Chapter 3: The Affected Environment

3.1 Study Area

The study area includes BPA's service area, which covers the States of Idaho, Oregon, and Washington; the State of Montana west of the Continental Divide; and small portions of the States of Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, and Northern California (collectively referred to as the Pacific Northwest).

In addition, areas in eastern Montana, north-central Nevada, and southwestern Wyoming surrounding coal plants that serve the Pacific Northwest; the State of California; the State of Colorado; and the States of Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico (collectively referred to as the Inland Southwest) are studied for socioeconomic and power system concerns. (In this document, the Inland Southwest and the State of California are collectively referred to as the Pacific Southwest.)

The area potentially affected by the alternatives under consideration is very broad. In addition, many impacts discussed in Chapter 4 cannot be analyzed in detail because they relate to construction of new generating resources whose sites can only be defined in a broad sense, such as a portion of a state (e.g., Northern Utah). Thus, it is not meaningful to include information in this chapter about matters such as cultural resources or recreation that can only be evaluated on a site-specific basis. Therefore, the descriptions in the following sections focus on those aspects of the affected environment necessary to understand and compare the alternatives.

Appendices B and C contain supplemental information on the topics covered in this chapter.

3.2 Physical Description

Overview

The watersheds of the study area drain many of the great landforms of the western United States and feed many of the great rivers of the continent. These rivers are of crucial importance to BPA. The hydroelectric projects in the Columbia-Snake River Basin provide the vast majority of Federal electricity that the agency markets. Figure 3-1 shows the major rivers and basins in the study area.

Figure 3-2 characterizes the general ecosystem types found in the study area and indicates where major thermal energy facilities are located.

Threatened and endangered species as defined by the Endangered Species Act are an important consideration in choosing locations for energy facilities and may be affected by changes in their operation. Appendix B contains lists of threatened and endangered species found in each state of the study area.

Figure 3-1: Major Rivers and Drainage Basins of the Study Area

Drainage Basins:

1. Columbia-Snake 4. Colorado

2. Sacramento-San Joaquin 5. Rio Grande

3. Great Basin 6. Mississippi-Missouri-Ohio (partial view)

(Source: Adapted from the Contemporary Atlas of the United States, 1990.)

Figure 3-2: Locations of Ecosystem Regions and Major Thermal Energy Facilities

Air Quality

Pollutants of concern in this analysis are those produced by extracting, processing, transporting, and burning coal, oil, gas, or other fuels (e.g., waste wood) to produce electric power. Principal pollutants produced are the federally designated "criteria pollutants": sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulates, hydrocarbons, ozone, carbon monoxide (CO), and lead. Of these, particulates, SO2, and NOx are common emissions from electrical generation relying on combustion. Carbon dioxide (CO2), a major by-product of burning fossil fuels and other carbonaceous materials, may contribute to global climate change. In addition to these common pollutants, combustion generating plants may also emit heavy metals, radionuclides, and hazardous compounds. Generating technologies and their associated emissions are discussed in the Resource Programs EIS (DOE/EIS-0162, February 1993).

Air quality is a concern in certain defined air basins and around certain existing generating plants in the study area. In these areas, more stringent controls are required for existing facilities, and any new major project must satisfy additional restrictions.

Nonattainment areas have air pollution concentrations that do not comply with a portion of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. Federal air quality standards and state standards for Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming are shown in Table 3-1. Federal nonattainment areas in the study area are listed in Table 3-2.

Table 3-1: Ambient Air Quality Standards(1) in the Study Area

[micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m3) unless otherwise specified; secondary standards in parentheses]

Table 3-1 (continued): Ambient Air Quality Standards in the Study Area

NOTES

1. 40 CFR 50

2. Arithmetic average

3. Geometric average

4. These two standards for New Mexico are 7 and 30-day averages, respectively

5. Maximum value not to be exceeded more than once per year

6. ppm = parts per million

7. Average concentration not to be exceeded more than 18 times in 12 consecutive months

8. Washington State has two 1-hour standards for sulfur dioxide: 0.4 ppm not to be exceeded more than once per year and 0.25 ppm not to be exceeded more than twice during a 7-day period

9. 24-hour average

10. Carbon monoxide (CO) standards expressed in milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3) unless otherwise specified

11. Equivalent standard for the Lake Tahoe Air Basin is 6 ppm

12. Applies to areas less than 5,000 feet in elevation above mean sea level (MSL); at higher elevations the standard is

6 ppm

13. Excluding Pecos-Permias Basin Interstate Air Quality Control Region

14. 70 and 40 mg/m3 are the half-hour averages not to be exceeded more than twice per year and twice per

