IN THIS ISSUE

1.  DamNation debuts to rave reviews

2.  Let's do this thing! Scientist' review provides pathway to expanded spill test

3.  Protecting one of the world’s last, great salmon runs: EPA, Bristol Bay, and the Pebble Mine.

4. An Evening with David Montgomery draws big crowd, celebrates two salmon/energy champions.

5.  Salmon Mean Business

 1.  DamNation debuts to rave reviews

Since premiering at SXSW earlier this month, the new film DamNation is winning awards and inspiring audiences across the country.  The film won the audience choice award at SXSW and best advocacy documentary at the Environmental Film Festival in Washington DC where it screens March 30th. The Washington Post describes DamNation as “both exquisitely shot and powerfully told.” Patagonia and Stoecker Ecological produced the film in conjunction with Felt Soul Media.

DamNation tells the story of changing attitudes towards dams and rivers, documenting the history and impacts of our nation’s dam-building era and the new movement to remove outdated dams to restore rivers and fisheries.  Film-makers Ben Knight and Travis Rummel traveled the country visiting rivers being restored through dam removals, including the Elwha and White Salmon in Washington State and the Rogue and Sandy Rivers in Oregon.

DamNation also explores the impacts on salmon, tribal communities and the Northwest from dams built on the Columbia and Snake Rivers, targeting the aging four lower Snake River dams, whose value to the region is in steep decline while the costs to maintain them continue to grow.

The film has finally come to salmon country and Save Our Wild Salmon is excited to be partnering with Patagonia and other organizations to bring this film to towns across the Northwest. The film premiered in Boise to a standing-room-only crowd at the TreeFort Film Festival last week.  Upcoming screenings include Missoula MT on April 15, Portland OR on April 17, Spokane WA on April 23 and Moscow ID on April 30.  For information on these screenings and information on how to purchase tickets to Northwest shows - go here.  We will be updating the list of Northwest screenings as they are scheduled.  

If you are interested in bringing the film to your community in the Northwest - please contact Sam Mace.

Patagonia is a long-time supporter of restoring Columbia-Snake River salmon.  They’ve stepped up to the plate yet again, not only helping make this powerful film, but launching a call-to-action to fix the Snake River in conjunction with the film.  Patagonia has launched a "Deadbeat Dams" national campaign that includes a petition drive calling on President Obama and elected leaders to begin the feasibility studies necessary to remove the four lower Snake River dams. 

We have no doubt DamNation will inspire thousands to add their name to the petition and energize a new generation of river defenders. 

WATCH the film trailer here. 

SIGN the petition here. 

JOIN us at a screening coming to a theater near you! Our schedule is here.

READ the Washington Post's review here and Idaho River United's report on Boise's sold-out screening here.

 2.  Let’s do this thing! Science panel’s review provides pathway to expanded spill test

The bottom line: Spilling water over Columbia and Snake River dams is good for salmon. It helps young fish make the trip to the Pacific more safely, and it helps them better survive in the ocean to return a few years later as adults. As long as the dams remain in place, spill is our most effective near-term measure for improving salmon survival. We know this from nearly 20 years of data about salmon – data that has been collected and analyzed by state, federal, and tribal fishery scientists working cooperatively as part of something called the Comparative Survival Study (CSS). Last year, CSS scientists presented findings that indicated expanding spill above and beyond current court-ordered levels could allow some imperiled Columbia-Snake salmon runs to rebuild and even recover. Indeed, expanded spill could possibly double the number of fish returning to Idaho.

Because these findings are so promising, the State of Oregon proposed an experiment to put expanded spill to the test in real-world/real-river conditions. Oregon submitted its proposal last fall to the Northwest Power and Conservation Council as a recommended amendment to the Council’s updated Fish & Wildlife Program, which is currently being drafted. As part of its consideration of Oregon’s spill proposal, the Council referred the proposal to its Independent Scientific Advisory Board (ISAB) for additional review earlier this winter. On February 20, the ISAB issued its review, determining that the proposal’s hypothesis has merit and encouraging the development of a more detailed study design to move forward with a rigorous test of expanded spill.

The ISAB is inviting an iterative process that could result in a stronger study design that moves the needle on our understanding of what's possible for salmon recovery with the dams in place. This is an excellent opportunity both for expanding the region’s knowledge through adaptive management and providing near-term help to salmon that could yield significant survival gains that bring our shared recovery goals further within reach – something the ISAB recognizes we’re still a long way off from achieving under current efforts.  That’s why fishing and salmon advocates enthusiastically support a request made this month by Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association that the Council ask the CSS to utilize the ISAB’s recommendations to strengthen and resubmit an experimental spill design within 60 days. Doing so will allow CSS scientists to address the issues raised by the ISAB and move the study design forward in a manner that leads to a robust proposal that could be considered as part of the 2014 Fish and Wildlife Program process.

You can read SOS’s factsheet about the ISAB review here.

You can download and read the ISAB review here.

3.  Protecting one of the world’s last, great salmon runs: EPA takes a critical step to permanently protect Bristol Bay salmon and watershed.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently initiated a review process under the Clean Water Act to determine if large-scale mining in the renowned Bristol Bay watershed of southwest Alaska can co-exist with the area’s renewable natural resources, most importantly the waters that provide the spawning and rearing habitat for the world’s largest sockeye salmon population, as well as trophy rainbow trout, Dolly Varden, Arctic grayling and four other Pacific salmon species.

If approved, the Pebble Mine would become one of the largest copper and gold mines on the planet. It’s proponents – Pebble Mine partnership – are seeking to locate the massive open-pit operation in the headwaters of Bristol Bay in southwest Alaska - home to one of the world’s last great remaining salmon runs.

A broad coalition of Native communities, commercial and recreational fishermen, conservationists, and businesses have opposed siting the massive mine in the heart of a pristine ecosystem that supports a naturally sustainable resource and thousands of jobs and produces a healthy delicious food that feeds hundreds of thousands of people.

The EPA's involvement in Bristol Bay and the Pebble Mine started in 2010 when, at the request of local tribes and stakeholder groups, it initiated a comprehensive study of the potential effects of large-scale mining on the watershed. That process took three years. After gathering data, numerous public meetings, more than a million online comments, and two rounds of scientific peer review, the final draft of the Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment was released last January.

