Join Save Our wild Salmon Coalition—and other salmon, orca, and clean energy advocates—for the United States government’s virtual listening session on the lower Snake River dams and endangered salmon populations on Friday, March 31, from 10:00am to 1:00pm PT.
Sign up today to attend at this session. Register using this link HERE and include "Stop Salmon Extinction" as your affiliation and show where you stand!
We need your help to demonstrate strong public support to stop salmon extinction by removing the lower Snake River dams and investing in the replacement of the services they currently provide.
This listening session will be hosted by the United States Government and will include statements and testimony from a diverse set of interested parties and stakeholders around the long-running National Wildlife Federation v. National Marine Fisheries Service litigation.
Thank you in advance for taking the time to register! Once you have registered for the listening session, please fill out this form to let SOS know you are attending. We will follow up with further guidance on how to participate effectively in this session. This is a critical moment in the Stop Salmon Extinction campaign and an opportunity to influence the federal government’s actions to move us closer to recovering endangered salmon populations.
We must hold the Biden Administration accountable to developing, funding, and implementing a comprehensive strategy that recovers endangered salmon and orca populations, upholds their legal obligations to Northwest Tribes, removes the four lower Snake River dams, and invests in clean energy and transportation alternatives.
How to register for the Federal Snake River listening session:
- Register RIGHT NOW using this link: bit.ly/3YLFSmx
- For attendees, who are not affiliated with an NGO or group, please put “Stop Salmon Extinction” for the following question 'What is the name of the organization you are representing, if any?'
Thank you for your consideration and ongoing advocacy for salmon.
Questions? Please reach out to Marc Sullivan, sullivanmarc@hotmail.com
Background on the Listening Session:
Here’s some additional background and context on the Biden Administration and the upcoming Listening Session: Since early 2021, the Biden Administration has been actively engaged with Tribes, stakeholders and policymakers to better understand the needs of endangered fish and Northwest communities in order to help develop and advance lawful, science-based solutions that can move everyone forward together.
In October 2021, the Administration reached a landmark agreement with salmon and fishing advocates – the Nez Perce Tribe, the State of Oregon, and Earthjustice representing fishing and conservation groups - who are challenging a grossly inadequate Trump-era salmon plan in federal court.
This historic agreement paused two decades of continuous litigation to allow for confidential settlement talks – and an opportunity to finally develop an effective, durable, long-term plan to protect and recover imperiled Snake River fish. This initial agreement was then extended last summer for another 12 months - through August 31, 2023. Given that the mediated discussions over the past 18 months have been confidential, the Administration’s 3/31 Listening Session will provide an opportunity for people like you to speak directly to the Administration on behalf of salmon, orca, climate and communities – and the urgent need to act to remove the dams and replace their services as quickly as possible.
As part of last summer's agreement to extend the litigation pause and continue talks, the Biden Administration made a series of commitments to support the “development of a durable long-term strategy to restore salmon and other native fish populations to healthy and abundant levels, honor Federal commitments to Tribal Nations, deliver affordable and reliable clean power, and meet the many resilience needs of stakeholders across the region.”
Many of these commitments came with specific deadlines. The first, for example, was to finalize by Sept. 30 the scientific analysis “Rebuilding Interior Columbia Basin Salmon and Steelhead.” This report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) concluded – consistent with scores of previous scientific reports - that the restoration of a free-flowing lower Snake River, via dam breaching, is “essential” for salmonid recovery.
Despite this important follow-through, advocates are still waiting for the Administration to act on some of its other promises to, for example, produce by Dec. 1, 2022:
(1)“a schedule of Administration actions and critical milestones to meet the Administration’s principles and commitments described herein;” and
(2) “…to identify those short-term funding, operational, and other actions that can be implemented in 2023 based on actual and projected funding available from sources across the federal Departments and Agencies.”
Unfortunately, the Administration’s good words have not always been matched by equally good deeds – and the 3/31 Listening Session provides you and others an opportunity to remind top-level Administration officials of the extinction crisis Snake River salmon face today, and the urgent need for bold action to protect and recover salmon and the orcas and other fish and wildlife that depend upon them.
The forward-leaning leadership for salmon and orca recovery, justice for Northwest Tribes and investment in a prosperous and sustainable Northwest by the Biden Administration and top regional elected officials represents a truly historic opportunity. But the forward lean must become urgent movement and action if we’re not to waste this opportunity.
