The Klamath Hydroelectric Project (FERC No. P-2082) is located in a predominantly rural area in southern Oregon and northern California. Built between 1903 and 1908, PacifiCorp’s Klamath Hydroelectric Project consists of three hydroelectric developments and one non-generating dam. The U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation owns Link River Dam which PacifiCorp operates. Link River Dam controls storage within and releases from Upper Klamath Lake, the largest freshwater lake in Oregon. Water releases from Upper Klamath Lake through Link River Dam are directed by the Bureau of Reclamation to fulfill the primary objectives of regulating Klamath River flows to benefit fish and wildlife, meeting irrigation demands, and providing for flood control.

Keno Dam, located 22 miles downstream of the Link River dam, does not produce electricity but regulates the water level in Keno Reservoir as required by the operating license for the Klamath Hydroelectric Project as issued by FERC and a contract between PacifiCorp and the Bureau of Reclamation.

The three hydroelectric developments within the Klamath Hydroelectric Project are:

• East Side – Located at Link River Dam
• West Side – Located at Link River Dam
• Fall Creek – Located in Northern California

Water for the East Side and West Side is diverted from Link River Dam to powerhouses on the east and west sides of Link River about 0.7 and 1.0 miles downstream of the dam, respectively. PacifiCorp ceased substantial generation at both of these developments in 2014 to avoid impacts to federally-listed Lost River and Shortnose suckers which are resident in Upper Klamath Lake.

Completed in 1903, the Fall Creek Development is the first hydroelectric plant built on the Klamath River. Through a series of diversions and canals, water from Spring Creek (in Oregon) is diverted into Fall Creek. Fall Creek is then diverted into a canal and penstock before reaching the Fall Creek Powerhouse. The Fall Creek Powerhouse has three Pelton turbines with a total generating capacity of 2.2 megawatts. Water from the tailrace of the powerhouse supports the new Fall Creek Hatchery and provides domestic water for the City of Yreka.

Following the submittal of its application for a new license in 2004 for the Klamath Hydroelectric Project (Project), PacifiCorp began settlement discussions with a diverse group of stakeholders to resolve issues related to relicensing. PacifiCorp worked collaboratively with this group of stakeholders to develop and enter into the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (KHSA). The KHSA was signed by more than 40 organizations, including Federal agencies, the States of California and Oregon, Native American tribes, counties, irrigators, conservation and fishing groups, and non-governmental organizations on February 18, 2010. The KHSA was amended in 2016 to provide for the transfer and decommissioning of Iron Gate, Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, and J.C. Boyle developments through the normal procedures of the Federal Power Act administered by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). 

PacifiCorp agreed to a potential dam removal path for Iron Gate, Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, and J.C. Boyle and executed the KHSA based upon its assessment that the KHSA provided superior cost and risk protections for PacifiCorp and its customers as compared to continuing on a path of relicensing. This assessment was based upon the KHSA’s defined customer cost cap, provisions to allow for continued power generation through 2020, and protection afforded to PacifiCorp and its customers from any liabilities associated with dam removal. The public utility commissions in both California and Oregon have concurred with this assessment by endorsing the collection of surcharges from customers in those states to fund the customer contribution to dam removal costs.

The KHSA spelled out the process to transfer the dams to the Klamath River Renewal Corporation (Renewal Corporation), a non-profit entity formed for the sole purpose of implementing the KHSA and pursuing the decommissioning and removal of the dams. The KHSA includes provisions for operation of the dams and implementation of interim measures that PacifiCorp has completed. Interim measures focused on improvements to water quality and fish habitat conditions, supported and improved hatchery operations, and benefited environmental resources in the Klamath basin prior to dam removal.

Since the execution of the KHSA, PacifiCorp has worked diligently in cooperation with the parties to the KHSA and other affected stakeholders and regulatory agencies to implement its obligations under the KHSA.

In September 2016, PacifiCorp filed an application with FERC to transfer the license for the Lower Klamath Project to the Renewal Corporation. In March 2018, FERC approved division of the license for the Klamath Hydroelectric Project into two separate FERC licenses. In this order, PacifiCorp’s East Side, West Side, Keno, and Fall Creek developments remained in the Klamath Hydroelectric Project (FERC No. P-2082). J.C. Boyle, Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, and Iron Gate developments were placed into the Lower Klamath Project (FERC No. P-14803). In July 2020, FERC issued an order partially transferring the license for the Lower Klamath Project to the Renewal Corporation, but requiring PacifiCorp to remain a co-licensee. Because this order was contrary to the KHSA, PacifiCorp and the parties met to develop an alternate pathway. The result of this process was an amendment to the KHSA and the November 2020 submittal of an application to FERC to transfer the license for the Lower Klamath Project from PacifiCorp to the Renewal Corporation and the states of Oregon and California as co-licensees. In January 2021, the Renewal Corporation filed an updated application with FERC to surrender the license for the Lower Klamath Project.

In June 2021, FERC approved transfer of the Lower Klamath Project license to the Renewal Corporation and the states of Oregon and California as co-licensees. The transfer order became effective when the Renewal Corporation and the States accepted a surrender order from FERC for the entire Lower Klamath Project. That surrender order was issued by FERC on November 17, 2022 and accepted by the KRRC, California, and Oregon on December 1, 2022. Coincidentally with the acceptance of the surrender order, PacifiCorp transferred all the real property and assets to the new licensees. PacifiCorp operated the Lower Klamath Project from December 2022 through January 22, 2024 under an operations and maintenance agreement with the Renewal Corporation. During this period, PacifiCorp coordinated operations to support the Renewal Corporation’s construction work necessary to ensure that reservoir drawdown could start in January 2024. In May 2023, at the request of the Renewal Corporation, PacifiCorp ceased generation at Copco No. 2 so that the Copco No. 2 Diversion Dam could be removed.

In January 2024, at the request of the Renewal Corporation, PacifiCorp ceased all remaining generation from the Lower Klamath Project. Generation at Iron Gate stopped on January 9, J.C. Boyle on January 12, and Copco No. 1 on January 21, 2024. Operational responsibility for each of these facilities was subsequently transferred to the Renewal Corporation.

Information on the removal of the Lower Klamath Project can be found on the Renewal Corporation’s web page or by calling 530-670-0016.

PacifiCorp’s KHSA Implementation Reports discuss the details of events that have taken place during implementation of the KHSA. KHSA Implementation Reports

Habitat Conservation Plan for Coho Salmon (available upon request)

Habitat Conservation Plan for Lost River and Shortnose Suckers (available upon request)