While the EPA’s Clean Water Act review is just getting started, many close to this issue see the move as a nail in the coffin for the massive mine. It is a rare use of the EPA's authority to restrict or outright prohibit any discharge of dredge or fill that might have "unacceptable adverse effects" on water supplies, wildlife, fisheries, or recreational areas. Such a process has been initiated just 29 times previously, and it has run to completion and resulted in restrictions just 13 times.

While the fight is far from over, this move by the EPA is a critical step toward a decision that says we hope eventually says “NO!” to a massive mine and “YES!” to protecting wild salmon, a pristine ecosystem, and a sustainable economy and delicious source of protein.

Links to further information:

Pictures: Photographer Who Shot Bristol Bay Celebrates Halt of Pebble Mine

EPA takes step toward restricting Pebble Mine project on Alaska’s Bristol Bay

4.  An Evening with David Montgomery draws standing room only crowd, celebrates two deserving wild salmon and clean energy champions.

More than 130 guests gathered recently at the University of Washington’s Burke Museum for an evening of excellent food, a wonderful speaker, and to celebrate two long-time SOS leaders – NW Energy Coalition executive director Sara Patton and Sierra Club’s NW Regional Director Bill Arthur.

The evening coincided with the Burke Museum’s beautiful and moving Elwha: A River Reborn exhibit. Inspired by the 2013 book by the same name, the exhibit tells a story of restoration for a river, its salmon, and its people – the K’lallam Tribe.

Delicious food was prepared by Kevin Davis and Anthony Polizzi of blueacre seafood and Steelhead Diner, with foods donated by Charlie’s Produce, Seafood Producers Cooperative, Coastal Trollers Association. Taylor Shellfish served fresh oysters. Beer and wine was donated by Fremont Brewing Company and Waterbrook Winery. Plauche and Carr LLP also helped to underwrite this event.

University of Washington Professor, MacArthur Genius Awardee, Big Dirt Lead Guitarist, and author Dr. David R. Montgomery gave the keynote presentation. 2014 is the 10th anniversary of his book – King of Fish – The Thousand-Year Run of Salmon. Dr. Montgomery reflected on both the progress we’ve made since his book was published, and the work ahead.

Finally, SOS awarded our first-ever Mighty Chinook Awards to long-time SOS board members/leaders Sara Patton and Bill Arthur. Both Bill and Sara have been instrumental leaders in the SOS family since the early 1990s – smart, passionate, and articulate advocates for a Columbia/Snake River Basin that supports both clean and affordable energy and wild and abundant salmon and steelhead.

 IV. Salmon Mean Business!

This month and next, we’re highlighting some of the businesses that generously supported our recent event at the Burke Museum on the University of Washington campus. We are extremely grateful for their help to make our event delicious and successful.

Plauché & Carr LLP attorneys serve as advocates and counselors regarding legal and regulatory issues related to natural resource based activities. We strive for a collaborative approach in which we bring multiple representatives together to reach solutions and achieve our clients' business goals. Creativity, innovation, and depth of understanding of each client's vision provide the best avenues for helping our clients reach their objectives. At Plauché & Carr LLP, "we are passionate about the work that we do, and are only satisfied if we do it exceptionally well."

Taylor Shellfish:In the 1890s our family began farming shellfish in the Puget Sound. Five generations later, we continue to provide our customers with the best shellfish the Pacific Northwest has to offer. Through family dedication and with the assistance of committed employees, we maintain our tradition of sustainable farming through new techniques and innovative growing methods. Our family is proud to grow high quality clams, oysters, mussels, and geoducks straight from tidelands across Western Washington and British Columbia. Taste our product to experience what we have perfected over the last 100 years.

Coastal Trollers Associationworks to enhance and protect an economically viable Washington troll fishery."  The purpose of the CTA is to promote long-term sustainability of troll fisheries resources, to enhance economically viable opportunities for troll fishermen and to fairly represent its members.   As part of these efforts, CTA will be involved in season-setting processes, development of stable lucrative markets for high-quality line-caught fish, cooperation with the coastal communities and advancing predictable season-long catch opportunities for license holders.

Our "SPILL" Edition

In addition to our court victories rejecting the government's inadequate and illegal salmon plans over the last 12+ years, "SPILL" has been one of salmon and fishing advocates' most important achievements to protect the Columbia & Snake Rivers' endangered wild salmon and steelhead from extinction.

Court-ordered spill has helped stabilize many imperiled populations and "bought" much-needed time while we work together with others on effective long-term solutions to restore healthier rivers, healthier salmon, and healthier communities.

Take a look at this issue of the Wild Salmon & Steelhead News to learn about the latest science on the positive impacts of spill, and how scientists describe how higher levels of spill in the near-future could provide even greater benefits for young salmon and steelhead as they migrate to the Pacific Ocean during the spring and summer.

IN THIS ISSUE:

1.   All Scientists Are Saying Is…Give (More) Spill A Chance!

2.   THE TOP 12: SOS 'dredges up' twelve facts that raise big questions re: the fiscal and environmental sustainability of the Army Corps' "sediment management" plans on the lower Snake River.

3.   SOS and NW Energy Coalition celebrate two Northwest river restoration champions.

4.   IN THE NEWS – Salmon Collaboration, Climate Change, and Restoration.

5.   REMINDER – Raft the Middle Fork Salmon with SOS this August!

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1.  All Scientists Are Saying Is…"Give (More) Spill A Chance."

120% or 125%?

2%, 4%, or 6%?

35% or 70%?

SARs?

These numbers and acronyms are just a sample of the many facts and figures presented at the Comparative Survival Study (CSS) annual meeting held April 30 in Vancouver, WA. CSS is a collaborative scientific study, initiated in 1996 by state and Tribal fishery managers and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, to estimate Columbia Basin salmon and steelhead survival rates at different life stages. Probably our most effective near-term salmon protection measure is spill - a program that sends some water over Columbia/Snake River dams (rather than through turbines) to help more young fish reach the Pacific Ocean safely. With the dams in place, spill helps the river act just a bit more like, well, a river – which is exactly what endangered salmon and steelhead need.

Since 2006, under federal court order (as a result of a legal victory achieved by salmon and fishing advocates, the State of Oregon, and the Nez Perce Tribe), federal dam managers have been required to spill water to improve salmon survival during their spring/summer migration.

Scientists have long understood that spill helps salmon, but it turns out to be even more beneficial than we thought – not just in terms of getting ocean-bound smolts downstream in one piece, but also in terms of their survival in the ocean and eventual return to spawning gravels as adults.

At this year’s meeting, scientists presented a range of modeled scenarios that indicate more spill - up to a point - can lead to survival improvements that could move imperiled salmon and steelhead stocks from the “treading water/ at high risk of extinction” column into the “hey, now we’re getting somewhere” column.

The truest way to measure salmon survival is something called the Smolt-to-Adult Return ratio, or SAR. For example, for every 100 smolts that journey downstream, how many ultimately return as adults? Generally, a 2-4% SAR is needed for survival over the long-term, while a 4-6% SAR is required to rebuild populations. CSS modeled various levels of spill to see how each of four scenarios affected the SARs.

Underpinning these scenarios is a key balancing question: can we spill enough water to yield an SAR at or above 2% (the region’s minimum target for getting salmon numbers "back in the black"), but without spilling so much water that in-river gas levels put the fish at risk of injury? (As spill levels increase, dissolved gases do too, and at certain threshold levels, this can become problematic for salmon and steelhead.)

The CSS shows we can. According to the scientists' models, if we spill enough water to reach 125% total dissolved gas (ie, the saturation of nitrogen in the river on the dams’ downstream side), we are likely to see SARs at or above 2% more than 70% of the time. (The 125% dissolved gas level is also very safe for salmon; it is only at higher levels that fish start to show signs of impact or injury.) Even if we spill to a 120% gas cap, we’d see those sought-after SARs about 35% of the time.

Contrast both of those scenarios to the level of spill laid out in the now-illegal 2008/2010 federal salmon plan: it only hits an SAR of 2% or more 14% of the time. Our salmon, steelhead and fishing economy, and our region needs better than that; the CSS model shows that "better" is very possible.

While Bonneville Power Administration and the other federal dam managers still insist on much lower spill levels, many Northwest fishery managers appear interested in spilling more water (maybe to 120%, perhaps to 125%) to help fish – and “test the waters” to confirm that more spill at these higher levels will lead to many more salmon.

We want to see this too. With our partners, SOS has fought successfully for spill since 2005. We know that it works – and that it’s largely responsible (along with good ocean conditions) for the modest bumps in salmon returns that we’ve seen over the past few years.

The science says let's give spill a chance; now is the time for a new, expanded experimental spill program in the Columbia/Snake rivers.

SEE THE FULL REPORT on the Fish Passage Center website  - with the presentations from the 2013 CSS Annual Meeting.

2.  THE TOP 12: SOS "dredges up" twelve facts that raise big questions re: the fiscal and environmental sustainability of "sediment management" plans on the lower Snake River.

Meanwhile back on the Lower Snake River, the Army Corps of Engineers is still pushing their plan to dredge hundreds of thousands of tons of sediment, at great cost to American taxpayers, and harm to the river and its endangered salmon and steelhead.

SOS has produced The Top 12: Lower Snake River Dredging - By the Numbers to give you a flavor for Corps' deeply flawed arguments and the upside-down economics of the lower Snake River transportation waterway.

SOS is committed to working with lower Snake River businesses and communities to ensure reliable, affordable, and fiscally and environmentally sustainable transportation options. SOS supports re-directing the public funds that the Corps is currently wasting on an unsustainable lower Snake River waterway, and investing instead in the rail and road infrastructure improvements that eastern Washington growers and communities need. 

Here's a sample from the List:

#9:  $15,400 – the taxpayer subsidy per barge that ships from the Port of Lewiston at the confluence of the Snake and Clearwater Rivers on the Lower Granite Reservoir (in 2002 dollars), just to cover dredging costs as proposed in the Corps’ draft plan.

#10:  24 PERCENT – the increase in fuel efficiency when delivering wheat from eastern Washington and Idaho farms to coastal ports on rail compared to barge, measured in BTUs/ton‐mile. Barge
transportation requires 368 BTUs/ton‐mile of freight while rail requires just278.

DOWNLOAD the "Top 12 List" (PDF) here.

READ Dustin Aherin's May 5 guest opinion in Spokesman Review: It's time to assess use of shrinking tax dollars on the lower Snake River dams.

3.  SOS and NW Energy Coalition celebrate two Northwest river restoration champions

Save Our Wild Salmon was proud to co-host an event with partner organization NW Energy Coalition honoring two wild salmon and clean energy champions Shawn Cantrell and Katherine Ransel.

Shawn, now the Executive Director of Seattle Audubon, worked for Friends of the Earth in the 1990s and played a key role in gaining federal authorization to remove the Elwha's two century-old dams. Katherine was Co-Director of American Rivers in the Northwest during this same period and led the charge for dam removal in the FERC relicensing process for Condit Dam on the White Salmon.
 
On Wednesday, April 24, nearly fifty people gathered to celebrate these recent river/salmon victories, applaud two key people that helped bring them about, and watch two film shorts.

First, the award-winning The Art of Dam Removal, showed how art and artists served as key catalysts in the campaign to remove the Condit Dam and restore the White Salmon River - a tributary to the Columbia River named for its distinct white-colored salmon - in southwest Washington State.

WATCH The Art of Dam Removal here.

The second short was actually a trailer for Return of the River – a film-in-production that will tell the story of the restoration of the Elwha River on the Olympic Peninsula through removal of its two dams.
 
SEE the trailer and learn more about Return of the River here.

4.  IN THE NEWS - Collaboration, Climate Change, and Restoration

-- Will the feds ever get their dam act together? By Dan Chasan, crosscut.com

Long-time observer of the federal government’s Columbia Basin salmon recovery efforts brings people up to speed on all things salmon: recent returns, status of spill, the government’s upcoming salmon plan, and the new opportunity for a regional stakeholder collaboration.

-- A 21st century plan for saving Oregon’s species from climate change.By Bill Bradbury, guest writer for the Oregonian Oregon's Northwest Power and Conservation Council (NPCC) member Bill Bradbury highlights the mounting climate impacts on our fish and wildlife populations and the habitat they depend upon, and urges a path forward that can serve both ecology and economy.


-- The Life of the Elwha - the biography of a river - a book review by Daniel Jack Chasan in crosscut.com.

"Author Lynda Mapes' new book isn't a story about dams or salmon. It's a love story to the river itself." Mr. Chasan reviews a new book about the nation's biggest dam removal - the Elwha River on Washington State's Olympic Peninsula.

5. REMINDER: Take a wild trip in August down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River – AND help wild salmon and steelhead restoration too!

