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Watch the full story on the fight to preserve sacred salmon on KING 5 News at 6:30 p.m. and 11 p.m.

DARRINGTON, Wash. In its quest to relicense its hydroelectric dams on the Skagit River, Seattle City Lighthas spent approximately $30 million, records show.

The vast majority has gone toward paying scientific specialists, but other expenses include paying consultants to facilitate virtual meetings, craft strategic communications and provide legal advice. Seven law firms, as well as inside counsel, have been involved in the dam relicensing and associated lawsuits filed in response to the process.

City Light pays some attorneys as much as $700 per hour, legal contracts show.

The rural tribes of the Skagit Valley, who have depended on the river and the salmon in it since time immemorial, say the amount the city has spent is "astonishing." Theyve beenat odds with Seattle City Light throughout the relicensing process over how best to operate the dams under conditions of a new license.

Tribal members say theyre fighting to bring back salmon that are on the brink of extinction and Seattles dams are part of the problem. One tribal elder called the amount of money "mind-boggling" and said the process is "bleeding every resource" from the tribes as they try to keep up with meetings, legal input and deadlines.

Seattle City Light CEO and General Manager Debra Smith said she understands the frustration of tribes that have limited resources.

Thats challenging, Smith said.

To offset expenses, City Light offered the three participating treaty tribes $25,000 each to participate in the process more easily. One tribe, the La Conner-based Swinomish Tribe, accepted the offer. The Upper Skagit Indian Tribe and theSauk-Suiattle Tribe declined. Tribal representatives said the amount was too small to be of consequence and could give the appearance of a conflict of interest.

It was kind of offensive to the tribe, Sauk-Suiattleattorney Jack Fiander said. It looks like youve been bought off for $25,000. The tribe wasnt willing to accept that because it would look like a conflict of interest when youre taking the money.

Smith said the offer was made in good faith.

Im sorry that (the tribes) feel that way. Certainly, the intent was never to insult, Smith said.

The Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, located in Darrington, is one of the smallest and poorest of all tribes in the state.

Wow, [$30 million is] a lot of money, said Robert Howard, general manager of the Sauk-Suiattle Tribe. Just to avoid doing the right thing? They could have taken that [money] and applied it to something equitable, something fair, something that sustains the environment and sustains the salmon. Thats hard to understand.

For nearly 100 years, Seattle City Light has operatedthree dams on the Skagit River to provide roughly 20% of the citys electricity. When the dams were built, no one consulted the Native Americans. According to the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe, construction desecrated ancestral burial grounds and important cultural sites. The dams create reservoirs that now cover up sacred lands that are no longer accessible to tribal members.

The dams also block off nearly 40% of the river to salmon species in dire need of additional habitat to spawn, grow and recover.

Seattles dams - Gorge, Diablo, and Ross - are some of the few in the region that do not include infrastructure to allow fish to get above and below the project. The tribes and government natural resource agencies say the dams harm salmon and starving orcas that depend on Chinook salmon from the Skagit for food.

[Seattles paying] hired guns. Im sure thats their job, but were a small tribe. Our total tribal budget is a fraction of that, and yet were standing up. And yet, were trying to do something from our standpoint for the great good of everybody, Howard said.

Relicensing dams through thefederal government is a highly regulated process that requires years of negotiations, scientific study and legal filings. Seattle began working on initial steps in 2018. The city has budgeted nearly $70 million for the entire relicensing through 2026. Much of the money will fund scientific studies that stakeholders asked City Light to undertake.

Smith of City Light said the utility is being a good steward of taxpayer money and is spending what is necessary to ensure a high-quality license that will last between 30 and 50 years.

The most important thing is for us is to come through this process with constructive relationships with the partners that weve been working with for years and we will be working with for many years to come. [We want] to come through with a license that supports the ecosystem, supports the fish, supports people, air, birds, water, you name it, Smith said.

Seattle City Light: No evil intent

Smith conceded the first two years of negotiations were laden with conflict and there was little progress as utility representatives made strategic mistakes by not listening well enough to stakeholder concerns and viewpoints. Those groups include the three treaty tribes, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, the National Park Service, NOAA Fisheries, Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife and Skagit County government.

Clearly, things were not going the way they needed to. Were those dollars that were being spent at the time being spent in the most productive way? No. Thats why we made the change that we made, Smith said. We have no evil intent. We are just as capable as anyone else of misstepping. But the thing I want people to know about me more than anything is that if I misstep, Ill step back and fix what I broke and apologize and move on.

Seattle receives millions in salmon project funding

Since the city began the dam relicensing process in 2018, the utility has been spending and asking for money. Between 2018 and 2020, the state has funded six grant requests from Seattle City Light, according to the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office.

The grants total approximately $4 million and, according to state documents, are to be used for acquiring land to protect high-quality Chinook habitat in the Skagit River system.

Critics say when Seattle accepts state money, other groups suffer the consequences.

Unfortunately, what happens in Seattle doesnt stay in Seattle it impacts the whole state, costing taxpayers and salmon on projects that dont get done elsewhere, said Todd Myers, director of the Center for the Environment at the Washington Policy Center. Myers is also a member of the Puget Sound Salmon Recovery Council.

Between 2018 and 2020, dozens of smaller groups had their salmon recovery grant proposals rejected, state records show. Those include proposals from the Lummi Nation, the Nez Perce Tribe, the Quileute Tribe of the Quileute, the Asotin County Conservation District, the Nooksack Tribe, the city of Bellingham, the Chehalis Basin Land Trust and the Nisqually Land Trust.

Other parts of the state, rural areas, where salmon recovery and salmon projects are very important, they dont have those deep pockets. So, when you take money away from the state that could go to those places you are really doubly harming areas that desperately need that money and where salmon need habitat.

Smith said the city does not have unlimited resources, and the utility will not apologize for accepting state funding it's entitled to.

A lot of times we have projects that are really important, and they meet the [grant] criteria, Smith said. So, I dont feel bad for applying for those types of grants. We dont always get them. There are far more instances where we didnt get them and where weve wondered the same thing: 'Wow, how come we werent successful?' But when we are, I feel like thats a good thing and well continue to [apply].

Tribal members said theres no price you can put on the Skagit River and the salmon who call it home.

You can spend a billion dollars on this issue and were still going to fight as long as its going to take to ensure that the world knows whats happening here. To ensure that the local stakeholders and just common folks understand whats right, said Howard of the Sauk-Suiattle Tribe. Doing the right thing doesnt have to have that big of a price tag. Just do whats right.

Smith said City Light is now on a positive, cost-efficient path with tribes and agencies dedicated to the Skagit Project relicensing.

I feel like were in a very good place. Were being frugal, were being careful, Smith said. We wouldnt be where we are today with our partners had we not [reset our approach].

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Tribes fighting for salmon on Skagit River say $30M spent by Seattle on dam relicensing is 'mind-boggling' - KING5.com