Evans, Daniel J., 1925-

Congress passed the Pacific Northwest Electric Power Planning Act in 1980. The Act established the Northwest Power Planning Council to provide a publicly accountable body to conduct regional energy planning and to review the new authority given to the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to finance resources and conservation. The governors of the states of Washington, Idaho, Montana and Oregon each appointed two members to the Council. In 1981 former Washington Governor Daniel J. Evans was appointed to the Council by Washington Governor John Spellman. Evans was then chosen by the other members of the Council to become its chairman. Congress gave the Northwest Power Planning Council two major responsibilities: 1) to determine how much energy the region would need during the next 20 years and to develop an electric power plan to meet those needs; and 2) to develop a program to "Protect, mitigate and enhance" fish and wildlife and related habitats in the Columbia River Basin, which had been seriously affected by hydroelectric development. The Act for the first time recognized fish and wildlife as being co-equal with power. The Council was not established as a federal agency. It receives its funding from the BPA budget, not from the Federal treasury. However, the Council is not part of the BPA. The Council's plan serves as a blueprint for energy development in the region. Within the Council's plan the BPA decides what major projects to sponsor. If the Council decides that the project is not consistent with its plan, BPA has to get Congressional approval before proceeding. The Council's plan also is a guide for conservation efforts and new power projects undertaken by individuals, local governments and utilities. Congress directed the Council to establish energy priorities, with conservation first, followed by renewable resources, waste heat, and coal and nuclear power last. Cost effective conservation and renewable resources were to be the first priority in planning new resources to be acquired by BPA. Congress believed that energy conservation was so important that it was given a ten percent cost advantage over all other resources. The other aspect of the Council's responsibilities was to ensure that energy production did not adversely affect fish and wildlife. The fish and wildlife program includes measures to make it easier for salmon and steelhead to migrate to the ocean, proposes a coordinated effort to increase survival in the ocean, provides for improved fish ladders to help adult fish migrate upstream, and established programs to increase the number of fish produced. In September, 1983, Daniel J. Evans was appointed to the U.S. Senate by Governor Spellman to serve out the remainder of the term of the late Senator Henry M. Jackson. Evans resigned from the Council to take up his new duties.

Benton County site in southeastern Washington was chosen for the Hanford plant because it was sparsely settled; there was plenty of pure, cold Columbia River water to cool reactors; and a good supply of electric power was available. Ground was broken on the 600 sq. mile reservation in the desert in March, 1943. At that time it was called Hanford Engineer Works and was under the supervision of the Manhattan District of the Corps of Engineers with E.I. duPont de Nemours and Co. as the prime contractor. Hanford, WA was a village of about 400 people when construction began. At the end of construction in 1945, Hanford's population was about 51,000. The Hanford camp closed down and the administrative center was established in Richland, WA which was 25 miles downstream. It was after the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings that the majority of workers found out what they had been building and operating. By Dec. 1958 when Richland was incorporated, the federal government had sold its interests in the city to private individuals and appropriate governing bodies. General Electric Co. became the prime contractor in 1946 at the request of the federal government. In January 1947 the Atomic Energy Commission took over for the Army Engineers. Early in 1964, the Atomic Energy Commission and the General Electric Company announced that they had mutually concluded that the transfer of contract work at Hanford to other contractors over a period of several years would be in the best interest of the government and General Electric. It was felt the transfer should contribute to the future development of the communities in the Hanford area. Battelle Memorial Institute won the contract in 1964. Throughout the history of the Hanford site, it has been embroiled in controversy.

20th century Republican Governor and Senator from Washington State.