SOS is excited to partner with Idaho River Adventures in 2013 – and to invite you to join a trip this summer down the fabled Middle Fork of the Salmon River in central Idaho. The Middle Fork is one of the original eight rivers designated as Wild under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968. It winds through the heart of the Lower 48’s largest contiguous wilderness area - the Frank Church River of No Return. 

Central Idaho is the historic home of millions of wild salmon and steelhead. Today, largely as a result of downstream dams on the lower Snake, only a small number these fish return each year. SOS is working with others to remove these four dams and reconnect wild salmon and steelhead with the largest, highest, wildest, and best protected chunk of salmon and steelhead habitat remaining in the Lower 48.

For river rats everywhere, the Middle Fork is among the most treasured river trips anywhere in the United States – a holy grail!

AND - when you sign up, Idaho River Adventures owner and guide Dustin Aherin will donate $400 of the trip cost to SOS!

As always, thank you for your support!

IN THIS ISSUE

1. Ground Hog Day: Latest draft federal salmon plan repeats old mistakes, final plan due end of year

2. Columbia River Treaty: "Draft Regional Recommendation" new and improved - thanks to you!

3. Idaho judge blocks Big Oil and halts Highway 12 'megaloads'!

4. Salmon Mean Business! A big thanks to Yakima Bait, Nikwax, and Blueacre Seafood...

1. 'GROUND HOG DAY':  LATEST DRAFT FEDERAL PLAN FALLS SHORT OF MARK; FINAL DUE BY YEAR'S END.

Let’s say you’re a federal agency responsible for ensuring the protection and restoration of endangered salmon and steelhead in the Columbia Basin. And let’s also say that the plan you’re required to produce that charts how you’re going to protect and restore these endangered salmon and steelhead has been ruled illegal in federal court. Three times in a row. And finally, let’s say that the judge who tossed out your last plan (the third in a decade) gave you over two years to come back with a new and improved version – what would you do?

Perhaps you’d follow the clear direction of the court and issue a new plan that addresses the flaws and inadequacies of the previous one, implements additional measures that help struggling wild salmon populations in the near-term, and fully considers the need for safety-net actions in case the shaky math in your underlying analysis doesn’t pencil out as planned.

Or, you could do what NOAA Fisheries did on September 9, and issue a plan that is virtually indistinguishable from its illegal predecessor. The fact that NOAA did just that – released a draft plan that fully ratifies the analyses and conclusions of its last plan, while claiming that no major changes are needed – leaves us little choice but to refer, repeatedly, to the movie “Groundhog Day.” As Bill Murray’s character, Phil, inquires of his guesthouse proprietress, “Do you ever have déjà vu, Mrs. Lancaster?”

It also leads us to ask, will this plan, if finalized as-is, do enough to help salmon, as the Endangered Species Act requires? Unfortunately, we think the answer is a big giant 'no'. Not only does the draft plan hew closely to the illegal plans of the past, it would also roll back existing court-ordered protections – specifically spill, the most effective and successful near-term measure out there for increasing salmon survival. Just as the region’s fishery scientists are telling us that expanded spill could help rebuild and even recover some imperiled populations, NOAA Fisheries and its action agencies, including Bonneville Power Administration, have issued a plan that would allow for less spill - potentially curtailing it in May and eliminating it in August.

By repeating the mistakes of the previous three illegal plans, NOAA, BPA, and the other federal agencies are squandering a huge opportunity to help imperiled salmon now, provide a much-needed boost to the fishing economy, produce a legal and scientifically sound plan that gets the region out of the courtroom, and increase momentum for a regional collaboration that can develop effective, long-term shared solutions for Northwest communities, businesses, and salmon.

The good news here is the plan is still a draft; the final plan is expected in December. Save Our Wild Salmon and our coalition partners will work hard throughout the Fall to urge that the federal government strengthen and improve its salmon plan prior to releasing a final version.  

For more information on the draft federal salmon plan, check out our factsheet here.

 2. A NEW, IMPROVED "DRAFT REGIONAL RECOMMENDATION" FOR MODERNIZING COLUMBIA RIVER TREATY

Thank you, SOS supporters, for your major role in improving the regional recommendation for modernizing the Columbia River Treaty!

On September 20, Bonneville Power and the Army Corps of Engineers released a “draft regional recommendation” for modernizing the Treaty.  It is also supported by the Treaty’s Sovereign Review Team, composed of federal agencies, Northwest States, and Columbia Basin Tribes.

This regional recommendation is much improved from the previous “Working Draft” released in July. Over 1000 SOS supporters submitted comments on the "Working Draft", which was fully one-third of all grassroots comments received.  And thirteen SOS fishing and conservation organizations submitted detailed comments.  This level of public interest helped get SOS and other groups an hour to share our vision of the Treaty with the Departments of State and Interior, and with Bonneville Power and the Army Corps, on September 13 in Portland, OR.  And it generated positive change in the recently-released "Regional Recommendation."

The most important change is that the new draft recommendation unambiguously states that ecosystem function should be added to the Treaty as a third co-equal leg joining power production and flood risk management.  This is a big important step forward.

There are still some problem areas in the new recommendation, and we must still defend the positive changes that have been made.  There is a 30-day comment period on the new recommendation, and you can expect a second alert from SOS soon asking for your help again on the Treaty.  But for now, thank you! Your letters made a difference!

 3. IDAHO JUDGE BLOCKS BIG OIL AND HALTS HIGHWAY 12 MEGALOADS

An Idaho judge issued a temporary injunction halting more so-called 'megaloads" on Idaho's Highway 12 until the U.S. Forest Service consults with the Nez Perce Tribe and completes the necessary studies to assess the impacts these loads will have on the Wild & Scenic river corridor, recreation, cultural and environmental values.

Federal Judge Lynn Winmill granted the injunction noting that the Nez Perce Tribe and (SOS member organization) Idaho Rivers United were likely to prevail in court. The judge dismissed General Electric and Omega Morgan’s hardship argument that they were losing millions of dollars. Saying that the companies knew full well that shipping these massive truckloads over Nez Perce lands and along a Wild & Scenic river would be challenged by the tribe and conservation groups, Judge Winmill noted,
“The plaintiffs are not seeking damages; they are seeking to preserve their Treaty rights along with cultural and intrinsic values that have no price tag.”

