Dear Reader:
Thank your for your interest, support and concern regarding the Elwha River Restoration process. The Tribes involvement in the Elwha River Restoration began before the dams were built. The Tribe has lived along the banks of the Elwha River since time immemorial. Our ties to the river and salmon have deep spiritual and cultural significance. They are at the very heart of the Lower Elwha Klallam people. This packet will guide you on your quest to understand the Tribes involvement in the Elwha River Restoration and events that will lead to the restoration of the Elwha River . The location of the Elwha Dam is on a sacred religious site that our tribe considers central to our culture, economic loss including jobs and income, depletion of reservation lands, safety issues, loss of tourism, blockage of spawning grounds for anadromous fish and environmental degradation are issues supporting removal of the Elwha dam and Glines Canyon dam. Safety risks posed by the dams and the floodplain have prevented economic and residential development on the reservation. The Elwha River is the artery of natural resource survival, protection and restoration. Once a pristine habitat, now a fisheries nightmare by cutting off the Tribes access to its birthright. Fishing should be a major source of income but the dams remain a limiting factor to economic self-sufficiency due to a decrease in returning fish runs over an 87 year period. The dams prevent returning salmon from spawning in their traditional spawning grounds and blocks transport of upstream fine and coarse sediment preventing the Lower Elwha beaches and Ediz Hook from being replenished. There are concerns about possible structural instability of the Elwha Dam putting the Lower Elwha Reservation and other private lands at risk from sudden dam failure or imminent dam failure. Neither of the dams provides a fish ladder for returning fish to ascend upstream to spawn, in lieu of a fish ladder mismanagement of past federal agencies in the year 1914 allowed a fish hatchery to be constructed, but then it was abandoned in 1922. The legacy of the dams to the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe has been in the silent destruction of a watershed that was habitat to healthy salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest to the listing of salmon species on the endangered list. The plight of the salmon must be recognized as events of greater enormity than suspected. The Tribe is working with the National Park Service and other federal agencies to mitigate for impacts on the Elwha reservation due to the removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams. Project impacts by the dam removal include wastewater alternatives, levee modification, cultural protection, fish hatchery construction and revegetation of the Lake Mills . The tribe will have these projects completed before removal of the dams begins. The Tribe has much to gain from dam removal and the most to lose. Other beneficial recipients of the restoration of the Elwha River includes the City of Port Angeles , Clallam County residents, tourism, park visitors, industry, and all other residents of the State of Washington ." It is a win win situation for all those involved. We hope that the information provided in the following pages gives you a new insight to the Elwha River Restoration Act (public Law 102-495, 102d Congress, October 24,1992 ). We thank you for your support. If you need additional information or have any questions you can call, Robert Elofson at 360-452-8471 extension 139, Thank you.
Sincerely Rob Elofson Tribal River Restoration Liaison Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe |