June 14, 2000

1. “The situation gained nationwide attention in April 2001 when a federal judge ordered a complete ban on all water normally destined for some 1,400 farmers of the Klamath River Basin, a large area straddling the Oregon-California state line. The farmers lost most of their crops, and some went bankrupt. The land – including several wildlife refuges in the area – became a dustbowl.”

2. June 14, 2000 June 17, 2001

3. The Lower Klamath River 2002 Fish Kill Scientific Investigations The Reported Cause: FACT or FICTION Joseph C. Greene Research Biologist Greene Environmental Services Presented May 23, 2006 Yreka, California

5. First reports of fish deaths were on September 19 Dead Fish in the Klamath River on September 25, 2002

7. Foul playrevealed in Klamath fish kill • The decision that led to the death of 33,000 salmon in the Klamath River last year was made to help an Oregon Republican Senator get re-elected, according to the Wall Street Journal. • "The largest fish-kill in America's history could have, and should have, been avoided if it were not for the political pressure put on scientistsby administration officials looking for political gain," said U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) yesterday after reading the story. • Outlining several meetings between Rove, Department of Interior head Gale Norton, Sen. Gordon Smith and top Bush Cabinet members, the story said Rove drove a plan to make the farmers happy to help Smith get re-elected. The Daily Triplicate, Henion, J., 2003, Foul play revealed in Klamath fish kill , http://www.triplicate.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=1035

8. The Truth Regarding Political Pressure! • A week after the Journal article appeared, presidential hopeful Senator John Kerry requested that Interior Department Inspector General Earl Devaney investigate Rove's alleged role in the Klamath decision, which Devaney agreed to do. • In a March 1, 2004 letter to Kerry, advising him of the results of the investigation, Devaney said his investigators interviewed all the officials and reviewed all the documents involved in the decision. Devaney ultimately found that the administration process followed in this matter "did not deviate from the norm." "While we confirmed a passing reference to the Klamath River Basin Project during an otherwise-unrelated presentation to senior Interior officials," Devaney wrote,. "we found nothing to tie Karl Rove's comments or presentation to the Klamath decision-making process”.

9. The Truth Regarding Political Pressure! Devaney concluded that the department conducted itself in keeping with the administrative process, that the science and information utilized supported the department's decisions, and that no political pressure was perceived by any of the key participants." There was virtually no coverage of these findings in the mainstream media, although it was widely covered when Kerry asked for the initial investigation.

10. Foul playrevealed in Klamath fish kill • Water flows to the lower Klamath were not increased this year after the gates were opened for farmers in 2002, despite pleadings by the Yurok Tribe and its chairperson Sue Masten, that the tribe was given senior water rights by the Federal Government in a treaty. • Further evidence of the back-room finagling was outlined in the story, which said a biologist for National Marine Fisheries Service, Michael Kelly, recently asked for protection under federal whistle-blower laws. • Kelly said "he was subjected to political pressure to go along with the low-water plan and ordered to ignore scientific evidence castingdoubt on the plan," according to the story. • "Today's Wall Street Journal sheds further light on what we have known all along — that sound science was ignored in allowing dangerously low water levels in the Lower Klamath Basin," Thompson said yesterday. The Daily Triplicate, Henion, J., 2003, Foul play revealed in Klamath fish kill , http://www.triplicate.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=1035

11. The Truth Regarding Statements by a National Marine Fisheries Service biologist! The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) in 2003 determined that allegations made by Michael Kelly did not warrant further investigation and that the file for this case would be closed. In a March 5, 2003 letter to Kelly, the Office of Special Counsel declined to take further action on Kelly's claims, including: • Kelly's allegation that a there was a substantial likelihood that the government's decision to adopt its Klamath River flow regime represented a violation of law. • His claim that the fish die-off that occurred in 2002 provides the proof that NMFS engaged in "gross mismanagement". • Kelly's charge that NMFS engaged in a "gross waste of funds".