This court victory has mobilized local citizens, Nez Perce tribal members and salmon advocates to ultimately stop the oil companies from turning Highway 12 into an industrial transportation corridor. Save Our Wild Salmon will continue working to prevent the the lower Snake waterway and its ports from being used to support Big Oil at the expense of salmon, rivers, and communities.

Go here for more information.

4.  SALMON MEAN BUSINESS

Save Our Wild Salmon'seffectiveness and strength derives from the diversity and depth of our allies and supporters. Here are three businesses that have been very supportive of SOS for many years. We benefit greatly from the support of many allies, including these businesses, and would like to express our thanks to them. We also encourage you to support them by giving them the - your - business!

Yakima Bait  President Mark Masterson and Brand Manager Buzz Ramsey are both giants in the recreational fishing industry and long-time supporters of the Save Our wild Salmon Coalition. Over the years, they have contributed in many ways to SOS and salmon restoration efforts in the Columbia and Snake Rivers and Pacific Northwest. They understand the tight connections between abundant, fishable populations of salmon and steelhead and healthy businesses and economies. Yakima Bait is one of the top fishing lure manufacturers in the world.

Nikwax has also been a strong supporter of healthy rivers, healthy salmon, and Save Our wild Salmon Coalition for many years. Based in Seattle, North American President Chas Fisher and Nikwax are recognized conservation leaders in the outdoor recreation sector. Nikwax is a global leader in safe, high performance waterproofing, cleaning and conditioning for outdoor gear.

Blueacre Seafood and sister restaurant Steelhead Diner are owned by Chef Kevin and Teresa Davis. They are among the finest seafood restaurants in the greater Seattle area, and both draw upon the vast array of wild seafood available from the United States’ coastal waters as well as carefully chosen, sustainably-farmed freshwater species, oysters, clams and mussels. Kevin Davis is indefatigable as chef, restaurant co-owner, parent, husband, runner, and avid steelhead fisherman. Kevin and Teresa have also been dependably wonderful conservation partners with Save Our wild Salmon – ready to help efforts that protect and restore healthy fish populations and the habitats that they need to survive and thrive.

In this issue:

(1) Army Corps Dredging Plan flushes more money down the river

(2) Commentary: This year's "record" salmon returns in the Columbia Basin

(3) The 1st Annual "Wild Rivers Night" in Seattle

(4) The Northwest DamNation Film Tour - back on the road!

(5) Columbia River Treaty: Report from D.C.

(6) Salmon Mean Business: "Thanks!" to our Wild Rivers Night Sponsors!

(1) Army Corps Dredging Plan flushes more money down the river

Last month the Army Corps of Engineers released their final proposal for dealing with the sediment piling up behind the four lower Snake River dams.  The Corps is expected to formally adopt its plan this month in hopes of getting the green light to dredge the lower Snake this winter.  

Thousands of citizens and regional conservation and fishing groups submitted comments to the Corps on its Lower Snake River Sediment Management Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), urging the agency to do as the law requires: honestly assess the significant economic costs of dredging , consider all reasonable alternatives including dam removal and justify the costs of keeping the four dams in place.  Read our comments here.

The Corps’ plan is expensive for taxpayers and harmful to salmon.  Worst of all, it merely kicks the can down the road rather than offer any real long-term plans to deal with the accumulating sediment behind the lower Snake River dams.  With the reservoir behind Lower Granite dam 50 percent full of sediment and the existing levees increasingly insufficient to protect Lewiston, ID and Clarkston, WA from flooding, the dams face serious problems requiring serious solutions, not stopgap measures.  

With sediment piling up in the millions of cubic yards, continual expensive dredging will not solve this problem while it costs taxpayers millions of dollars a year.  There are only two real solutions:  (1) the highly unpopular proposal to raise the levees protecting the river towns or (2) removal of the lower Snake River dams.  Neither solution was included in the FEIS alternatives, although the agency notes that raising levees will likely be required down the road.  

Next steps: The Corps is expected to release it’s final plan (Record of Decision) any day.  SOS and allies will review the final plan to determine if it passes legal muster.  Meanwhile, we will continue to push the Corps to assess all options and push for a more affordable and common sense plan— one that includes lower Snake River dam removal.

 (2) Commentary: This year's "record" salmon returns in the Columbia Basin

From the desk of Sam Mace.

The Northwest enjoyed a bountiful fishing season this fall with big returns of fall chinook and sockeye benefiting commercial, sport and tribal fishermen.   The season has reminded Northwest people of the value that salmon bring to our communities and economies - pumping millions of dollars into the region and reminding us of what it means to live in the Northwest.   

But while we should celebrate this year's returns, we must not forget that many wild salmon runs are still imperiled and much work remains to be done. Not all salmon populations in the Columbia and Snake rivers are faring as well.

These good runs from these past several years are the result of two main factors.  First, recent good ocean conditions and good snowpack have helped boost salmon and steelhead runs in the Columbia Basin.  The second factor - additional and longer spill at Columbia and Snake river dams, were fought for and secured in court by fishing and conservation groups, the State of Oregon and the Nez Perce Tribe.

The runs this year are the progeny of parents and grandparents that benefited from spill ordered by the court each and every year since 2006.  Better river conditions combined with help from Mother Nature (good snowpack, good ocean conditions) have given the Northwest a glimpse of what robust, sustained runs mean to our people, economies, and ecosystems.  

Despite the abundant runs of Columbia River fall chinook and sockeye this year, many imperiled runs remain at risk of extinction.  Thirteen stocks of wild salmon and steelhead are listed under the Endangered Species Act, and wild Snake River spring/summer chinook and sockeye remain especially in peril - far from the population levels needed for true recovery.

We have an enormous opportunity to build on the success of spill and the leg up that Mother Nature has recently provided. Unfortunately, NOAA, BPA, and other agencies continue to balk at maintaining and increasing the spill that has recently helped salmon runs enormously.  Rather than joining scientists in support of an expansion of spill, these agencies continue their efforts to reduce spill while insisting on spending millions of dollars on measures with very little impact.

It’s time for the federal agencies to quit patting themselves on the back for successes for which they are not responsible and instead begin building on the improved runs. Citizens and elected leaders must urge the agencies to support and increase spill at the dams, as well as look at other necessary measures - including lower Snake River dam removal - that can truly bring our salmon back to healthy, harvestable numbers throughout the basin that can support jobs, businesses and towns (and ecosystems) throughout the Northwest.

