SANDPOINT — A triumvirate of federal agencies have released a draft environmental impact statement and preferred alternative for operations of 14 federal dam and reservoir projects that comprise the Columbia River system.

The draft EIS triggers a 45-day public comment period on the draft EIS and the preferred alternative. The comment period closes on April 13.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation and the Bonneville Power Administration developed the draft EIS to review and update the system. The document also evaluates impacts to resources in light of new information and changed conditions in the Columbia River Basin and addresses a U.S. District Court order in Oregon.

More than 30 entities from across the region, consisting of tribes, federal agencies, and state and local governments, participated as cooperating agencies in review under the National Environmental Policy Act.

“Not surprisingly, there is a wide range of views and opinions about the best approaches to managing the Columbia River System. However, it was also apparent that people throughout the Northwest share many common values and interests,” federal officials said in an executive summary of the document.

Officials said document is a multifaceted approach to system operations, maintenance and configuration of the 14 federal projects, which include the Albeni Falls Dam on the Pend Oreille River.

Noted areas of controversy included breaching the lower dams on the Snake River, an action which is not being recommended. Fish modeling, salmon reintroduction above Grand Coulee Dam and water quality issues involving total dissolved gas and temperature were also identified as areas of controversy.

The objectives of the Columbia River system include improving conditions for adult and juvenile salmon, reliable and economic power supply, minimizing greenhouse gas emissions and maximizing adaptable water management.

The preferred alternative seeks to improve conditions for listed salmon and steelhead, while also providing a flexible way to meet water needs for fish and wildlife, flood risk management, water supply and hydropower.

Federal officials said operational changes at Grand Coulee and Albeni Falls would be “negligible” when compared to the no-action alternative.

The changes would not impact the annual peak reservoir levels in Lake Pend Oreille.

“Thus, there would not be any noticeable difference in the level of Lake Pend Oreille as compared to the No Action Alternative,” officials said in a 221-page examination of the preferred alternative.

Under the preferred alternative the monthly average outflow from the Albeni Falls would also be similar to the no-action alternative in higher-flow years and up to several hundred cubic feet per second in lower-water years.

In a summary of the effects on the Pend Oreille system, federal officials said the preferred alternative would largely preserve the status quo, also known as the no-action alternative.

“The key effects of the preferred alternative would be the continued effects of the no action alternative, many of which limit important biological processes, with a mix of effects from the measures in the preferred alternative,” the draft EIS said.

Info: nwd.usace.army.mil/CRSO/#top

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.