Up in the arms against PacifiCorp, environmentalists, fishermen and tribal people have sued the Berkshire Hathaway Inc. subsidiary, accusing it of polluting the Klamath River in San Francisco.
In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs claimed that toxic algae bloom in two of PacifiCorp dams on the Klamath River has been killing salmon, apart from creating health hazards for the people in the region.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr, president of the Waterkeeper Alliance, led the lawsuit against PacifiCorp and later issued a statement.
He said,
(the dams) are having a devastating impact on the economies and cultures of Native Americans and others who depend on the Klamath River.
Kennedy said he wanted the federal court to instruct PacifiCorp to clean up the toxic algae blooms in the reservoirs.
The lawsuit accused PacifiCorp of failing to properly regulate the water flow and claimed the resulting stagnation gave berth to the toxic algae bloom.
The algae release a fatal lever toxin that can destroy fishery and also pose a serious threat to tribal people who take a dip in the river.
Photo credit: Pacificorp