5-days, respectively

Table 3-2: Federal Nonattainment Areas in the Study Area

Table 3-2, continued: Federal Nonattainment Areas in the Study Area

Table 3-2, continued: Federal Nonattainment Areas in the Study Area

Table 3-2, continued: Federal Nonattainment Areas in the Study Area

3.3 Social and Economic Considerations

3.3.1 Geography and Land Use

Pacific Northwest

The geography and land uses of the affected environment in the Pacific Northwest center on the Columbia-Snake River system. The Columbia River Basin contains more than 668,220 square kilometers

(258,000 square miles) of drainage, including most of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho; Montana west of the Rocky Mountains; small areas of Wyoming, Utah, and Nevada; and southeastern British Columbia.

The Pacific Northwest includes all or portions of three physiographic provinces: Northern Rocky Mountain, Columbia Plateau, and Pacific Mountain system. Major features include the Columbia and Snake Rivers, the Puget Sound and Willamette Valley plains, and the Coast Range, Cascade, and Rocky Mountains. These features define the climate, vegetation, transportation, and development patterns of the region.

Half the region is covered by forest (primarily Douglas fir or varieties of pine), most densely west of the Cascade Range. Rangeland occupies substantial areas in the Snake River and Rocky Mountain regions. Agricultural lands are located primarily on the Columbia River Plateau, along the Snake River, and in the Willamette Valley. About two-thirds of the land in the region is publicly owned, enabling the development of multiple use land programs and extensive recreational opportunities. Land managers include the Federal Government (including the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Department of Energy, and Department of Defense), state and local governments, and Indian tribes. The rest of the land is privately owned.

The Cascade Range, which runs north-south, divides Oregon and Washington into two unequal and widely different climatic regions. Coastal climate is mild and wet, with only occasional extremes of temperature. East of the Cascades, most of the precipitation occurs in the winter in the form of snow, and summer months are hot and dry.

Idaho experiences a wide variation in climate. Pacific Ocean air brings temperate climate to the northern third of the state, while high mountains on the eastern border tend to block cold air from Montana and Wyoming.

Elevations of the Pacific Northwest range from sea level to 4392 meters (14,410 feet) at Mt. Rainier in Washington.

Beginning in southeastern British Columbia, the Columbia River flows south and west for 1954 kilometers (1214 miles) to the Pacific Ocean. From the point it passes into the State of Washington to its mouth, it drops steadily for 1204 kilometers (748 miles) . The Snake River, which is 1671 kilometers (1038 miles) long, begins in northwestern Wyoming. It flows west and north, forming part of the borders between Oregon and Idaho and between Idaho and Washington. Part of that border is the nation's deepest canyon (Hell's Canyon).

In southern Washington, the Snake River joins the Columbia and they flow west and north, forming the border between Oregon and Washington. The rivers flow through extensive wilderness, scenic, and recreation areas. The rivers pass through irrigated agricultural area in the plateaus east of the Cascade Mountains and through the Cascade and Coast Mountain Ranges on their way to the Pacific Ocean.

Pacific Southwest

California is mostly part of the Pacific Mountain System physiographic region, although portions of southeastern California are part of the Basin and Range province.

The Southern Cascade Mountains and the Sierra Nevada form California's backbone, a barrier the length of the state that is traversed in only a few places. Elevations reach over 4267 meters (14,000 feet) above sea level at Mt. Whitney and Mt. Shasta. The majority of the mountain ranges trend north-south and exert major influences on the climate of the region, with extremes in several areas.

To the west of this barrier lie the Great Valley and the California Coast Ranges. The valley is a high-value agricultural area, heavily irrigated. The Coast Ranges, mostly lower than 1524 meters (5,000 feet), support commercial forestry, grazing, and specialty crops such as wine grapes.

To the east of the Cascades and Sierra barrier are the parts of California in the Basin and Range province. It is a semi-desert to desert region of plateaus, basins, plains, and isolated mountain ranges.

