Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen, and Glen Spain,
Eugene Attorney and regional director of PCFFA

PCFFA created IFR / Institute for Fisheries Resources

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Glen Spain is a Eugene Attorney and regional director of Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen, an umbrella group of some fishing groups in California. He represents PCFFA at the closed-door Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement / KBRA negotiations

"Rather than seek out yet another unrelated non-profit to funnel the money through, PCFFA created a new organization..." IFR / Institute for Fisheries Resources. 

Eugene office IFR deals "with Northwest and Northern California/Klamath salmon restoration issues. That IFR Northwest Regional office was and is still headed up by PCFFA’s Glen Spain."

PCFFA/IFR Newsletter "Most of Bingham’s work and all of (Glen) Spain’s were funded through grants and contracts that could only go through a 501(c)(3) non-profit – which was IFR. If fishermen along the Pacific Coast want to thank someone for their good seasons, they can thank God for the wet winters and good oceanic conditions, thank Earthjustice for suing the bastards to protect the fish and get better river flows, and thank IFR for providing fishermen the wherewithal to fight for their fish and their communities."


Here is the story by PCFFA how they created IFR to get non-profit funding, namely, George Soros-funded Earthjustice. Several other NGOs (non-governmental agencies like Klamath Riverkeeper) join in the lawsuits against irrigators, miners, loggers, grazers, and mostly use Soros and partners sponsored attorneys, Earthjustice.

"In the Northwest, Glen Spain brought IFR into prominence on Columbia River Basin salmon restoration issues, working to build politically effective coalitions between fishermen and conservation groups through the Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition"

KBC Note: PCFFA litigated against the irrigators keeping their reasonable power rate, against them in the takings case from when the government shut off water in 2001 to 1400 family farms,. In 2009

SIERRA CLUB, PACIFIC COAST FEDERATION OF FISHERMEN’S ASSOCIATIONS, INSTITUTE FOR FISHERIES RESOURCES, FRIENDS OF THE EEL RIVER, FRIENDS OF THE NAVARRO WATERSHED, ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION INFORMATION CENTER, NORTHCOAST ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER, and KLAMATH RIVERKEEPER, non-profit organizations,

 Ca State Water Resources Control Board to enforce mandatory TMDLs, where resource users must make the naturally mineral laden Klamath Lake and River prestine. Attorney: Soros-funded Earthjustice.

PCFFA also sued against suction dredge miners shutting down another Klamath resource industry, against Central Calif farmers in favor of a Delta Smelt, and presently against Scott and Shasta irrigators using water to irrigate.

PCFFA filed as defendant against Klamath irrigators' lawsuit in the Takings case, as case still active March 2011:
Here is the Klamath irrigators' takings case 2/17/11 Decision, KLAMATH IRRIGATION v. US, United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Page 9 quotes the Klamath Compact, "It states that 'the United States shall not, without payment of just compensation, impair any rights to the use of water for [domestic or irrigation purposes] within the Upper Klamath River Basin.' "  27 groups and individuals filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government claiming that, since they had water rights "appurtenant to the land," many with deeds signed by a U.S. President, they must be compensated for when the government withheld their irrigation water in 2001. Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen/PCFFA filed as a defendant against the farmers and ranchers. Klamath irrigators have paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to pursue the case. Earthjustice, partially funded by George Soros, provides free services for PCFFA. PCFFA is a major author of the controversial Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement/KBRA which is opposed by 1/2 Klamath County, 80% Siskiyou County, and 77% Tulelake alone.

Following are some letters, articles and lawsuits featuring PCFFA and Glen Spain:

 

Compelling Facts Condemn KRRC’s Proposed Klamath River Dam Removal Plan - PCFFA Director Glen Spain's contradictions regarding fish and dam removal, Wildhorse Ranch Productions 7/19/21. "Economics Not Salmon Is the Reason PacifiCorp is Removing the Dams”  KBC's Glen Spain  page

How Klamath dam removal benefits the region by Glen Spain, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen for H&N 6/28/21, with extensive KBC NOTE: "..."The best available science" / National Research Counsel, Dr William Lewis Jr, said our water was historically bad because of minerals, and lake level and river flow management would not help water quality or the fish.  Flushing flows only add more mineral-laden water to the river, and taking more land out of production will not help fish..."

