WASHINGTON — Interior Department officials ignored scientific findings when they limited water flows in the Grand Canyon to optimize generation of electric power there, risking damage to the landmark’s ecology, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post.
A memo by Grand Canyon National Park superintendent Steve Martin suggests the agency used a flawed environmental assessment to defend its actions in court.
The Grand Canyon Trust, an advocacy group, has sued Interior for reducing the flow of water from Glen Canyon Dam at night, when consumer demand for electricity is low, on the grounds that the policy hurts imperiled fish such as the endangered humpback chub and erodes the canyon’s beaches.
“The government’s brief as presented continues to misinterpret key scientific findings related to the humpback chub, status of downstream resources in Grand Canyon, and the need for the Secretary to acknowledge (National Park Service) authorities and responsibilities to protect resources under (park service) administration,” Martin wrote in a memo The Post obtained from the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.
Martin added that his agency still fears the current policy “will significantly impair Grand Canyon resources.”
The behind-the-scenes skirmish, which took place just days before George W. Bush left the White House, highlights the sort of challenges new Interior Secretary Ken Salazar will face.
While he wouldn’t comment on an ongoing legal battle, Salazar said Tuesday that he would emphasize “the need to have sound science in all decision making in the Department of Interior.”
