Aquatic weeds can ruin a day on Lake Spokane, the lake created where the Spokane River is tamed into a reservoir. The weeds feel creepy if you swim into them. And when they die and fall to the bottom of the lake, they gobble up oxygen needed by fish.

One way to kill aquatic weeds is to lower the level of the lake in the winter and freeze them out. You discover this interesting fact while wading through a 606-page document recently released by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The draft environmental impact statement regards Avista Corp.’s application to relicense several of its dams along the Spokane River. FERC will make the ultimate decision; a 60-day public comment period ends March 6.

This should be of interest to anyone who hikes, bikes, walks or meditates along the river. Or anyone who swims or boats the river or Lake Spokane and Lake Coeur d’Alene. Or anyone who cares about the future of the river.

The relicensing process guides, among a myriad of items, the water level in Lake Coeur d’Alene and Lake Spokane and the amount of shoreline and fish mitigation on the Coeur d’Alene Indian Reservation. It will even determine whether Avista will release more visitor-wowing water at Spokane falls in the summer.

FERC encourages comments online, but it’s nearly impossible to do so. Even a FERC spokesperson finally admitted: “The easiest way to do this is to write comments and send them by mail.”

Avista posted FERC’s draft environmental impact statement on its Web site and outlined the step-by-step process to comment online. It’s still complicated, but it’s there.

Environmental groups, and river-user groups, also got involved to make the process user-friendly. They wrote a letter to FERC requesting a simple e-mail address for comments. FERC did not reply. But when they asked for evening hours during FERC’s public meeting here Feb. 8, FERC added the hours, enabling participation by those unable to get away during the day.

FERC handles hundreds of dam relicensing projects. It’s understandable – but still annoying – that user-friendly issues do not seem to be a priority. Kudos to Avista and the other groups for jumping in.

The opportunity to comment on dam relicensing projects comes around only once or twice a century. Don’t miss it.