The U.S. Department of the Interior (USDOI) desires a monetary measure of the benefits associated with a comprehensive restoration program for the Kalamth River Basin in Southern Oregon and Northern California, which would accompany plans to remove a series of four large dams from the river. In February 2010, the U.S. government; the states of Oregon and California; the chairmen of the Klamath, Yurok, and Karuk Tribes; and the utility company PacifiCorp formally announced the final Klamath Basic Restoraton Agreement (KBRA) and Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (the Settlement Agreement).1 These agreements define a set of activities aimed at restoring the Klamath River Basin including the removal of four dams on the Klamath River by 2010, restoration of habitat within the Basin, and negotiation of a water supply schedule among the many competing water users in the Basin. Under the Settlement Agreement, the Secretary of the Interior is to determine by March 31, 2012, whether the potential removal of these dams will advance restoration of the salmonid fisheries of the Klamath River Basin and is in the public interest.