(3) The 1st Annual Wild Rivers Night in Seattle:

Save Our wild Salmon joined forces with other organizations, businesses, and more than 200 good people for a very successful 1st Annual Wild Rivers Night in Seattle. We celebrated Washington State’s rivers - featuring short films, stunning photography, compelling information, humorous stories, a silent auction, socializing, and fun. And we talked about important efforts underway today to protect and restore healthy, free-flowing, salmon and steelhead abundant rivers and streams across Washington State. Our own Joseph Bogaard spoke on behalf of restoring the lower Snake River and its endangered wild salmon and steelhead. Other speaker-experts included SOS members: Tom O’Keefe (American Whitewater), Wendy McDermott (American Rivers), Tom Uniak (Washington Wild), and Graham Taylor (Sierra Club).

Participating rafting businesses included: Wildwater River Guides and Northwest Rafting Company.

Thanks to all you joined us and those helped make it happen – especially Wendy McDermott of American Rivers and Amy Terai of Filson!

The evening was skillfully emceed by Professor David Montgomery, UW Professor of Earth and Space Sciences and MacArthur Foundation Genius. Professor Montgomery is the renowned author of eight books, including King of Fish, and winner of the Washington State Book Award.

Special thanks to Filson for hosting all of us in their wonderful new facility; to blueacre seafood for the delicious food; to Troon Vineyards and Waterbrook Wines and Sierra Nevada Brewing for the excellent libations.

 (4) DamNation – SOS' Northwest Tour continues:

With the arrival of fall, the SOS is re-starting cour Northwest tour hosting DamNation screenings in Washington, Idaho, and Oregon with our conservation, fishing and business partners. Go here to view an updated schedule for upcoming Northwest screenings.
And if you are not in the Northwest, don’t despair. DamNation is screening across the country and you can check out the schedule here.

Finally, if still you can’t find a location to view it on the big screen (best on the big screen!), you can rent it online here.

Recent praise for DamNation:

"A quick, smart doc on the natural havoc dams cause."
-    The Village Voice (Read the full story here) "DamNation is a movie that matters...With a blend of history, face-melting nature cinematography, and a dash of Edward Abbey–style criminal mischief, DamNation lays bare this truth in a way that is educational, entertaining, and, perhaps most importantly, inspirational."
 - The Santa Barbara Independent (Read the full story here)

(5) Columbia River Treaty - Report from D.C.

In case you missed the September report on our trip to Washington D.C. to meet with Administration officials and members of Congress, you can find it here.

And here are two excellent articles from High Country News and Al Jazeera highlighting recent Treaty developments and activities by Columbia Basin Tribes and First Nation's, faith communities, and conservation and fishing advocates to highlight critical issues of ecosystem health, justice, and climate.

High Country News: Watershed Moment - The U.S. and Canada prepare to renegotiate the Columbia River Treaty (Oct. 6 2014)

Al Jazeera America: Salmon people pray for sacred fish to return to historic home (Oct. 5 2014)

 (6) Salmon Mean Business:

We want to give another shout-out to the generous businesses that helped make our inaugural Seattle Wild Rivers Night such a huge success. Please consider thanking these businesses for their support of wild rivers and wild salmon by giving them your business.

Filson has been making outstanding functional and attractive outdoor and work clothes since 1897. And virtually all of their clothing is made by hand right here in the U.S.A. Filson also has a long tradition of actively supporting efforts to conserve and restore our rivers, lands, and fish and wildlife.

Blueacre seafood: Located in downtown Seattle Kevin and Terresa Davis serve delicious food in a beautiful restaurant; they are committed to serving sustainably-sourced fish. Kevin and his team have been hugely supportive of Save Our wild Salmon and many other river and fish conservation organizations and efforts in the Northwest and beyond.

Waterbrook Wines:  Founded in 1984 as Walla Walla's fourth founded winery, Waterbrook is known for fruit-forward, food-friendly wines--primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Chardonnay. They’ve recently offered very generous support for SOS and our events.

Troon Vineyards:  Troon started as a pioneering vineyard in southern Oregon in 1972, and they’ve been making delicious wines ever since.

Sierra Nevada Brewing:  Sierra Nevada makes excellent beer, has supported hundreds of organizations and events working for healthy rivers and lands and abundant wild salmon and steelhead, and is a committed to always improving their sustainable business model by using, for example, clean, renewable energy and a constant search to find new ways to reduce waste.

Every June we are reminded of the famed “June hogs” – giant chinook salmon that once migrated back through the Columbia Basin at about this time of the year.  We will likely never see those runs again, but there’s still plenty of recovery to be had in one of our planet’s best salmon watersheds. In this edition: 1. Salmon and steelhead are under attack from Doc Hastings. 2. WE DID IT! - thank you for helping us reach our goal. 3. Maine's Great Works and the Columbia-Snake Opportunity. 4. VICTORY: Highway to Hell defeated. 1. Salmon and steelhead are under attack from Doc Hastings. Congressman Doc Hastings is continuing his attacks on wild salmon and the jobs and communities that depend on them. In his latest volley, Hastings is calling for a “rewrite” of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to weaken protections and citizen overview of government actions to protect endangered species. Thank you for taking action: please forward this link to your friends and family or share it on Facebook: http://sows.convio.net/murray_cantwell

“When it comes to wild salmon, protecting and implementing the Endangered Species Act is about more than saving fish; it's about saving jobs and livelihoods in our communities as well. Literally thousands of businesses and tens of thousands of jobs are supported by salmon and steelhead in the West,” said Jeff Hickman, owner of Fish the Swing Guiding Service from Eagle Creek, Oregon. Hickman joined 20 other Northwest business leaders in sending a letter to Congressman Hastings last December in support of the ESA, jobs, and salmon. 

