Sockeye salmon like these are among the salmon species in peril. (Credit: Aaron Kunz) Listen (Runtime 2:57) Read For Northwest tribes, removing the four lower Snake River dams means more… Continue Reading Tribal members gather Read More
Lower Granite Dam on the Snake River. (Courtesy: EcoFlight) Listen (Runtime 1:34) Read For more than 40 years, Bruce Gordon has flown people over wild lands and wildlife habitats across… Continue Reading Flying high for conservation, Read More
Attendees gather on the shores of the Snake River at Hells Gate State Park to take place in the All Our Relations flotilla on September 30, 2023. (Credit: Lauren Paterson… Continue Reading As Biden negotiates future Read More
The Ice Harbor Dam on the Snake River. (Courtesy: Bonneville Power Administration) Listen (Runtime 0:45) Read Several conservation and fishing groups say the Snake River dams are making the river… Continue Reading Groups Read More
The Ice Harbor Dam on the Snake River. CREDIT: BPA Listen (Runtime 1:02) Read At a Congressional hearing in Richland, Wash., designed to defend the four Lower Snake River dams… Continue Reading Congress members dive into Northwest dams debateRead More
House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., leads the panel during an organizational meeting for the 118th Congress, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2023.… Continue Reading Read More
Cathy McMorris Rodgers gives her victory speech after claiming an eighth term as a US Representative for Washington’s 5th District. Credit Emily Schwing/N3 LISTEN (Runtime: 1:05) READ If U.S. Rep.… Continue Read More
Breaching the Snake River dams is one major way to protect salmon, according to a final federal report announced Friday on salmon and steelhead recovery in the Columbia River Basin. Continue Reading Federal report recommends Read More
A much-awaited report said removing the four Lower Snake River dams shouldn't happen right now, but dam removal is the best way to protect Snake River salmon. Continue Reading Breaching The Four Lower Snake River Dams Not An Read More
Scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are tagging and releasing lamprey to learn more about their journey to sea from inland rivers. Continue Reading Scientists Use Tiny Tags To Learn How Young Lamprey Travel Through Read More
To recover healthy salmon populations, one or more of the Snake River dams must be breached, in addition to other actions, according to a new draft report released Tuesday by federal officials. Continue Reading Federal Report Read More
Breaching the dams would be the best way to remove Snake River salmon runs from the Endangered Species List and the best way to maintain treaty and trust obligations with tribes, according to the report. It could cost from $10.3 billion to $27.2 billion. Read More
Four members of the U.S. Congress recently got a close look at Washington’s Snake River dams. Continue Reading Members Of The Congressional Western Caucus Get A Close Look At Snake River DamsRead More
According to a new report, new forms of energy technology could replace 4 Snake River dams. CREDIT: Bonneville Power Administration Listen Read A new report says renewable energy could replace… Continue Reading Study Says Plans Read More
Two surveys about breaching the Snake River dams show opposing results. Continue Reading New Survey Shows Support For Snake River Dams, In Contrast To Earlier SurveyRead More
Nez Perce Tribe install Tesla Megapack for soloar power at wastewater facility. Continue Reading Nez Perce Tribe Installs Tesla MegapackRead More
Washington Sen. Patty Murray and Gov. Jay Inslee said they'll listen to diverse viewpoints with open minds to recover salmon and potentially breach the four Lower Snake River dams. Continue Reading Murray, Inslee Detail Read More
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee says a report should come out this summer on the four controversial dams on the Lower Snake River. Continue Reading Inslee Says Lower Snake River Dams Report Should Be Ready This SummerRead More
A new poll supported by environmental groups found Washington voters West and East of the Cascades support dam removal. Continue Reading Poll Finds Many Washington Voters Support Removing Snake River DamsRead More
Federal regulators starting this spring will require dam operators to limit hot water pollution caused by the four Lower Snake River dams. Continue Reading Federal Regulators To Limit Hot Water In Snake, Columbia RiversRead More
Whoosh Innovations said its fish passage system could transport salmon quickly over the Snake River dams – and generate $60 million over 10 years by diverting water from fish ladders to hydropower turbines. Continue Reading Could A New Fish Passage Read More
Tribes across the Northwest called for immediate action to remove the four Lower Snake River dams during a two-day Salmon and Orca summit in western Washington. The group called on President Biden and congressional members to “take bold action, now.” Read More
As the mercury climbs this weekend, water temperatures are also expected to increase. Warmer waters can spell bad news for salmon, especially if the temperatures stay warm for long periods of time. Continue Reading Heat Read More
A wide-ranging proposal to save wild salmon by removing the four Lower Snake River dams may be dead in the water. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and Sen. Patty Murray say any proposal for the controversial dams needs a “science-based,” “community-driven” approach. Read More
Republicans Dan Newhouse and Cathy McMorris Rodgers have long championed dams. This is their second go at passing legislation that would reclassify hydropower as a renewable energy source. That’s important, Newhouse says, because hydropower can generate energy when wind and solar farms might be offline. Read More
This month, Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson of Idaho issued a bold plan that called for removing those same dams to save the salmon. In between those two acts were decades of litigation that show no sign of ending and $17 billion worth of improvements to the dams that did little to help fish. Read More
