Some Dam Good News

It promises to aid the restoration of one of the most historically significant salmon runs in the lower 48 states. It is described as the largest dam decommissioning initiative in the world, and when it is completed in about a decade, the Klamath River will have 300 miles of unencumbered flow returned to it.

As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, an agreement has been reached that will result in the removal of four dams from the Klamath. The agreement, forged through the cooperation of stakeholders that include American Indian tribes, agricultural and ranching interests, sportsmen and the utility around whose hydroelectrical infrastructure the breakthrough pivots, will lead to one of the largest habitat restoration projects ever launched.

The dams now slated to come down went into place beginning a century ago, preventing the salmon from accessing a 300-mile run of spawning habitat. As dam-impounded water got much warmer, the increased temperatures fostered the explosive growth in population of harmful algae and parasites.

The one-two punch of cutting off prime breeding grounds on top of the biochemical change have spelled out hard times for the salmon.

Stakeholders and interested onlookers alike are hopeful that the arrangement comes just in time. Recent news reports regarding salmon populations in the Klamath have been very discouraging, but a proposed return to natural flow conditions in this part of the Klamath is being hailed as good news for both fish and people.

Photo courtesy of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, via Wikimedia Commons