2. WE DID IT! – Thank you for helping us reach our goal.

All of us at the Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition express our deepest gratitude to our supporters, partners and allies across the country for helping us reach our 20th anniversary fundraising goal of $50,000.  Thanks to your efforts we exceeded our goal, coming in just under $56,000. In addition to all of our individual donors, this success would not have been possible without the support of the following coalition partners and business allies: American Rivers – Association of Northwest Steelheaders – Boulder-White Clouds Council – Earthjustice – Granite Gear – Idaho River Adventures – Idaho Rivers United – Idaho Salmon and Steelhead United – Institute for Fisheries Resources – ioby – Jensen's Smokehouse – KEEN – Klean Kanteen – The Lands Council – Light & Motion – Mountain Khakis – Northwest Guides and Anglers Association – NW Energy Coalition – Osprey Packs – Patagonia – Petzl – Saviah Cellars – Sierra Club – Tactics – Trout Unlimited – Washington Trollers Association Grand Prize Raffle Winners! - Congratulations to the follow SOS supporters: Beth Milliken from Saint Helena, CA – Beth won a Granite Gear - Nimbus Trace 62L multi-day backpack and a Petzl - Tikka 2 plus headlamp Michael Rossotto from Seattle, WA – Michael won 2 lbs. of wild-caught smoked salmon from Jensen's Smokehouse and a magnum of Big Sky Cuvee from Walla Walla, WA vinters at Saviah. Craig Mankowski from Naperville, IL – Craig won an Osprey Packs - Momentum 26 bike commuter pack and Light & Motion - Urban 180 bike light. Thank you again for your generosity and support as we celebrate our 20th year uniting people for salmon, rivers, and jobs.


3. Maine's Great Works and the Columbia-Snake Opportunity

This month, we have another region of the country helping set the bar for solutions to protect salmon, restore rivers, and create jobs: New England’s Penobscot River Watershed. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar called the Penobscot River Restoration Project a “milestone”, stating, “Through a historic partnership that exemplifies President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors initiative, we are reconnecting 1,000 miles of river, restoring vital habitat for fish and wildlife, expanding opportunities for outdoor recreation, and supporting energy production, jobs and economic growth in communities throughout Maine.” Read more on the SOS Blog.

4. VICTORY: Highway to Hell defeated.

From the desk of Pat Ford The threat from Exxon to the lower Snake River and Idaho/Montana Highway 12 is over, at least for now. Last week, Imperial Oil, owned by Exxon, withdrew its application to the Montana Department of Transportation to transport massive tar sands machinery through Montana on Highway 12 and other roads. Read more about this victory on the SOS Blog.

The Save Our wild Salmon Coalition’s mostly-monthly online newsletter with news, updates and developments affecting Columbia and Snake River wild salmon and steelhead, and the communities that rely on them.

IN THIS ISSUE:

On Feb. 4, Congressman Doc Hastings (R-WA) fired off a letter to the Obama Administration’s NOAA Chief Dr. Jane Lubchenco asking her to stop the salmon stakeholder process that her agency just got started. He stated his intent to bring pressure on the agency via a review of NOAA's efforts by the House Natural Resources Committee, which he chairs.

Fortunately, Congressman Hastings is increasingly on his own today. Many regional leaders - including Oregon's Gov. Kitzhaber, the U.S. senators from Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, and a number of U.S. House members - support an authentic stakeholder collaboration to resolve the tough issues that communities face in the Columbia-Snake River Basin. The Northwest’s three major newspapers - Seattle Times, Idaho Statesman, and Oregonian - have all editorialized in favor of solutions-oriented stakeholder talks.

TAKE ACTION: Please ask the Northwest’s newest Governor – Jay Inslee - to publicly support regional stakeholder collaboration as the right way forward for NW salmon and communities. Given Congressman Hastings' recent volley against NOAA's process, it is critical that the region’s newest governor join other Northwest leaders and publicly support this new stakeholder-driven approach to resolve the linked issues of salmon, clean energy, agriculture, and transportation in the Columbia Basin. While NOAA's stakeholder initiative is still in its infancy, Governor Inslee's early support is vital to ensuring that this new process has its best chance at success.

2. What Future for the Lower Snake River Waterway?

Late last year, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) – a document that purports to analyze the future of the lower Snake River waterway and its continued use as a barge transportation corridor. In its DEIS, the Army Corps focuses on sediment management – aka, dredging – as its best option for maintaining the waterborne transportation system. Save Our wild Salmon, in cooperation with the Nez Perce Tribe and a number of local organizations and leaders, is now carefully reviewing the DEIS. In mid-January, we successfully asked the Army Corps for an extension of comment time. The new comment deadline is now March 26 – giving the public an additional 45 days to review and weigh in on the DEIS.

The creation of a barge transportation corridor was the main argument for building the four lower Snake River dams in the 1960s and ‘70s. Today, it remains a main argument for keeping them. But the system’s costs are growing – including the need for regular, harmful dredging operations and a worsening flood risk for the people and businesses of downtown Lewiston, ID. To be sure, farmers and other local businesses need a reliable, affordable transportation system to deliver their products to market, but the question of whether ‘barges are best’ deserves far more scrutiny – certainly more than the Army Corps provides in its DEIS (which is approximately none). Working with local community members, SOS wants to make sure that this EIS process provides for a broader discussion of the barge system’s true costs and benefits, its impacts on salmon and steelhead recovery, and how it fits into a larger set of regional transportation needs.

Visit our website to learn more about the Sediment DEIS and some initial thoughts about the barge system’s economics from Lin Laughey, co-founder of Fighting Goliath, the voice of the people of Highway 12 in central Idaho who joined forces to stop ExxonMobil from turning their functional, historic, and beautiful local road into an industrial corridor and sacrifice zone for tar sands development. The people of Highway 12 have won so far, but the Port of Lewiston has not stopped its quest to attract Big Oil/Gas/Coal traffic to help rescue the lower Snake’s navigation corridor from its decade-long decline.

Winter is when Northwest fisheries scientists pour over last year’s data in order to make predictions about the coming salmon and steelhead return. The Columbia and Snake River adult upriver migration won’t officially begin until April, finishing in early fall. Until then, of course, we won’t really know how the fish fare. This annual prediction ritual, however, is essential for setting up expectations and establishing fishing levels and seasons (targeting hatchery fish).

Based on reports so far, this year’s forecast unfortunately contains more bad news than good: Most stocks, including the thirteen Endangered Species Act-listed runs, are expected to return at levels lower than last year. 


In a specific example, the official forecast for this year’s wild spring/summer chinook return suggest that just 11,000 adults will likely survive to reach Idaho after passing eight dams on the Columbia and lower Snake Rivers. By comparison, last year’s wild run was 21,000; 2011 was 22,000; and 2010 was 26,000. Even if you ignore the recent downward trend, these are very small numbers compared with the two million salmon that returned to Idaho historically, and are a long, long ways from the ‘80,000 wild chinook returning for eight consecutive years’ that are estimated to be needed to remove the species from listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

The main exception to the anticipated lower returns in 2013 comes from the upriver brights, or Fall chinook. Over 400,000 Fall chinook are expected this year. The vast majority of these fish will stick to the Columbia River mainstem – and more specifically the 51-mile free-flowing Hanford Reach in south-central Washington State. Just 31,000 of these anticipated fish are bound for the Snake River.