12. The Truth Regarding Statements by a National Marine Fisheries Service biologist! "After careful review of your comments and the materials previously submitted, and consideration of the issues discussed in our recent telephone conversations, we have determined that our original decision to close the case was warranted," the Office of Special Counsel stated in its letter to Kelly. Despite this decision, environmental activists (and the MEDIA!) continue to rely upon Kelly's allegations to support their argument that Bush Administration policy makers "stifled" sound science during the development of the Klamath Project operations plan. Also often overlooked in media coverage of this matter is the Administration's decision to direct the National Academy of Science - perhaps the premier science body in the land - to provide guidance in federal Klamath decision-making.

13. Dead Fish Tied to Policy Flaws? Yurok Tribal Chairwoman Susan Masten addressing reporters October 2, 2002 in Washington, DC about the devastating impact of the fish kill on her people.

14. Dead Fish Tied to Policy Flaws? Congressman Mike Thompson delivers dead Klamath River fish to Secretary of Interior Gale Norton, Washington, DC October 2, 2002. The lower river economy in his district was devastated by the fish kill.

16. Final CA Department Fish and Game analysis concludes: Low water flows were at the heart of 2002 tragedy; and Kill size is possibly double the original estimate PRESS RELEASE, July 30, 2004 Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Institute for Fisheries Resources, Oregon Natural Resources Council, WaterWatch of Oregon

17. Commercial fishermen and conservationists today applauded the release of the California Department of Fish and Game's final report on the causes of the tragic 2002 fish kill on the Klamath River. PRESS RELEASE, July 30, 2004, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Institute for Fisheries Resources, Oregon Natural Resources Council, WaterWatch of Oregon

18. The exhaustive, peer-reviewed report's primary conclusion-that low water flows resulting from upstream irrigation diversions were at the heart of the kill-is consistent with previous analyses conducted by the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Yurok Tribe. PRESS RELEASE, July 30, 2004, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Institute for Fisheries Resources, Oregon Natural Resources Council, WaterWatch of Oregon

19. The California Department of Fish and Game, has blamed the federal government for the deaths of 33,000 salmon and steelhead trout in the Klamath River in September because it diverted "too much water for farmers" last year without leaving "enough flow for the fish." A 63-page study released Friday concluded that "too many migrating fish crowded into a depleted river, allowing the spread of two naturally occurring parasites that destroy the gills of fish. The salmon and steelhead subsequently died of asphyxiation." The study also warned that unless the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation increases flows in coming years, "there is a substantial risk for future fish kills on the Klamath River,“. The bureau is the federal agency responsible for overseeing agricultural water diversions from the Klamath. PRESS RELEASE, July 30, 2004, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Institute for Fisheries Resources, Oregon Natural Resources Council, WaterWatch of Oregon

20. Among the report's key findings are: • "Flow is the only controllable factor and tool available in the Klamath Basin to manage risks against future epizootics and major adult fish-kills." • "Increased flows...(on the Klamath River) should be implementedto improve water temperatures, increase water volume, increase water velocities, improve fish passage, provide migration cues and decrease fish densities." • "USGS has revised the average September 2002 flows down to 1,870 cfs (cubic feet per second), which if accurate, represents the second lowest flow ever recorded."

21. “Vogel told WorldNetDaily he was "shocked" and "astounded" at the department's conclusion that the fish kill was due to insufficient water. "Let me put it this way – if it is [the cause], you certainly can't use Fish and Game's report to make that conclusion," said Vogel, adding that the most "striking feature" of the report is that "the Department of Fish and Game is building a strong case for its lack of scientific objectivity." WorldNetDaily, 2003, Bush plan to save Klamath farmers a mistake? Scientist disputes state agency’s conclusion that feds caused massive fish kill.

