Mark Walker
Director of Public Affairs
Northwest Power Planning Council
851 SW Sixth Avenue, Suite 1100
Portland, OR 97204

Re: Notice of Request for Recommendations to the Northwest Power Planning Council’s Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program

Dear Mr. Walker:

The United States Environmental Protection Agency, Region 10 (EPA), appreciates the opportunity to provide recommendations in response to the above-referenced notice. We support the Northwest Power Planning Council’s effort to solicit broadly for input on a program that is critically important to maintaining and restoring the health of ecosystems and species in the Columbia Basin.

Water quality is a fundamental indicator of aquatic ecosystem health. To that end, EPA works with the States and federally recognized Native American Tribes to put in place water quality standards that will support healthy ecosystems. Therefore, EPA believes the Northwest Power Planning Council should, in the amended program, specifically adopt water quality goals that are consistent with Federal, State, and Tribal Water Quality Standards. These goals should apply to implementation throughout the tributaries and the mainstem.

Should you have questions regarding this recommendation, please contact Mary Lou Soscia, EPA’s Columbia River Coordinator, at 503-326-5873.

Sincerely,

Chuck Clarke
Regional Administrator

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