Avista Utilities, Sierra Club, and Center for Environmental Law & Policy have worked out an agreement for year-round flows in the Spokane River, including flows through the bypassed reach below Upper Falls Dam, over Upper Spokane Falls, and through downtown Spokane's Riverfront Park.  Under conditions prior to this settlement, the downtown section of the river was a dry riverbed at the lowest flows.  Flow changes will result in a long-term benefit to the river, economic growth and local tourism.

This settlement on aesthetic flows is the final outstanding issue on the relicensing of four dams on this river, Upper Falls, Monroe Street, Nine Mile and Long Lake. A final license for this project could be approved as early as this summer.

This licensing proceeding represented the first-ever opportunity for the state of Washington to impose conditions via 401 Certification on Avista's dams (prior licenses were issued before 401 certifications were authorized by the Clean Water Act). This appeal was also the first-ever challange to the Washington Department of Ecology's interpretation of the aesthetic flow water quality standard.  In reviewing the 401 certification (issued April 7, 2008) the state provided no authority or analysis to support its selection of a lower flow and sections on the aesthetic flow condition were poorly drafted and internally inconsistent.

The falls will look very full this summer, as Avista will be spilling water as it works on Upper Falls powerhouse.  Next summer, the utility will complete an Upper Falls Aesthetic Flow Plan (with WDFW, Ecology and environmental nonprofits) and begin to plug old canals in the Upper Falls northern channel, which were early water diversions.That work is part of the agreement and is necessary to distribute river flows more evenly.  If all goes as planned, Avista will start abiding by the flow agreement in summer 2011.