22. "They're trying to build a case – and I believe it's a very weak case – by trying to attack low-flow releases from Irongate Dam without looking at all the factors in a holistic fashion that is always necessary in scientific analysis," he remarked. "There's a lot of speculation and a lot of innuendo in their report, and a lot of technical information that Fish and Game did not include," said Vogel. WorldNetDaily, 2003, Bush plan to save Klamath farmers a mistake? Scientist disputes state agency’s conclusion that feds caused massive fish kill.

23. "Notably lacking from the report is an analysis of the water temperatures that were present in the Upper Klamath River downstream of Irongate Dam during the time of the fish kill," he explained, adding that the information was available. "I did have water temperature thermographs in the Upper Klamath River downstream of Irongate Dam and I did examine the data – which clearly demonstrate that the water temperatures from Irongate Dam in the main stem of the Upper Klamath were within lethal range for salmon." WorldNetDaily, 2003, Bush plan to save Klamath farmers a mistake? Scientist disputes state agency’s conclusion that feds caused massive fish kill.

24. "Lethal range," he emphasized. "They were too high. So Fish and Game attempts to build an argument for increased flow below Irongate Dam during early September … but the problem with that isthat even if the flow had been increased the water temperatures were unsuitably warm for salmon in the upper river. In other words, there was no place for the fish to go." WorldNetDaily, 2003, Bush plan to save Klamath farmers a mistake? Scientist disputes state agency’s conclusion that feds caused massive fish kill.

25. And from another source we have this: "The (farm) acreage hasn’t increased in 50 years, Keppen said. The new water demands have been created by regulatory agencies seeking additional water for fish habitat.”

26. A consulting hydrologist, Mark Van Camp of Sacramento, told the water users an analysis of the draft BuRec historic water flow study shows that downstream flows have increased 30 percent over discharges before settlement. That’s apparently because the irrigated land uses less water than evaporation loss from the thousands of acres of wetlands that existed before the shallow lakebeds were diked, drained and put to the plow."

27. In 2001, both the US FWS and the NMFS issued "biological opinions" under the Endangered Species Act that required higher water levels to protect endangered suckers and higher flows to protect threatened coho salmon. In an interim report released last year, the Research Council committee found no substantial scientific support for the higher water-level or flow requirements … The committee also noted, however, that lower minimum water levels in Klamath Lake, proposed by the Bureau of Reclamation lacked, scientific backing as well Findings of the committee suggest that maintaining water levels higher than that of the recent past is not likely to be effective in restoring sucker populations. Similarly, the committee found that the effect of higher minimum flows in the Klamath River on coho salmon is unlikely to lead to their recovery, although higher flows may benefit other species that are not endangered or threatened. National Academies' National Research Council , 2003, News Release, Broader Approach Needed for Protection And Recovery of Fish in Klamath River Basin

28. Broader Approach Needed for Protection And Recovery of Fish in Klamath River Basin National Academies' National Research Council October. 22, 2003 Instead of focusing primarily on how water levels and flows affect endangered and threatened fish in Oregon's Upper Klamath Lake and the Klamath River … federal agencies charged with protecting the fish should pay greater attention to other causes of harm … such as removal of migration obstacles, improvement of habitat, and reduction of summer water temperatures in tributaries. "The continued emphasis on water levels in Upper Klamath Lake and the Klamath's main stem is too narrow a basis for the recovery of the suckers or salmon" … "The agencies should develop expanded recovery plans that confront the root causes of the fishes' decline." National Academies' National Research Council , 2003, News Release, Broader Approach Needed for Protection And Recovery of Fish in Klamath River Basin

29. The biggest detriment to coho salmon is probably excessively high summer temperatures in tributary waters, the committee concluded. National Academies' National Research Council , 2003, News Release, Broader Approach Needed for Protection And Recovery of Fish in Klamath River Basin

