19th Round of Negotiations to Modernize the Columbia River Treaty Regime

The United States and Canada conducted the 19th round of Columbia River Treaty regime negotiations on October 12-13 in Portland, Oregon.  Through these negotiations the U.S. negotiation team continues to press forward to fulfill the vision laid out by President Biden and Prime Minister Trudeau at the conclusion of the President’s March visit to Canada, where their joint statement noted that “the Columbia River is a vital shared resource that underpins many lives and industries on both sides of the border and the watershed requires our attention and prompt coordination.”

During this round of negotiations, the United States and Canadian negotiating teams made progress toward an agreement in principle on operational and other issues.  The teams will continue to address compensation and ecosystem issues in the coming weeks.

The U.S. Department of State leads a negotiating team consisting of representatives from the Bonneville Power Administration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Northwestern Division, the U.S. Department of the Interior, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  The U.S. delegation also included expert-advisors from the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

The public is invited to learn more at https://www.state.gov/columbia-river-treaty or by emailing the negotiation team at columbiarivertreaty@state.gov.