The Hellsgate Big Game Winter Range Wildlife Mitigation Project (Hellsgate Project) was proposed by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation (CTCR) as partial mitigation for hydropower's share of the wildlife losses resulting from Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee Dams.  The Northwest Power and Conservation Council (NPCC) and the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) approved the Hellsgate Project as partial mitigation for associated impacts from the Grand coulee and Chief Joseph dams.  The BPA funds the project and it is carried out in cooperation with CTCR, Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), (NPCC), and others.  The project is consistent with Section 1003(b)(7) of the NPCC's Wildlife Rule and Sub-basin plans which address mitigation for wildlife losses due to the Federal Columbia River Power System.   Consistent with the Wildlife Rule, the CTCR have acquired 54,600 acres of land for the biological requirements of wildlife and to manage for the protection and enhancement of critical winter habitat for big game and shrub-steppe/sharp-tailed grouse habitat.  More land will be acquired and managed over time to mitigate for wildlife losses.  The USFWWS habitat Evaluation Procedure (HEP) will be used to determine mitigation credits and in part to monitor the results of project management activities over time.  To date we have acquired about 32,020 HU's towards 35,819 HU's lost from hydropower developments with an additional 600 HU's entitled to the Tribe through negotiations with WDFW for a total of 36,319 HU's.

The focus of the Hellsgate Project is the protection, restoration, and enhancement of critical winter habitat for big game and shrub-steppe/sharp-tailed grouse habitat on lands purchased and managed for wildlife mitigation on the Colville Indian Reservation.  In addition, the CCT have set aside special management areas (Hellsgate Reserve, Tribal lands, and Agency Butte) surrounding certain Hellsgate Project land parcels to conserve and protect big game winter range and sharp-tailed grouse habitat.  The Hellsgate Project began mitigating for wildlife losses in 1992 and is currently made up of five separate ranches (the Graves, Berg Brothers, W. and H. Kuehne Ranches, former Joy Property) and several separate parcels (Nespelem Bend and properties within the Hellsgate Reserve).  These land contain similar habitat types to those that were inundated by the dams.  To fully mitigate all the wildlife losses associated with these dams, additional lands need to be acquired and managed under the Tribes Wildlife Mitigation Program (Hellsgate O & M Project).  Each area will have site-specific goals to manage the lands to optimize available habitat for management species (desired future conditions).  These managed lands contain a wide diversity of vegetative types and habitats for a variety of wildlife species.  In all cases, the biological requirements of wildlife and the protection of critical habitat will take precedence over all other land use consideration in the management of these lands.

Funding for reasonable operation and maintenance, enhancements, restoration, monitoring and evaluation will be provided by the Bonneville Power Administration.  The Hellsgate Project involves the protection of project lands (i.e. boundary fencing, noxious weed control and property livestock trespass), operation and maintenance of acquired lands, enhancement and/or restoration of wildlife species and habitats on those lands with monitoring and evaluation over the long term to ensure that project objectives are being met.  Project lands are located within the San Poil, Upper Columbia and Rufus Woods Sub-Basins and will be evaluated for baseline conditions and species composition.  Data will be used to develop and implement site-specific management plans to protect and enhance wildlife habitat for the life of the Hellsgate Project.