The Inland Southwest includes some of the driest portions of the United States. Physiographically, the region is in the Basin and Range, the Colorado Plateau, and portions of the Southern Rocky Mountain provinces. Topographically, the region encompasses the lowest and some of the highest elevations in the continental United States. The Colorado River Basin is the major drainage for the region, rising on the Continental Divide and ending at the Pacific Ocean. It contains major multipurpose dams, such as Hoover Dam, which provide electric power, water supplies, and recreation areas. The land is fairly arid, except for the Rocky Mountains, which are moderately wet. The area tends to be water-limited, with most precipitation occurring in the mountains. Land use includes mining and mineral processing, cattle ranching, and farming. Since much of the land is arid, agriculture is dependent upon irrigation, although dry farming is practiced in portions of New Mexico.

Other Potentially Affected Areas

State of Colorado - Colorado's geography is varied: dry, high plains in the eastern portion of the state, a hilly to mountainous central plateau, and the high ranges of the Rocky Mountains alternating with broad valleys and deep, narrow canyons to the west.

Colorado contains approximately 269,359 square kilometers

(104,000 square miles), with 8.7 million hectares (21.4 million acres)

of forested land (primarily Douglas fir, ponderosa pine, and oak).

The state's climate is characterized by low humidity, sunshine, and wide daily seasonal temperature ranges, with alpine conditions in the high mountains.

State of Wyoming - The area of Wyoming is 253,324 square kilometers (97,809 square miles), including 4 million hectares (9.9 million acres) of forests (primarily ponderosa and lodgepole pine, Douglas fir, and spruce). The state lies in the high western plateaus of the Great Plains, with the Continental Divide crossing the state from northwest to southeast. Wyoming's climate is semi-desert. Geologic resources include rich deposits of uranium, oil, natural gas, and sodium carbonate.

State of Nevada - Nevada encompasses 286,349 square kilometers (110,560 square miles), with 3.6 million hectares (8.9 million acres) forested in pines, pinyons, and juniper. Rugged mountain ranges trend north-south. The state's climate is arid and semi-arid, with the Mojave Desert occupying the state's southern area. The Colorado River crosses the southern tip of the state. Hoover Dam, on the Colorado River, impounds Lake Mead, one of the world's largest artificial lakes. Nevada boasts rich deposits of gold, with smaller deposits of silver, lead, zinc, and mercury.

State of New Mexico - New Mexico, with an area totaling 314,924 square kilometers (121,593 square miles), spans three geographic regions: the eastern third lying within the Great Plains region, the central portion within the Rocky Mountain region, and the western third within the High Plateau. New Mexico's forested areas consist primarily of ponderosa pine and Douglas fir. The state is rich in uranium and potassium salts.

3.3.2 Industry/Economic Base

Pacific Northwest

Over the past 10 years, the economy of the Pacific Northwest has evolved from being resource-based to being more diverse, with growing trade and service sectors. In 1980, resource-based industries accounted for 30.9 percent of manufacturing employment; by 1990, their share had fallen to 27.2 percent. High technology industries (aerospace, electronics, and scientific instruments) have grown in share over the last decade from 33.7 to 38.6 percent of total manufacturing. Overall, the manufacturing share of the regional economy was 19.4 percent in 1980 and fell to 17.3 percent by 1990.

The lumber and wood products industry still plays an important role in the region's economy, with 3.1 percent of the total regional employment, but this sector has declined from a decade ago, when it accounted for 4.4 percent of total employment. Food processing has fallen from 2.5 percent of total employment in 1980 to 2.1 percent in 1990. This loss of employment share has been due to an increase in the relative size of the employment base and productivity gains brought on by plant upgrades and other efficiencies. Transportation equipment, primarily Boeing, has remained at nearly 4 percent of total employment over the last decade, and the electronics industry has remained at about 3 percent of total employment. Energy-intensive aluminum production is economically important to the region, but the level of employment in this sector is relatively small (below 0.7 percent of total employment in 1990).

While the manufacturing share fell over the decade, the nonmanufacturing share of total employment rose from 80.6 to 82.7 percent. A rise in wholesale and retail trade and services accounts for most of the gain. Employment in trade grew from 24.1 percent of total employment in 1980 to 24.7 percent in 1990. The services sector grew from 18.8 percent of total employment in 1980 to 23.4 percent in 1990. The region's growing trade with California and the Far East also broadened the economic base.

Twenty-five percent of U.S. exports to Asia and 30 percent of all U.S. exported goods are handled through Pacific Northwest ports. In fact, the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma are the fourth and sixth largest ports in the world, respectively.

The advantage of low-cost energy relative to other areas has strengthened the region's economic base. Due to the availability of natural gas from Canada and the region's hydro base for electricity, the Pacific Northwest has a long-term energy advantage. On average recently, the region's electricity prices ran 40 percent lower than the national average and natural gas prices were 16 percent less.