A $33.5 billion stimulus package would breach the four dams by 2031. Much of the funding would go toward solutions for what would be lost, including hydropower, less access to irrigation, grain transportation and economic development for Lewiston and the Tri-Cities. Read More
The campaigning is done. Now what's left is the counting. Here is how candidates in Washington’s 4th and 5th Congressional districts have talked about key environmental and natural resource issues during the campaign. Continue Read More
The fight over salmon and dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers could be headed back to the courtroom. Conservation and fishing groups say the federal government’s newest plans to manage dams and protect salmon is inadequate. Now, they’re ready to sue. Read More
The two Puget Sound-region Democrats running to be Washington’s next lieutenant governor had the chance to distinguish themselves in a statewide debate Thursday night. Washington’s election system advances the top-two vote getters from the primary to the general election. Read More
After four years of study, the Record of Decision makes the federal agencies’ preferred option official. Managers and dam supporters say it will benefit salmon, reliable hydropower and the economy. Wild salmon advocates, tribal representatives and renewable energy advocates say this decision will hurt salmon and the orcas that depend on them for food. Read More
A lot of freshly harvested wheat bound for Portland, Oregon, could stack up on the Columbia River system soon because an old guy wire has snapped on the Snake River’s Lower Monumental Dam. Continue Reading Lower Read More
Debates have dragged on for decades about whether to remove or alter the four dams. The Army Corps, Bureau of Reclamation and Bonneville Power Administration received almost 59,000 comments on the draft EIS this spring. The agencies are expected to finalize this plan by Sept. 30. Read More
Water temperatures are expected to increase as the climate warms. Rivers saw a glimpse of what the future could hold five summers ago, when low water flows and hot temperatures killed thousands of salmon. Continue Reading Read More
If you want to attend public hearings on the federal government’s plan to manage the Columbia and Snake River dams, you’ll have to do it by phone. The previously scheduled in-person meetings are now teleconferences. Continue Read More
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation and Bonneville Power Administration laid out a range of six alternatives in a draft environmental impact statement. The most controversial measure would have been to remove or alter the four Lower Snake River dams. Read More
For years, engineers with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have worked to design a hydroelectric turbine that’s safer for fish. They’ve recently installed a new design that’s improving energy efficiency and improving fish survival along the Snake River, with plans to upgrade more turbines over the next several years. Read More
More than 300 people showed up to hear speakers talk about why it’s important to either keep or alter the dams. The panel stems from a Washington state study that will guide the state’s position on dam removal. Continue Read More
Upcoming public workshops will examine a draft report that gauges how people in Washington want to deal with the fate of the dams. At the workshops, officials will present the report’s findings, followed by a panel discussion. People can submit written and online comments on the draft report through Jan. 24. Read More
The environmental group Columbia Riverkeeper has sued dam operators along the Columbia and Snake rivers. They hope to reduce oil spills, require operators to monitor how much oil is leaking into the water and ask dam managers to look into using eco-friendly oil. Read More
Washington's Snake River dams are important to wheat farmers.The state's wheat crop brings $700 million into the state's economy, more than any crop except apples. The vast majority of that wheat gets exported, most of it to Asia. Read More
Tucked into Washington’s $52.4 billion operating budget passed Sunday night by the Legislature is controversial funding for a “stakeholder group” tasked with looking into what would happen should the four Lower Snake River dams be removed or altered. Read More
What to do with the four Lower Snake River dams and how to best protect imperiled salmon have been a tough questions for decades. They were the focus at a conference on salmon Tuesday at Boise State University’s Andrus Center for Public Policy. Read More
Washington regulators want water at dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers to meet state standards. Continue Reading Federal, Washington Officials Spar Over Water Quality Regulations At DamsRead More
In an effort to help imperiled salmon, Washington officials are proposing more water be spilled at dams during fish migration. The hope is that this would also increase the amount of food for orcas in Puget Sound. Continue Reading To Read More
A new agreement aims to help more young salmon make their way past dams along the Columbia and Snake rivers. The agreement, reached this week, spells out new strategies for spilling more water over the dams — and sending less water through power-generating turbines — each spring. Read More
A federal court ruled Wednesday that the Environmental Protection Agency must come up with a plan to protect salmon from warm water temperatures. Continue Reading EPA Must Protect Northwest Salmon From Warming Waters, Judge RulesRead More
As the Northwest’s killer whales have gained worldwide attention, more calls are being made to bolster the population of salmon they eat. One big way to do that, supporters say, is by removing Lower Snake River dams. But the federal government isn’t so sure that’s the answer. Read More
In the past few days, dam advocates and people who want more wild salmon in the Columbia and Snake rivers have been putting on their best shows. At the U.S. House committee hearing on Monday, dam advocates gave the bulk of the testimony. Read More
The U.S. House passed has approved a bill that would circumvent a federal judge’s order for dams on the lower Snake River to spill more water and protect current dam operations through the next four years. It was sponsored and pushed by two Washington state Republicans. Read More