30. To remedy this problem, cool water should be procured -- by purchasing, leasing, or trading for groundwater -- to re-establish lower summer temperatures in streams, and woody vegetation should be restored along the tributaries to provide shade. Agriculture, forestry, and road construction should be managed to prevent further degradation of tributary habitat in the lower basin, and ….. National Academies' National Research Council , 2003, News Release, Broader Approach Needed for Protection And Recovery of Fish in Klamath River Basin

31. officials should consider removing the Dwinnell and Iron Gate dams, which block access of coho salmon to good habitat. Competition with fish grown in hatcheries and released into the river could be a severe handicap to the recovery of coho salmon, the committee noted, adding thathatcheries may need to close or alter their operations if adaptive management of hatcheries verifies that current operations are harmful to coho. National Academies' National Research Council , 2003, News Release, Broader Approach Needed for Protection And Recovery of Fish in Klamath River Basin

32. The National Academies' National Research Council committee estimated that the research, monitoring, and remediation outlined in its report would cost about $25 million to $35 million over the next five years …. excluding costs for major projects such as dam removal. $ $ $ National Academies' National Research Council , 2003, News Release, Broader Approach Needed for Protection And Recovery of Fish in Klamath River Basin

33. Fish, which were once plentiful beyond any sense of potential depletion, are now either threatened or nearing extinction, and will certainly be so in the near future unless a real examination of the situation and decisive acts replace the political and economic argumentation of the past few decades. The process of re-licensing Iron Gate Dam has itself led to a more intense focus by agencies, tribes and environmental organizations of the effects of the dam and on dam decommissioning. This concern with the presence of Iron Gate and other dams in the upper Klamath Basin has led many organizations to request information on the removal of dams. As listed below: Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife California Department of Fish and Game Oregon Department of Environmental Quality California State Water Resources Control Board USDA Klamath and Six Rivers National Forests Klamath River Inter-Tribal Fish and Water Commission National Marine Fisheries Service California Energy Commission National Academy of Science Klamath Tribes Yurok Tribe Karuk Tribe

34. THE KLAMATH BASIN COALITION The Klamath Basin Coalition is an alliance of local, regional and national organizations dedicated to conserving and restoring the biological resources of the West's once-great Klamath Basin. • American Rivers • Defenders of Wildlife • Earthjustice • Friends of the River • Headwaters • Institute for Fisheries Resources • Klamath Basin Audubon Society • Klamath Forest Alliance • Northcoast Environmental Center • Oregon Natural Resources Council • Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations • Sierra Club-Oregon Chapter • Trout Unlimited • The Wilderness Society • Waterwatch of Oregon • World Wildlife Fund

35. About 30,000 migratingadult salmon were killed in the Klamath River in 2002by two common pathogensthat become lethal to fish under stress.

36. Most of the salmon killed were chinook, which are not listed as endangered or threatened. Only about 1 percent (344) were coho, which migrate later than chinook. Studies by the California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Geological Survey showed that neither the river flows nor temperatures that occurred during the fish kill were unprecedented, and the committee agreed that neither flow nor temperature conditions alone can explain the fish kill.

37. Factors Contributing to the Decline of Anadromous Species The decline of anadromous species, within the Klamath River Basin, can be attributed to a variety of factors which include both flow and non-flow factors. • Climatic change • Droughts • Ocean Temperatures • Fires • Changes in water quality and temperature • Introduced species • Reduced genetic integrity from hatchery production • Predation • Disease • Poaching • Logging • Mining • Road building • Over harvest • Stream habitat alterations • Livestock grazing • Irrigated agriculture Department of the Interior, 1999, Evaluation of Interim Instream Flow Needs in the Klamath River.

