Berkshire Hathaway owns MidAmerican Energy Holdings, which bought Pacificorp in 2005. Pacificorp's dams are in a relicensing process with the federal government, and are being targeted for removal by river advocates because of their effects on salmon and water quality on the Klamath.
”Buffett's MidAmerican Energy kills salmon, communities and profits,” says Karuk Tribe Vice Chairman Leaf Hillman, “and that's the message we are taking to Omaha.”
The utility was previously owned by ScottishPower, whose leadership had pledged to work toward a settlement over the dams after tribes, fishermen and conservationists raised their concerns at a shareholders' meeting in Scotland. Buffett has said he does not influence his subsidiaries' business practices.
The groups point to state and federal studies that found dam removal would be cheaper than keeping the dams and having to install fish ladders at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars.
”Buffett and his shareholders can actually save money by doing the right thing,” Hillman said.
The group plans to show a film about the
Klamath, serve smoked salmon at a press
conference, and picket the Berkshire Hathaway
shareholders' meeting on May 3.