The region still can be hard-hit by high interest rates and their dampening effect on housing, which is the biggest source of demand for the region's lumber and wood products. However, more diversity and efficiency in industries in the region means more resistance to severe fluctuations now than in the past. Continued high levels of international trade should help offset the negative impact of periodic national business cycles, and the nonmanufacturing service sector of the region's economy is expected to continue to grow faster than total employment.

California, with over 29 million people (more than 10 percent of the nation's total population) represents an important market for the Pacific Northwest. The tourism industry, fueled by the scenic coast, Columbia River Gorge, and Hells Canyon, provides economic stimulus in less populated regions and helps stimulate activity in the service and trade sectors. Agriculture also is a substantial industry in the region, employing about 276,000 in 1990, down from about 285,000 in 1980. The decline in agriculture employment is part of the shift toward a less resource-dependent economy, and also is due to growing productivity in the farm sector.

Pacific Southwest

California has a rich endowment of natural resources. The state is a major source of the nation's fruits and vegetables. Its agricultural sector ranks first in the nation in cash value and produces virtually every crop grown in temperate zones. Lumber production is second only to Oregon, and its mining production ranks among the top three states. Employment in manufacturing industries is the leading source of personal income, followed by government, wholesale and retail trade, and service occupations. The entertainment industry, although it has declined somewhat since World War II, is still a significant part of the state's economy, while tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors.

The economy of the Inland Southwest is based on mining and ore processing, manufacturing, services, agriculture, and tourism.

Other Potentially Affected Areas

State of Colorado - Colorado's principal industries include manufacturing, government, tourism, agriculture, aerospace, and electronic equipment. The state's largest manufactured goods categories are computer equipment, instruments, foods, machinery, and aerospace products. Primary agricultural products include corn, wheat, hay, fruits, cattle, sheep, hogs, and poultry. Colorado's unemployment rate averaged 5.0 percent in 1991.

State of Wyoming - Wyoming's principal industries are mineral extraction, tourism, and agriculture (primarily wool production). Manufactured goods include refined petroleum products and wood products. The state's leading agricultural crops include wheat, barley, oats, and hay. Wyoming's unemployment rate averaged 5.1 percent in 1991.

State of Nevada - Nevada's primary industries include gaming, tourism, mining, manufacturing, and agriculture. Manufactured goods include gaming devices, chemicals, and aerospace products. Nevada's primary agricultural crops are hay, alfalfa seed, wheat, and barley. The state's unemployment rate averaged 5.5 percent in 1991.

State of New Mexico - The principal industries of New Mexico include government, services, and mining. Manufactured goods include food, lumber, and machinery. The state's main crops are hay, onions, wheat, corn, cotton, cattle, hogs, sheep, and poultry. In 1991, New Mexico's unemployment rate averaged 6.9 percent.

3.3.3 Existing Power System

Pacific Northwest

Hydroelectric projects produce about two-thirds of the total electricity used by the Pacific Northwest. There are 61 major hydroelectric dams in the Pacific Northwest, including 31 federally owned dams with a combined nameplate capacity of approximately 22,000 MW. The Pacific Northwest has five major Federal storage reservoirs behind Libby, Grand Coulee, Albeni Falls, Hungry Horse, and Dworshak Dams. Three Canadian dams (Mica, Keenleyside, and Duncan) also provide substantial water storage for the Columbia River Basin.

The amount of streamflow varies from month to month and from year to year according to weather and other natural conditions. In normal years and years of heavy run-off, water is readily available to produce electricity needed in the Pacific Northwest; when streamflow is down, additional water from the storage projects is released to maintain required flows. In an average year, 16,900 aMW of hydropower is produced and in the 42-month critical period, the hydro system produces about 12,270 aMW.

The amount of run-off in the system is highly variable. The average annual run-off as measured at The Dalles, Oregon, is about 165 cubic kilometers (km3) (134 million acre-feet (MAF)), but it has varied from about 96 km3 (78 MAF) to 239 km3 (194 MAF). The monthly mean natural streamflow at The Dalles has ranged from a low of 1105 m3/sec (39,024 cfs) in winter, to a high of 23,506 m3/sec (830,130 cfs) in the spring.

