations in theFlathead River Basin have improved orstabilized smce 2000, when the tribe andMontana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, whichshare fisheries management authority onFlathead Lake, adopted the Flathead Lakeand River Fisheries Co-Management Planwith a goal of'increasing the abundance of

native bull trout. and westslope cutthroattrout.. The co-nianagement plan, whichexpired in 2010, relied on recreationalfishing pressure and conl.eats to controllaket.routabundancc.

With the expiration of the 10-yearmanagement plan, the tmbe began a Na-tional Environmental Policy Act processto develop a new science-based plan for areduction of the bloated lake trout popu-lal ion in orrler to benefit native fish in thelalie and river system.

Alienated trom that discussion is thctribe~a]ongf iriie paitner, the FWP, whichseparated itself from Llie process In apuLilic sign of disapproval in Maiich 2012.FWP which is c~har ed with the diial mis-sion of maintaining a recreational fishery

See Aret ting PAGE 22

~r,'Lu~='n

angler compeimg m Mack Oeye on Flathead Lake. tiATKEAKKEAcootiit pt'oro

WS FLATHEADBEACON.COM

NETTINGContinued from page 5

kl .population of native species, says bulltro~evels in f]te~athead Basin arestable as dafineEL tky the. previous co-management plan.

COOT T O l Cdd gg d f

nonnative a e trou in F at ea ake,supporting a preferred alternative thatwould allow for the reduction of 75 per-cent of the adult lake trout population in

Flathead Lake.That alternative recommended a

harvest of 143,000 lake trout every year,but Hansen said CSKT is moving for-ward cautiously as it continues to assessand evaluate their suppression methods.

He said the plan calls for removing25,000 fish by way of the general recre-ational harvest, 45,000 fish through thespring Mack Days fishing contest, whichended May 15, and between 20,000 and

30,000 fish through gill-netting.The tmbes prepared the plan to be a

living document, subject to annual re-views and course corrections, ratherthan as a rigid and infiexible plan.

In addition, the plan describeschanges in the fishery of Flathead Lake

over time, and an incremental andtransparent decision-making processthat includes public involvement. Eachyear a team of fisheries professionalswill review the results, followed by pub-lic scoping and review by the Reserva-tion Fish and Wildlife Advisory Board,a d oncludin

' decision theTr~ibal scil.

The netting was conducted under a

permit issued by the U S.Fish and Wild-

life Service to address the incidental by-catch of bull trout, a threatened species.

Wade Fredenberg of the USFWSmonitored the netting for complianceand, after the review, stated that "theresults were exactly what we expected—a high lake trout catch with virtual-

ly no bull trout bycatch. As a result, wecontinue'o give our full support to thisadaptive effort to incrementally reducelake trout numbers."

Clint Muhlfeld, an aquatics ecologistat the U.S. Geological Survey's GlacierNational Park field station, hailed thesuppression effort as one of the largestever, and encouraged the tribe to moveforward deliberately but aggressively.

"The quicker the better to get this toa manageable level," he said. "Go big orgo home."

tscottCmffafheadbeacon.corn


CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWSof the

SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBESof the

FI ATHEAD REBERvATIDNMONTANA

Amendment IIArticle II oi'he Constitution entitled "Membership"

is hereby amended in its entirety to read as follows:

"Section 1. Confirmation of Rolls — The membershipof the Confederated Tribes of the Flathead Reservationis confirmed in accordance with the per capita rollsas from time to time prepared.

"Section 2. Present Membershio — Membership in theTribes on and after the date of the adoption of'hisamendment shall consist of all living persons whose I

names appear on the pex capita roll of the ConfederatedSalish and Koo*enai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation,Montana, as prepared f'r the per capita distribution as I

shown on the per capita roll paid in February 1959I

together with all children of such members, born toolate to bc included on such per capita roll and prior / 48~if~to the effective date of this section who possess one- p~gqy~~~fourth (F/4)~r mor~e alish oi Kootenai blood ox'othand are bor~n o a member of the Confederated Tribesof. tlie Fl'athead Ind'xanWeservation. Subject to review 8/by the Secretary of the Interior, the Tx ibal Councilshall make any necessary corrections in this 1959membership roll so that no one e~li ible i'or membershipunder prior constitutional proviMions shall -be-excludedtherefrom.

"Section 3. Future Membership — Future membershipmay be regulated from time to time by ordinance of theConfederated Tribes subject to review by the Secretaryof the Interior. Until and unless an ordinance isadopted any person shall be enrolled as a member who

h 11+~ly, h ppl'' 8 h bl lf,establishing eligibility under t is provision; (b)show that'e is a natural child of a member of theConfed'crated Tribes; (c)"that he possesses'n'-quarter(1/4) degree or mow'e blood of the Salish or KootenaiTx ibes or no~M~tbead Indian ReserVation,Montana; (d) is not enrolled on some other rehexvation.


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