Klamath Riverkeeper to Sue Warren Buffett's Pacifi

[Okwes]

Klamath Riverkeeper to Sue Warren Buffett's PacifiCorp For Polluting
River! by Dan Bacher

The
Klamath Riverkeeper is planning to sue the second richest man in the
world for polluting the Klamath River! NEWS RELEASE

Contacts:
Regina Chichizola, Klamath Riverkeeper: [phone] or [phone]
Daniel Cooper, Lawyers for Clean Water [phone]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 17, 2007

KLAMATH RIVERKEEPER TO SUE WARREN BUFFETT'S PACIFICORP FOR POLLUTING
KLAMATH RIVER
Lawsuit is the first step in Riverkeeper's effort to restore the
Klamath

YREKA, CA- Klamath Riverkeeper sent a 60 day notice of intent to file a
lawsuit today against Warren Buffett's PacifiCorp for polluting one
of the nation's most important and controversial salmon rivers, the
Klamath. Klamath Riverkeeper's lawsuit asserts that operation of the
Iron Gate Dam hatchery has resulted in repeated violations of the Clean
Water Act and is just one of the ways that PacifiCorp, as the owner of
the four dams along the Klamath River, is destroying the River, its
salmon runs, and the coastal fishing economies of the California and
Oregon Coastline.

Thousands of adult salmon have died because of low flows and poor water
quality. Since the dams were built, Klamath Salmon numbers have dropped
from more than a million to less then 8% of that with one of the worst
runs ever occurring last year, according to the Klamath Riverkeeper.
Record-setting levels of a highly toxic algae have been found behind the
dams during the last two years, and last year, low runs of wild Klamath
salmon caused severe restrictions on commercial salmon fishing on over
700 miles of coastline in Oregon and California. These conditions have
resulted in federal disaster declarations and have fueled the movement
by the states, fishermen, tribes, and environmental groups to take down
PacifiCorp's outdated dams along the Klamath River.

"First PacifiCorp dammed the Klamath River cutting off hundreds of
miles of salmon habitat and degrading water quality," stated Regina
Chichizola, the Klamath Riverkeeper. "Now, the hatchery that was
supposed to fulfill PacifiCorp's promise to keep the Klamath salmon
from facing extinction is polluting the river and further jeopardizing
the survival of the salmon it is best known for."

Chichizola went on to say that the dams do not provide for flood control
or irrigation, and represent less than one-half a percent of
PacifiCorp's energy supply. Klamath Riverkeeper has documented
repeated discharges of wastewater containing pollutants in violation of
the hatchery's permit and tracked the hatchery's failure to
comply with monitoring and reporting requirements of the permit, which
will be the basis for the lawsuit. Riverkeeper is also looking into ways
to hold PacifiCorp responsible for the creation and release of toxic
algae in their dams.

PacifiCorp, a Portland, Oregon company, was recently acquired by
MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company, which is owned by Warren
Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, Inc.

Chichizola called upon Buffett to reconcile his philanthropic concern
for low-income and health-challenged communities around the world with
PacifiCorp's practices here in California. In 2006, Buffet committed
roughly 85% of his $40 billion fortune to the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation. Two of the charities run by Buffet's children � also
beneficiaries of his fortune � include a focus on the environment,
species protection and clean water.

"The second richest man in the world owns PacifiCorp, yet the
company is not being held responsible for its role in the deepening
crisis on the Klamath. We implore Mr. Buffett to review the practices of
PacifiCorp and its devastating impact on the Klamath and coastal
economies. We can still save the Klamath and its wild salmon but urgent
action is needed now. The Klamath's future, and the future of the
salmon industry, is in Warren Buffett's hands," said Chichizola.