In a Major Regulatory Step, FERC Approves Removal of Four Dams on the Klamath River

January 2023

Environmental, Energy & Climate Change Law and Regulation Reporter, Volume 3, Number 4

On November 17, 2022, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued an order approving the surrender of license and removal of project facilities for four dams on the Klamath River. The four dams–the J.C. Boyle Dam, Copco Dam No. 1, Copco Dam No. 2 and Iron Gate Dam–restrain the lower reaches of the Klamath River. Owned and operated by PacifiCorp, a subsidiary utility company of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, the dams were built to provide hydroelectric power to customers in California and Oregon. Stakeholders in the effort to remove the dams include PacifiCorp, the states of California and Oregon, and the Yurok and Karuk Tribes, and a number of environmental interest groups, including American Rivers, California Trout, Northern California Council Federation of Fly Fishers, Salmon River Restoration Council, Sustainable Northwest, Trout Unlimited, and Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Association.

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