The total usable storage capacity of the Columbia River system is about 51 km3 (41 MAF), or less than a third of average run-off. About 46 percent of that storage capacity is in Canada. The Canadian portion of the storage is operated by British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority (BC Hydro). The Pacific Northwest and BC Hydro coordinate operation of the hydro system to increase flexibility and to enhance power production.

Coordination of the Pacific Northwest and BC Hydro systems began in 1964 with the ratification of the Columbia River Treaty (Treaty). Under the Treaty, Canada constructed three storage dams in British Columbia. The three Canadian storage dams enabled downstream U.S. projects to produce up to an additional 2800 MW of dependable capacity.

BC Hydro also built storage on the Columbia River system in excess of that required by the Treaty. This non-Treaty storage includes approximately 6 km3 (5 MAF) of additional usable storage. BC Hydro and BPA have signed a Non-Treaty Storage Agreement, which captures some additional efficiencies due to diversities in loads, resources, and run-off patterns.

Few sites remain in the Pacific Northwest that could effectively accommodate major hydroelectric development. As more power is required, other ways to produce power have been added to the power base. In addition to the hydroelectric system, electricity for the region is also produced at 14 coal units and one commercial nuclear plant.

The Pacific Northwest resource mix also includes energy conservation. The Northwest Power Act directs BPA to give the highest priority to cost-effective energy conservation in acquiring resources to meet load. BPA's conservation programs are designed to improve the efficient use of electricity across all broad end-use categories (residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural sectors). By improving end-use efficiency, energy conservation offers a means of regulating load growth and offsetting the need for new generating resources.

Pacific Southwest

Half of California's generating capacity consists of oil- and gas-fired power plants. Next is hydro (about 20 percent), followed by nuclear, coal, geothermal, and cogeneration. Investor-owned and municipal utilities, the California Department of Water Resources, and the Western Area Power Administration (a Federal power marketing agency) can generate 45,000 MW with their systems.

The Inland Southwest resource mix includes hydro, coal, gas, oil, and nuclear generation. Coal provides about 58 percent of the region's generating capacity. Oil- and gas-fired generation account for about 26 percent, hydropower produces approximately 17 percent, and the Palo Verde (Arizona) nuclear plants #1 and #2 account for 9.3 percent of the region's installed capacity. As much as 3600 MW of the Inland Southwest's total capacity could be transferred on a firm basis to supply export power to California and other areas in the summertime (Western Systems Coordinating Council, April 1991).

Other Potentially Affected Areas

State of Colorado - Electricity production within Colorado is largely thermal-based.

State of Wyoming - Wyoming's electricity production is almost wholly thermal-based.

State of Nevada - Electricity production in Nevada is largely thermal, followed by hydro.

State of New Mexico - Electricity production in New Mexico is chiefly thermal, followed by hydro.

3.3.4 Demand For Power

Pacific Northwest

Electric loads within the Pacific Northwest vary according to geographic location and season. The Puget Sound-Willamette Valley region, where two-thirds of the population lives, uses the largest amount of electricity, most of it in winter for heating. East of the Cascades, the difference between winter and summer loads is less pronounced in some areas due to summertime irrigation and air conditioning loads. In fact, summertime loads of utilities serving heavy irrigation demands sometimes exceed those utilities' winter loads.

Industrial users account for roughly 40 percent of electric consumption, commercial users for 20 percent, and residential users for over 30 percent. The region's hydro-based power historically has been much less expensive than power from fossil fuels, which are used more in other regions. As a result, residential customers rely on electricity for space and water heating in the Pacific Northwest more so than in other parts of the country. Although the region uses much less fossil fuel than the rest of the country, residential customers in the region use twice as much electricity for end uses.

Slightly less than half of Pacific Northwest loads are served by BPA, which markets power from U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation dams and Washington Public Power Supply System Nuclear Plant No. 2. The public utilities and investor-owned utilities (IOUs) sell their own generated power or power from BPA to regional end-use consumers (those who use and do not re-sell the power). BPA's authority stipulates that it serve all requested needs within the region first, and that it supply power to public utilities and cooperatives before IOUs. Only if more power is available than is needed by the region can it be sold and transmitted outside the region.

Demand forecasts in the 1970s anticipated an energy shortage. New generating resources were planned and built into the early 1980s. When demand for electricity did not increase as expected, however, the construction of additional large-scale generating facilities stopped. By 1990, regional demand had almost balanced regional supply. It is not certain whether or not this balanced condition will continue in the future, because there are wide variations in forecasted loads. Under BPA's low and medium-low forecasts, the region could experience surplus conditions for 10 to 20 years. However, the medium, medium-high, and high forecasts place the region in deficit conditions throughout the 20-year study period. (See Figure 3-3.)

