Perkins Coie and Coalition of Private and Public Sector Environmental and Energy Lawyers Secure U.S. Government Approval for World’s Largest Dam Removal and Restoration Project

SAN FRANCISCO and BELLEVUE (November 18, 2022)—Working with a coalition of environmental and energy lawyers from the public and private sectors, Perkins Coie is pleased to announce the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's approval of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation (KRRC) proposal to start the world's largest dam removal and restoration project. For more information please see KRRC's press release here

In an order approving the project, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission authorized the decommissioning and removal of four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River between Southern Oregon and Northern California. Perkins Coie was retained by KRRC in 2017 to help implement a complex multi-party settlement resolving long-standing legal challenges and disputes over resources in the Klamath Basin.

"KRRC is very pleased by the Commission's decision today," said Mark Bransom, Chief Executive Officer of KRRC, "This important milestone reflects decades of collective work by the many dedicated Signatories of the Amended Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement to restore the Klamath River and we are prepared to begin the largest dam removal and river restoration effort in U.S. history."

The multi-practice Perkins Coie team - including lawyers experienced in environmental and energy law, real estate and land use, business, construction, and insurance - was led by partners Mark Quehrn, Laura Zagar, and Don Baur, and also included partners Steve Pfeiffer, Meredith Weinberg, Pam Anderson and counsels John Morris as well as associates Chris Termyn, Aimee Ford, Kaela Shiigi, and Angela Luh among others.

The decommissioning of the four dams will significantly improve the habitat and health of fisheries along the Klamath River by allowing salmon, steelhead, and lamprey access to over 400 miles of historic spawning habitat upstream of the dams. The restoration project will also benefit Native American tribes in the Klamath Basin that have depended on fisheries for their livelihood, health, and cultural practices.

Perkins Coie's Environment & Natural Resources practice includes more than 100 attorneys in offices across the United States and is widely recognized for its project development work. Chambers USA ranks the firm's environmental group as one of the nation's top practices and several firm lawyers are members of the esteemed American College of Environmental Lawyers.