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Idaho Power Company is in the process of implementing a FERC license order for the Malad River Hydroelectric license that requires construction and monitoring of fishways. Final design of the first fishway at the lower most diversion will start fall of 2006, with construction starting in spring of 2007. One major design consideration is to accommodate the needs for fishway monitoring. This field of technology in this area is rapidly developing. IPC has proposed the use of digital video to meet its monitoring requirement and has sought out the expertise of the US Department of Interior / Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) for assistance in design considerations, equipment purchases, and monitoring approach for our fish counting requirements. IPC anticipate similar needs at other IPC facilities.

Dr. Mark Bowen and Mr. Steve Hiebert of the BOR made a site visit to the Malad River hydroelectric project and the Hells Canyon Dam in Idaho at their own expense to evaluate the proposed conceptual designs and our fish counting needs. They also accompanied us on a tour of several BOR fish counting facilities. The expertise that they have in this field was made quite evident in the site visit. Following this visit, they provided us the design plans of Reclamation fish passage devices and have begun to evaluate fish counting solutions specific to our needs. Idaho Power Company believes that Dr. Bowen and Mr. Hiebert will be instrumental in the design and implementation of automated fish counting at the Malad River facility as we proceed towards compliance of this license order.

Idaho Power Company believes that the services provided by these BOR biologists were timely, appropriate and we look forward to further collaboration with them and sincerely appreciates the BOR's willingness to share its expertise with us. The types of actions required in our license articles rely on new and rapidly developing technology. Obtaining access to these new technologies often are inherently governmental because of often higher research and development costs that private companies may incur and may need to recover in development of this technology. As such, Idaho Power Company believes that there will be a significant cost savings to Idaho Power Company and its customers by collaborating further with the BOR in developing our fish counting needs.
07/13/2006