PCFFA Petition for Intervention in FERC Klamath Project (dams) license surrender 2/4/2021. KBC's PCFFA Page

Yurok Tribe joins lawsuit seeking temporary restraining order to restore essential water flows for Klamath River salmon, Del Norte Triplicate 5/18/2020. "The Yurok Tribe joined the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations and the Institute for Fisheries Resources in pursuit of a temporary restraining order to reinstate water flows on the Klamath River."

 

4/4/2020 - KBC NOTE: PCFFA (Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen), IFR and Yurok Tribe sued to take another 50,000 acre feet of Klamath Project stored water to dump into Klamath River. Klamath Water Users settled for giving up 23,000 acre feet of their deeded water. Yuroks celebrate their victory: Yurok Tribe and commercial fishing families secure more water for salmon, The Yurok Tribe, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations (PCFFA), and the Institute for Fisheries Resources (IFR, represented by the nonprofit environmental law firm Earthjustice, have successfully obtained a new three-year plan from the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) for operating the Klamath Irrigation Project to increase springtime flows in the Klamath River.

 

Environmental, fishing groups sue Oregon over coho salmon, Statesman Journal 6/13/18. "...Poor logging practices by the Oregon Department of Forestry is causing real harm to the Oregon coast coho and commercial fishing families who depend on these magnificent fish for their livelihoods," Glen Spain (PCFFA/IFR attorney) said, the northwest regional director for the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations and the Institute of Fisheries Resources, both plaintiffs in the case..."

"Rather than seek out yet another unrelated non-profit to funnel the money through, PCFFA created a new organization..." IFR / Institute for Fisheries Resources. KBC NOTE: That link directs you to PCFFA/IFR page detailing their many Earthjustice (partially funded by George Soros) lawsuits against Klamath Irrigators in the takings case, power rate case, shutting down suction dredge mining, Klamath River water quality TMDL's, essentially against timber harvest, farming, mining and river dams.

Klamath water users to attend pivotal court hearing, Capital Press 4/6/18. "The Yurok Tribe, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Institute for Fisheries Resources, Klamath Riverkeeper and the Hoopa Valley Tribe sought the injunction to protect juvenile coho after several years of deadly C. shasta outbreak.

Group files new suction dredge lawsuit, Siskiyou Daily, posted to KBC 4/8/12. Karuk Tribe (Craig Tucker, dam removal activist), PCFFA (Glen Spain, Eugene Attorney), Center for Biological Diversity (files ESA/endangered species act lawsuits daily), and FOR / Friends of the River (dam removal ecoterrorist group, Craig Tucker was former coordinator). Spain and Tucker are voting members as "stakeholders" on the KBRA / Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement. All of the above have had their litigation funded by Earthjustice, funded partly by George Soros. The ecoterrorist claim, "risk of mobilizing mercury in the water column." In the KBRA, they advocate destroying 4 hydrodams, releasing 20 million cubic yards of sediment, obliterating any life forms: Senator Doug Whitsett speech regarding the KBRA and Klamath dam destruction.

*** THE  KBRA BLACKMAIL - Court Document 11/8/05: Yurok and Hoopa Tribes and Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen (PCFFA) and other enviro groups petitioned against the Klamath Irrigators continuing to get an affordable power rate. Their goal was to reduce irrigation.  The blackmail forced Klamath Water Users Association to support a 50-year, closed-door Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement "settlement" to get funds to buy or create affordable power in exchange for mandatory dam removal, downsize agriculture, tribal land gift, support of planting endangered fish including lamprey into Klamath Basin's naturally warm shallow water, support of wetlands amongst Klamath Project private land with no liability for damages,  support of Endangered Species Act and Biological Opinion mandates, support changing the 100-year irrigation purpose of the Klamath Project to include fish and wildlife, etc.

Zeke Grader, PCFFA/Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen statement to House committees on Ag and Natural Resources, posted to KBC 5/12/11. KBC NOTE: Page 12, PCFFA writes joint letter to Council on Environmental Quality co-signed by other environmental groups including Earthjustice (George Soros funded).

