WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 26, 2018) – Today, Eastern Washington Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-05) released the following statement after the House passed a bill she is a cosponsor of, the Endangered Salmon and Fisheries Predation Prevention Act (H.R. 2083).

“Eastern Washington believes in both supporting clean, renewable hydropower and protecting our endangered salmon, a species so unique to the history of our region. Over the past 80 years, we’ve seen steady increases in salmon return rates on the Columbia and Snake Rivers, largely due to increased technology and innovation at our dams. This bill is another important step in protecting our endangered salmon. By mitigating sea lion predation we can increase fish recovery without costing Washingtonians hundreds of millions of dollars. I am proud to be a cosponsor of this bill to help advocate for Eastern Washington and protect our fish.”

NOTE: In March, Rep. McMorris Rodgers joined Reps. Dan Newhouse (WA-04) and Jaime Herrera Beulter (WA-03) in writing this column to advocate for supporting the Columbia and Snake River dams and finding solutions to increase fish recovery efforts. In case you missed it, you can read the joint column here.

Cathy also authored a column in the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin in 2016 which further explains the need for this legislation. In it she says, “In fact, one of the biggest threats to fish are not the dams, but invasive predators. Many coalitions in support of our dams and fish have made serious efforts to remove invasive predators. To assist in their efforts, I support Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler’s (WA-03) legislation, the Endangered Salmon and Fisheries Predation Prevention Act. This legislation removes non-native California seals, which eat salmon as they enter the ocean or when they return to our rivers to spawn.” Read the full column here.

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