Wildlife Crediting

Impacts to Columbia Basin wildlife as a result of the construction of the Federal Columbia River Power System (FCRPS) have been quantified by the Northwest Power and Conservation Council through the completion of "loss assessments" for each dam. With a few exceptions, BPA has agreed those loss assessments present a useful guide for establishing FCRPS mitigation goals. Loss assessments identify "habitat units" lost due to construction. Habitat units are a measurement of both the quantity and quality of habitat, as indicated by its suitability for use by target species that typically rely on a particular kind of habitat.

As BPA implements a mitigation activity, it takes credit for its effort. On new projects, the habitat units are measured or estimated and then counted against the loss assessment for the project being mitigated. BPA takes one habitat unit of credit for each habitat unit it mitigates.

See our Mitigation Program Glossary for definitions of terms by the program. To really understand how wildlife crediting works we recommend reviewing a set of diagrams illustrating how habitat units might change over time within a hypothetical wildlife management area.

Well over half of all FCRPS-related wildlife losses have been mitigated. To date, mitigation is complete for the construction impacts of Hungry Horse, Libby, Dworshak, Bonneville, The Dalles, John Day, McNary, Lower Granite, Little Goose, Lower Monumental, and Ice Harbor dams. BPA continues to work toward mitigation both directly, through actions aimed at benefiting wildlife, and indirectly, through actions more broadly focused on ecosystem improvements that benefit both fish and wildlife.

For real-time summaries of Wildlife Mitigation, see the Wildlife Crediting reports available from our Report Center.

Contact:
Joe DeHerrera
Wildlife Lead
Bonneville Power Administration
voice: (503) 230-3442
email: jldeherrera@bpa.gov