38. What Caused the 2002 Klamath River Fish Kill? The proximate cause of death was heavy infections of two fish pathogens, Ich and columnaris.However, given that these ubiquitous pathogens are normally found in the Klamath River,additional factors must have played a role for them to have become lethal. The high density of fish, low discharges, warm water temperatures, and possible extended residence time of salmon created optimal conditions for parasite proliferation and precipitated an epizootic of Ich and columnaris. Based on a review of available literature and historical records, this was the largest known pre-spawning adult salmonid die-off recorded for the Klamath River and possibly the Pacific coast. USFWS, 2003, Klamath River Fish Die-off September 2002: Causative Factors of Mortality, Report Number AFWO-F-02-03

39. Klamath Water Users Association Press Release: Fact Sheet April 21, 2003 Study Shows That Klamath River Temperatures – Not Klamath Project Operations – Are Likely Reason for 2002 Fish Die-Off It appears that large numbers of salmon entered the lower Klamath River earlier than usual, were exposed to two dramatic and uncharacteristic cooling and warming conditions that were chronically and cumulatively stressful to fish. At the same time, riverine conditions in the upper Klamath River were unsuitably warm for salmon because the normal seasonal cooling trend had not yet occurred. • These data indicate that September 2002 was unique, but not for the reasons portrayed by the California Department of Fish and Game. • Until additional data is acquired on the topic, Vogel’s opinion is that the combination of those factors is probably the most plausible reason for the fish die-off.

40. Klamath Water Users Association  Press Release: Fact Sheet April 21, 2003 "In my opinion, the best available scientific data and information indicate that the continued operation and maintenance of historical flows at Iron Gate Dam will not jeopardize coho salmon. Furthermore, in my opinion the operations of Iron Gate Dam during the summer and fall of 2002did not cause and could not have preventedthe fish die-off in the lower Klamath River.“ Dave Vogel, Fisheries Biologist

41. Gill Rot Symptoms Initially there are no symptoms because the disease is out of sight behind the gill covers but once some damage has been done to the gills the fish will begin to gasp at the surface in an effort to maintain their oxygen supply to their body. the fish will also become increasingly lethargic due to the lack of oxygen. The cause of gill rot does notexplain the blisters and boils covering the fishes bodies.

42. Statement by Harold Tripp Traditional Fisherman, Cultural Technician Karuk Department of Natural Resources “Last year, all the fish were sick I could tell because they were bleeding, every time they hit the net they would be bleeding before you clubbed them. And after the river came up, about ten days later the fish got better. So I think that if they wouldn’t have released the water I think a lot more than 30,000 fish would have wound up dying. They had some kind of big boils on them, and some of them, had blisters”. John F. Salter, Ph.D., 2003, WHITE PAPER ON BEHALF OF THE KARUK TRIBE OF CALIFORNIA, A Context Statement Concerning The Effect of the Klamath Hydroelectric Project on Traditional Resource Uses and Cultural Patterns of the Karuk People Within the Klamath River Corridor, Written Under Contract with PacifiCorp in Connection with Federal Energy Relicensing Commission Proceedings Concerning the Relicensing of Iron Gate Dam, Performed Under: Contract No. 3000020357

43. “Soon after the fish kill manifested itself (7-days), claims were made that toxic substances may have been the cause. Water samples were collected from 5 locations to determine if any toxic substances were present at concentrations toxic to fish.” “The scans tested for a broad spectrum of organic compounds including: • Organochlorine pesticides(i.e., Hexachlorobenzene, DDE, Pentachlorophenol, Trichlorophenol, Oxychordane, Mirex, Heptachlor Epoxide); • Triazine pesticides(atrazine, simazine, propazine, and the degradants diamino-chlorotriazine (DACT), desethyl-s-atrazine (DEA), and desisopropyl-s-atrazine (DIA); • Polychlorinated Biphenyls(PCBs) :used in hundreds of industrial and commercial applications including electrical, heat transfer, and hydraulic equipment; as plasticizers in paints, plastics and rubber products; in pigments, dyes and carbonless copy paper and many other applications; and, • Glyphosate(a non-selective herbicide to kill weeds ).” No substances were found at concentrations toxic to fish and therefore, were not a factor in the 2002 fish kill. California Department of Fish and Game, 2003, September 2002 Klamath River Fish Kill, Preliminary Analysis of Contributing Factors, p.45