Siskiyou County responds to ELF, water resources board briefs, Siskiyou Daily 1/13/11. "...Guarino also questions the water resources board’s alignment with the petitioning parties on a number of issues in the case...The case is Environmental Law Foundation v. State Water Resources Board, in which the Environmental Law Foundation and the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations Institute for Fisheries Resources have asked the courts to declare that groundwater in the Scott River basin can be managed under the Public Trust Doctrine." KBC NOTE: Past President of Friends of the River http://www.envirolaw.org/staff.html James Wheaton, is President and Legal Director of the Environmental Law Foundation, and past President of Friends of the River. He is also a board member of the River Network, http://www.rivernetwork.org/board-of-directors , along with Wyatt Rockefeller, who served on Obama's EPA and Obama's campaign. Natural Resources Defense Council: One of the most influential environmentalist lobbying groups in the United States, the Council claims a membership of one million people. They are supported by George Soros Open Society Institute. They support Riverkeepers groups. They support Waterkeeper, Greenpeace, and Earth First, among others. Craig Tucker, presently spokesperson for the Karuk Tribe, at the KBRA table, is founder and board member of Klamath Riverkeeper, and was past spokesman for Friends of the River.

Lawsuit Aims to Protect Northern California Salmon Habitat, posted to KBC 3/20/09. Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen, North Coast Environmental Center, Klamath Riverkeeper are among Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement stakeholders suing the Calif. Water Quality Control Board to regulate water quality in the Klamath Basin. The historically warm, mineral laden water must become clean. February 2009 lawsuit. Court petition HERE.

Lawsuit Filed Charging EPA With Failure To Protect Northwest Salmon From Pesticides, Columbia Basin Bulletin, posted to KBC 12/8/10. KBC NOTE: PCFFA again sues. PCFFA sued against Klamath irrigators affordable power rate, to enforce Klamath TMDLs, Central Valley irrigators, and who explains how the KBRA favors fish over farms, AND who is the irrigation leader's "friend" at the KBRA table. 

PCFFA Glen Spain ANALYSIS OF “Outline of Objections to the Klamath Basin Restoration and Hydroelectric Settlement Agreements.”  Spain explains why environmental NGO's and Tribes should support the dam removal and ag-downsizing 'agreements', posted to KBC 2/20/10,  12/4/10.  (KBC NOTE: PCFFA/Glen Spain, an author of the KBRA, has sued against the Klamath Project retaining an affordable power rate, and are suing Project Irrigators claim to be compensated for their deeded water that was withheld by the US government)
* "The primary “guarantee” the Project irrigators will get under the KBRA is the guarantee that in dry years they will typically get much less water from the river than before -- and the fish will therefore get that much more.
* “...guaranteed increase” in the volume of water for lower river salmon and endangered lake fish of between 130,000 and 230,000 additional acre-feet which would kick in immediately."
* "...KBRA leaves the ESA alive and well."
* "...short-term and long-term measures including: “conservation easements, forbearance agreements, conjunctive use programs, efficiency measures, land acquisitions, water acquisitions, groundwater development, groundwater substation, other voluntary transactions, water storage, and any other applicable measures.”
* agriculture "..permanently giving up as much as 130,000 acre-feet of current legally held water rights) that the Project and non-Project irrigators are surrendering."

Glen Spain, NW Regional Director Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen responds to Glen Briggs "Please don't restore my Klamath," and Briggs responds to Spain's letter. posted to KBC 7/26/09. Briggs

Supreme Court of Oregon: KID and irrigators vs US and Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen/PCFFA 3/11/10. (KBC NOTE: PCFFA petitioned against irrigators getting a continued affordable power rate, sued against them getting compensation for the government taking their deeded water in 2001, support studying removal of Keno dam with provides irrigation water in the Klamath Basin, yet they claim to be our 'friend' at the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement negotiations, promising money for power and less litigation....???????)

Specifically, the President proposed that

"These irrigation works should be built by the Government for actual settlers, and the cost of construction should, so far as possible, be repaid by the land reclaimed.  The distribution of the water, the divisions of the streams among irrigators, should be left to the settlers themselves, in conformity with the state laws, and without interference with those laws or with vested rights.  The policy of the National Government should be to aid irrigation in the several States and Territories in such a manner as will enable the people in the local communities to help themselves, and as will stimulate needed reforms in the State laws and regulations governing irrigation."

