FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 15, 2003

CONTACTS: Allen Foreman, Tribal Chairman, 541-783-2219
Bud Ullman, Tribes’ water attorney, 541-783-3081
Don Wharton, Native American Rights Fund (land issues) 303-447-8760
Joe Browder, Washington D.C., 202-546-3720
Monica Shovlin, The Ulum Group, 541-434-7028

Upper Klamath Lake and Tribal Fisheries Again
Expected to Bail Out Basin Neighbors

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Klamath Falls, Ore. – Upper Klamath Lake and Tribal fisheries will bear the brunt of poor water planning by federal authorities, Klamath Tribes chairman Allen Foreman announced today in response to the Bureau of Reclamation’s reclassification of water year type in the Klamath Basin. On Friday, the Bureau rescinded its earlier reclassification from a below-average water year back down to a dry water year, where it began earlier in the season. The move was made to allow greater water deliveries to irrigation districts whose members based their cropping plans on the bureau’s advice earlier in the year.

“Poor planning by others once again constitutes an emergency for the Klamath Tribes,” says Foreman. “The Bureau’s re-reclassification in mid-irrigation season clearly illustrates the need for water management reform.”

“Once more, the Upper Klamath Lake and its fisheries are expected to bail other water users out of water management planning mistakes made early in the season,” Foreman added. “This mismanagement further perpetuates the problem of over-promised water resources by subjecting endangered fish to more risk. This is not a long-term, sustainable solution, nor does it fulfill the federal government’s legal obligation beyond the Endangered Species Act to restore abundant fisheries for the Tribes.”

Klamath tribal fisheries have been closed for 17 consecutive years. They were originally closed in 1986 because fish populations were declining at an alarming rate. The Lost River and short-nose suckers were listed under the Endangered Species Act in 1988. Pollution of Upper Klamath Lake and its tributaries, along with agricultural withdrawals from the lake and streams, contributed to the decline.

Copies of a “Chronology of the Klamath Reservation” and “The Case for Klamath Tribal Lands Restoration” are available from Monica Shovlin at 541-434-7028 or mshovlin@ulum.com.