Salmon Spawning Above White Salmon’s Condit Dam First Time In 100 Years Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 (PST)

Where there's a way there's the will to spawn -- as tule chinook salmon are proving in the gravels of southwest Washington's White Salmon River. Researchers in recent weeks have identified about 69 salmon redds in reaches above the river's Condit Dam. The salmon eggs likely nested in those gravels are the first deposited above the dam in nearly 100 years. Read More...

Proposal: More Terminal Fisheries, Less Mainstem Nets; Commercial Gill-Netters Say Not Fair, Feasibl Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 (PST)

A newly devised strategy to move gill-net fisheries off the Columbia River mainstem would bring benefits to all, including the commercial fishing fleet, according to its proponents. Read More...

USFWS Recommends Changes For Fed Hatcheries In Clearwater, Salmon Drainages Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 (PST)

Changes ranging from the replacement of existing water supplies, to shifting species emphasis to better localizing broodstocks are among the recommendations contained in a draft report on the operation of three federal hatcheries in Idaho's Clearwater and Salmon drainages. Read More...

Agencies Seek Lake Pend Oreille Drawdown Scenarios To Aid Kokanee, Bull Trout Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 (PST)

The spawning behavior of kokanee this year will dictate how fast and how far north Idaho's Lake Pend Oreille will be drawn down. Technical Management Team members on Wednesday agreed to an Albeni Falls Dam operational plan aimed at dropping the reservoir to its winter minimum control elevation of 2,051 feet by Nov. 15. TMT's federal, state and tribal members discuss day-to-day federal Columbia/Snake river hydro system operations that might benefit fish listed under the Endangered Species Act. Read More...

Montana Goes Netting To Reduce Invasive Species Threatening Bull Trout, Kokanee Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 (PST)

A three-week netting project on Montana's Swan Lake is complete, turning up more than 3,700 lake trout and giving biologists the ability to estimate the overall population of the invasive species in the lake. Read More...

Assessment Details Decline, Extinction Risks To British Columbia Sockeye Subpopulations Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 (PST)

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature this week placed Pacific sockeye salmon on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The Red List is the international standard for measuring species' risk of extinction. Read More...

Bi-State Fisheries Group To Hold Meeting on lower Columbia Catch-Sharing Plan Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 (PST)

A new bi-state fisheries advisory group will hold a public meeting Oct. 15 in Portland to develop recommendations on a catch-sharing plan for sport and commercial salmon fisheries on the lower Columbia River. Read More...

NW Energy Efficiency Taskforce Workgroups Offer Preliminary Recommendations Posted on Wednesday, May 27, 2009 (PST)

Northwest Energy Efficiency Taskforce workgroups last week presented preliminary recommendations aimed at addressing climate change concerns, growth in regional population along with rising energy consumption, and escalating costs for new power sources. Read More...