The U.S. and Canada could conclude  negotiations to modernize the Columbia River Treaty by June, the lead U.S. negotiator says.

“Resolving the remaining sticking points by June is ambitious, but the United States believes it is achievable,” U.S. State Department negotiator Jill Smail said. “We have made significant progress. Although we still have tough issues to work through, we believe the uncertainty facing both countries in 2024 will continue to motivate both countries’ teams to reach timely agreement.” 

Smail spoke prior to an online public listening session April 19.

The most recent negotiations concluded in March in Washington, D.C.

Next in-person negotiations will be May 16-17 in Kelowna, British Columbia. Another session is planned in August “if necessary,” Smail said.

Several virtual meetings are also planned to maintain momentum, she said.

U.S. goals include: 

• To maintain a predictable and adequate level of flood risk management space in Canadian reservoirs.

In September 2024, without an updated agreement, the U.S. will lose access to pre-planned flood risk management space in Canadian reservoirs that is built into projected dam management.

“Twenty million acre-feet of 40 million acre-feet the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers relies on every year is in Canada,” Smail said. 

Without an agreement, the U.S. could minimize flooding through real-time calls on Canadian reservoirs. 

“The downside to relying on real-time calls … are the unplanned, operational disruptions that will impact both countries,” Smail said. 

• To rebalance the Canadian electricity entitlement, the power benefit the U.S. sends to Canada. The original agreement favored Canada, and “this imbalance has become greater over time,” Smail said. 

The two countries are looking at how power benefits from the dams could be equitably shared through coordination, she said.

• To improve coordination on ecosystem issues, including strengthening flows to support salmon migration through a long-term agreement, instead of yearly renegotiations, Smail said.

Smail recognized tribes, hydropower stakeholders, the agricultural community, those who transport goods on the river system, and environmental groups for providing “expert information.”

In March, President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau committed to “intensify” work toward an agreement.

“We believe we can get to a meeting of the minds on the core issues, and use that consensus as a basis for the agreement text regarding implementation beginning in September 2024,” Smail said.

About 25 people spoke during the listening session. The majority of speakers represented various environmental groups. Other speakers included electric utility representatives. 

Michelle Adams, representing grain export terminal Temco at the Port of Kalama, Wash., was the only person to speak as an agricultural stakeholder.

Adams encouraged the state department to develop an agreement prior to September 2024 “as close to the current river operations as possible.” 

Navigation users rely on predictable river flows to transport more than 51 million tons of product each year, she said.

“The changes that have been proposed, especially those relating to higher high flows in the spring and lower low flows in the fall, could significantly impact vessel handling and cargo movement,” Adams said.

Higher high flows result in a swift river current, affecting ability to safely push four-barge tows, which are 15,000 tons, 84 feet wide and nearly two football fields long, Adams said.

“Some of the high flows discussed would not allow for safe navigation entering and leaving the locks, which means a reduction in the number of barges we are safely able to push,” she said. “Reducing the number of barges means we are less cost-effective and less environmentally friendly in transporting our products.”

Higher high flows could also mean slower transit times for deep draft vessel handling and bring more debris and sediment into the lower Columbia River, increasing the cost of maintenance, she said.

“(It) could result in draft restriction, leaving cargo on the docks and backing up cargo movement clear to the Midwest,” she said.

Lower low flows could also impact draft restrictions, causing a backup, and increasing costs for shippers and decreasing the region’s reliability and competitiveness abroad, Adams said.

Another listening session will be scheduled following the next round of negotiations in May.

Additional public comment may be sent to columbiarivertreaty@state.gov.