44. One Fish Was Collected for Gill Tissue Sample Analysis for Contaminants Dead fish up Blue Creek a tributary to the Klamath River A single moribund coho salmon carcass, measuring 77 cm Fork Length, was collected by the U. S. FWS on October 3, 2002 (reports of dying fish began September 19), at the mouth of Blue Creek for tissue analysis of contaminants. The carcass was immediately placed on ice, then frozen and submitted to the CDFG Fish and Wildlife Water Pollution Control Laboratory for pesticide and organic contaminant analysis.

45. Fish Tissue Sample Collected for Analysis of Contaminants The gill, because it is an active site of contaminant uptake, was excised by the CDFG for tissue analysis. Their analyses of 1 fish tissue did not detect any contaminants. These analyses, although based on a fish collected later during the fish die-off (15-days),support the finding of no persistent toxic pesticide, herbicide, or PCB congener in the water at the time of the die-off. USFWS, 2003, Klamath River Fish Die-off September 2002: Causative Factors of Mortality, Report Number AFWO-F-02-03

46. Why do you suppose that chemical analysis of the gill tissue did not detect any contaminants? The U. S. FWS Analyzed a Gill Tissue for: A Methamphetimine Waste Dump Might Distribute: • Toluene • Ether • Drain cleaner (sulphuric acid) • Car batteries (lithium) • Red Devil lye (sodium hydroxide) • Hydrochloric acid • White gas • Laundry soap • Diesel fuel • Organochlorine • Organophosphate • Pyrethroid • Carbamate pesticides • Triazine herbicides • Glyphosate • Surfactants • PCB congeners

47. The California Department of Fish and Game (CADFG) and the U. S, Fish and Wildlife Service (U. S. FWS) each separately concluded that toxic substances could not have caused the fish kill. In reality there's no way in the world that either agency could reach that conclusion when the water samples were taken by CADFG a full week after the fish kill was underway and the U. S. FWS collected their 1 fish 15-days after the fish kill was underway.

48. Most significantly neither agency analyzed for the chemicals that might be found in a meth lab dump. An analysis of the wrong classes of chemicals is the equivalent of no analysis at all and the analytical test results do not allow for a conclusion that “toxic substances could not have caused the fish kill”.

49. Table 2. Summary of fish counts and estimated numbers of dead fish determined from surveys to assess the September 2002 Klamath River fish die-off. 09/20/02Dead Count% Reach 1 732 26.4 Reach 2 1, 202 43.5 Reach 3 759 27.4 Reach 4 76 2.7 Total 2,769 09/24/02Dead Count% Reach 1 18,345 55.0 Reach 2 8,590 25.8 Reach 3 5,411 16.2 Reach 4 1,014 3.0 Total 33,360 09/27/02Dead Count% Reach 1 22,474 60.7 Reach 2 10,436 28.2 Reach 3 3,151 8.5 Reach 4 970 2.6 Total 37,031 X USFWS, 2003, Klamath River Fish Die-off September 2002, Report on Estimate of Mortality, Report Number AFWO-01-03

50. Summary of Some Fish die-off Facts • Water levels in the Klamath in 2002 were higher than water levels during three of the last 10 years. There were no significant die offs of salmon in those years when water levels were lower than they were earlier last fall, suggesting that other factors than flows may be responsible for the disease that killed the fish; • The number of returning salmon at Iron Gate Hatchery on the Klamath River in 2002 was the THIRD HIGHEST since records have been taken (1961). 100,000 healthy fish returned to upstream hatcheries and spawning areas; Klamath Basin Water Crisis, 2005, 2002 fish die-off FACTS & ARTICLES, http://www.klamathbasincrisis.org/articles/00FishKill2002.htm