(Five) Dams to be removed to help salmon get up stream, Daily Democrat 3/17/07. "Eight dams along Battle Creek were built in the early 1900s and divert water to powerhouses that generate electricity for 15 million Pacific Gas & Electric Co. customers from Eureka to Bakersfield."..."We really think the most effective way to do this is to take out all eight of the dams," said Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations."

PCFFA/Earthjustice Court Ruling Protects Salmon and Clean Water from Harmful Logging, Earthjustice 4/4/07

GLEN SPAIN/PCFFA disastrous forecast false: This spring 2006 PCFFA forecasted low salmon runs on the Klamath, using that forecast to reduce and devastate coastal fishing seasons. According to Dan Keppen, Executive Director Family Farm Alliance, "According to my sources, 13,763 chinook have returned so far to Iron Gate Hatchery, plus 250 jacks. That’s an 'average year'. For Coho: 1,384 + 34 jacks returned, which is 'above average'."

KBRA Strategy/minutes: Saving the Klamath Salmon: Development of an Intervention Strategy or What to Do Between Disaster Relief and the Dams Coming Down, minutes from the July 20, 06 meeting of PCFFA, NMFS, Karuks, Yuroks Hupas, FWS, F&G, North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, Congressman Thompson's office, ...(discussed was strategies to obtain money, dam removal, money, Dr Hardy studies, money, need of higher flows, need of "top-down approach".)

 FYI-PCFFA Memo on Klamath/DC Trip  6/12/06 from Zeke Grader

Letter from Oregon troller Scott Cook to Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen (PCFFA) Zeke Grader, regarding PCFFA and Glen Spain 4/23/06 

Fishy Politics; Utility regulators face fishing-or-farmers decision, Willamette Weekly 4/12/06. "Spain argues that providing a cut rate to Klamath farmers worsens the underlying salmon problems by letting farmers get off too cheaply for water use.  Spain says two irrigation-related issues have contributed to decimate the Klamath salmon run: sluggish flow and the creation of slack, warm water behind dams, where toxic algae and salmon-infesting parasites flourish. 'A heavily subsidized power system promotes water waste when we need every drop,' Spain says. '

Letter from Don Stevens, advisor to the Oregon Salmon Comission, to Glen Spain and Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen, regarding Spain's untruths and mis-quotes the Register Guard article (following). Spain is a Eugene attorney with PCFFA representing a few California fishing groups but claiming to speak for all coastal fishermen. March 30, 2006

No Compensation Is Due Oregon Farmers, Washington Post 9/2/05. "Earthjustice represented the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations (PCFFA) in opposing extreme property rights advocates who argued that, under federal law, private property is taken when water is left in rivers to protect threatened salmon and other species." (KBC NOTE: Glen Spain from PCFFA claims PCFFA supported compensation for farmers in 2001 water shutoff.  Irrigators sued for just compensation since the have "water rights for time immemorial" on their deeds signed by a U.S. President. PCFFA opposed the compensation and continued to oppose the appeal in 2009.)

PCFFA/Earthjustice: Anti-ag groups continue Klamath Assault, KWUA news posted to KBC 12/10/05. "PCFFA is seeking an order enjoining the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) from making irrigation diversions at the Klamath Project unless flows in the Klamath River below Iron Gate Dam meet 100% of the flows called for in Phase III of the Klamath Irrigation Project Biological Opinion’s Reasonable and Prudent Alternative ("RPA") or until a new biological opinion is completed and reviewed by the district court."

PCFFA vs Bureau of Reclamation 9th Circuit Decision page 10/20/05

Dear Oregon Trollers and Oregon Fishing Industry Leaders, from Glen Spain, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen (PCFFA) April 16, 2005. "to be blunt the leadership of the Klamath Water User's Association (KWUA) do not care about fish -- they care about making sure they have all the irrigation water they want, and the fish be damned. The current closed door efforts of the KWUA to "woo" certain salmon trollers on the Oregon coast to their cause is one example of how they hope to use fishermen for their purposes."

Tribes and farmers come together while Glen Spain, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen and Eugene attorney, still fueling the flames. KBC commentary to Tidepool's Cutbacks Reflect Klamath Fish Kill Legacy 3/29/05. ""Among the solutions are forcing the federal government to leave more water in the Klamath, stopping cheap electricity subsidies to Klamath Basin farmers and removing the six Klamath hydroelectric dams up for relicensing in 2006."
 

 

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