Figure 3-3: Regional Firm Energy Surpluses/Deficits Assuming No Resource Acquisitions

SOURCE: Bonneville Power Administration. 1990. Pacific Northwest Loads and Resources Study. Bonneville Power Administration, Division of Resources, Portland, Oregon

PacifiCorp's projected energy needs are illustrated in Table 3-3. Pacifi-Corp's plans for resources indicate a need for capacity of 2000 MW by 2010. (See section 4.4.2.2 for an additional discussion of PacifiCorp's capacity needs.)

Table 3-3: Key PacifiCorp Forecast Information(4)

Pacific Southwest

State-wide peaking electricity demand in California in 1992 was 62,115 MW. Roughly 90 percent of this demand was from three IOUs and the two largest municipally owned utilities.

The peak load demands of the Pacific Northwest and California occur at different times. The Pacific Northwest peak demands occur in the winter, and California's peak demands occur in the summer. During the summer, the hydro-based Pacific Northwest and BPA systems tend to have excess capacity, which can be used to help meet California's summer peak demands. California's thermal-based system tends to have excess capacity in the winter, which can help the Pacific Northwest meet its winter peak. Full use of both systems can reduce the need for new resources in each system. BPA currently has several seasonal energy and capacity for energy exchange contracts in effect with a number of California utilities.

The California Energy Commission (CEC) 1992 Electricity Report (ER 92) recommends a balanced set of resource options that include cost-effective energy efficiency savings, gas-fired repowering, efficient new gas plants, renewable resources, and cost-effective purchases from out-of-state that increase the efficiency of use of existing resources throughout the west.

Two of the three IOUs have ample resources to meet their resource needs through the turn of the century. Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) expects to have sufficient capacity to meet its reserve margin through 2009. Southern California Edison's (SCE) planning area will have adequate capacity resources to meet its demand through the year 2001. San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) is unable to meet its target reserve in 1993.

One of the two large municipal utilities - Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) - has sufficient resources to meet its requirements throughout a 20-year planning period. Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), on the other hand, will need to add resources to meet its load by 2003. SMUD intends to depend on short-term exchanges with the Pacific Northwest to delay building a new power plant until anticipated load growth appears more certain.The Inland Southwest total generating capacity is expected to be surplus to its needs beyond the year 2009.

3.3.5 BPA Power Rates

BPA provides electric power to its preference public utility customers, to direct service industrial (DSI) customers (primarily aluminum smelters), and to other regional and extra-regional customers. Electric power produced by both public and IOU-owned dams in the Pacific Northwest is relatively inexpensive; thus BPA's wholesale power and regional retail rates have traditionally been low relative to rates in the rest of the United States. Electricity use per customer is higher than the U.S. average, while the overall electricity cost per customer is close to the national average.

BPA rates are set in accordance with directives in the Northwest Power Act. Between 1979 and 1983, rates in the Pacific Northwest rose rapidly. These rate increases were due primarily to the inclusion of costs associated with Washington Public Power Supply System's Nuclear Plants 1, 2, and 3, and costs of programs mandated by the Northwest Power Act. These programs include residential exchange, fish and wildlife, and conservation. Between 1984 and 1993, rates remained relatively stable in nominal terms and declined in real terms (after adjusting for inflation).

On October 1, 1993, BPA increased its rates by 15.7 percent. This increase--the first major increase by BPA in about 10 years--was attributed to a number of extraordinary events, including drought and very cold temperatures through winter 1992, declines in DSI revenues, new resource needs, increased fish and wildlife costs, and transmission system upgrades.

(1)Information for state pollutant levels was taken primarily from the following sources:

Department of Health and Environmental Sciences. 1989. Montana Air Quality Data & Information Summary for 1987. Helena, Montana.

Department of Environmental Quality. 1990. 1989 Oregon Air Quality Annual Report. Portland, Oregon.

Washington State Department of Ecology. 1989. Washington State Air Monitoring Data for 1988. Olympia, Washington.

(2)BPA, 1993. Resource Programs Final Environmental Impact Statement (DOE/EIS-0162), Bonneville Power Administration, Portland, Oregon.

(3)Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6, GIS Center, Dallas, Texas, February 23, 1993.

(4)PacifiCorp, 1993. Inputs for RAMPP-3 (in progress).