For 20 years the Columbia Basin Bulletin has offered readers in-depth news coverage of Columbia River basin salmon and steelhead recovery, the most extensive and expensive ecological restoration effort in the United States. Your Paid Membership will allow the CBB to continue reporting the important details of Columbia Basin salmon and steelhead recovery and other fish and wildlife issues.
Although the run of spring chinook into the Deschutes River is one of the lowest in years, as it has been throughout the Columbia River basin, the proportion of the Deschutes run that originated as reintroduced fish upstream of the Pelton Round Butte Hydroelectric Project near Madras, Oregon is one of the best in years, according to Portland General Electric.
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife recently released a statement essentially patting themselves on the back for maintaining the status quo in response to a growing problem on Washington’s salmon and steelhead streams.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said Tuesday the Canadian government’s approval of the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion was “alarming and deeply disappointing.”
So in chatting with an acquaintance this past weekend, he asked me if the salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River are recovering? My casual, unsatisfying answer was “depends on what fish and where.” But it’s a good question.
Mitigation plans that will benefit juvenile salmon on a large urban island in the Columbia River are out for review.
The Western Governors Association at its annual meeting last week approved a resolution calling for the creation of a new Western Invasive Species Council; new mechanisms to enhance regional invasive species research, planning and coordination; and recommendations to Congress and federal agencies on improving invasive species management on federal lands and supporting state-led management efforts.