We’ll keep you posted as this information is updated and, of course, as the fish actually start showing up in early April.

Two Washington State filmmakers - John Gussman and Jessica Plumb - are busy at work to complete a film celebrating the restoration of a healthy, free-flowing, salmon-abundant Elwha River on the Olympic Peninsula in western Washington State. As you may recall, after a decades-long campaign on the part of a coalition that includes the Klallam Tribe, conservation and fishing advocates, and local communities, the federal government in 2011 began removal of two 100-year old dams from a river whose headwaters lay deep in the heart of Olympic National Park. It is the largest dam removal project – so far! – on the planet.

Visit their website and enjoy a 5 minute trailer to give you a little taste of the watershed, the river, and film – all currently works in progress. Enjoy – and we’ll keep you posted when the movie is released.

As always, thank you for your support for wild salmon, healthy rivers, and the communities that rely on them!

Joseph and the SOS Team

206-300-1003

Our End-of-2012 Holiday Issue: The Obama Administration Kicks Off a New Approach

Our final issue of the year focuses on just one recent major campaign achievement …but we’ll also take the opportunity to remind you about our end-of-the-year fundraising effort.

FIRST, THE NEWS: The Obama Administration just took a critical first step to engage stakeholders directly affected by long-standing, contentious (and failed!) efforts to protect and restore Columbia Basin salmon and steelhead. After twenty years of illegal federal plans, declining wild salmon populations, and struggling fishing communities, salmon and fishing advocates view this outreach to stakeholders as a very promising move by the administration.

The Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition and our allies and partners have long advocated for a ‘stakeholder table’ that brings people together to develop a long-term plan to rebuild endangered salmon and steelhead populations and the communities that rely on them. This is a first step toward initiating such a regional dialogue.

On December 11, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reached out to 150 Columbia Basin stakeholders to invite them to provide their views about “how to best approach long-term salmon and steelhead recovery in the Columbia Basin.”

This is the first time that the federal government has sought to directly engage Northwest stakeholders – including farmers, fishermen and fishing businesses, utilities, power producers, energy consumers, conservationists, and others – in a dialogue about solutions for Columbia/Snake salmon and Northwest communities.

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THIS IMPORTANT ACHIEVEMENT BELONGS TO YOU, and to all of us. Our coalition of citizens, fishermen, scientists, businesses, organizations, and elected officials - alongside the State of Oregon and Nez Perce Tribe - have made the case for constructive dialogue and shared solutions.

ALL OF US AT SOS ARE SO GRATEFUL for your commitment to our diverse partnership for wild salmon, healthy rivers, and healthy communities. We have a lot of work to do, but we have helped secure a genuine venue to seek long-term solutions for salmon and people on the Columbia-Snake.  Thank you.

-- Pat Ford, executive director

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Thanks to you, the public and political support for stakeholder talks is strong and growing, and NOAA’s new initiative is helping to start the conversation. We need to move beyond the gridlock, the uncertainty, and the salmon losses and take a new approach. By bringing together all affected interests to work together on shared solutions, we’ll have the best chance to develop a plan that restores healthy salmon, invests in communities and businesses, and has support across the Northwest because it broadly benefits its people and communities.

In the meantime, we’ll continue to work toward ensuring that - after NOAA gathers input from Northwest people in the first half of 2013 – a solutions-focused stakeholder process is convened in the second half.

These talks are needed – and soon. Endangered salmon and steelhead populations can’t wait, and neither can the communities and businesses that depend on them. Two decades of uncertainty and declines have come with a cost.

In order to succeed, talks must include all affected interests and consider all credible measures and options – including the removal of the four lower Snake River dams. Talks need to be transparent and guided by good science, good economics, and the law.

Listed below you will find a number of links to articles, op-eds, and editorials – expressing support for convening talks and reporting on the Obama Administration’s new efforts to engage stakeholders.

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But...before you click through to review the recent press coverage...please consider making an end of year, 100% tax-deductible, salmon-sustaining holiday donation to Save Our wild Salmon. We are hosting a terrific raffle and we have some great gifts in appreciation of your generosity.

Right now, we are half way to matching Patagonia’s generous $10,000 Holiday Challenge Grant. By contributing now, you'll help us double our money before the end of the year.

This new approach by the Administration represents a tremendous opportunity for wild salmon, clean energy, and communities. But we still have lots of work ahead of us in 2013. Your support is both critical and appreciated. THANK YOU!

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Now…to the press coverage!

PNS RADIO(December 13): A New Approach for Saving Northwest salmon

Oregonian (Oregon, December 12):  NOAA fisheries takes first step toward building consensus on Columbia Basin salmon recovery

Seattle Post Intelligencer (Washington State, December 12):  Feds: New move to break Columbia River salmon impasse 

Idaho Statesman Editorial (Idaho, December 5): Our View: The $9,000 Sockeye? There is a Better Answer

Op-ed in the Columbian (Washington State, December 2):  Time for new approach to save salmon

Daily Astorian Editorial (Oregon, November 13):  Salmon Recovery Waits on Obama

As always, thank you for your support!

Joseph and the SOS Team

This is the start of a very important month for the endangered wild salmon and steelhead of the Columbia and Snake Rivers, and the communities that rely on them. On September 15th, the Obama Administration will report to Federal Judge James Redden on their next moves for complying with the Endangered Species Act, and protecting and restoring Northwest wild salmon and steelhead. This issue of WSSN is part-call-to-action and part-update: A) CALL TO ACTION – Please contact Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke

(1) The new Administration could submit the 2008 Plan to the court with revisions in an attempt to satisfy the judge.Salmon and fishing advocates are highly skeptical that such a move would succeed. The judge, in his mid-May letter, identified a number of substantial improvements that would be needed in order for him to find the plan lawful under the Endangered Species Act, including a look at lower Snake River dam removal. The deficiencies of the current plan are so profound that a major overhaul would be needed. Modest tweaks will be inadequate. (2)  Time for a Collaborative Stakeholder Process? The Administration could, in recognition of the plan’s severe inadequacies, decide instead to change course and undertake an approach that many – including newspaper editorial boards, three former governors, a growing number of senators and representatives in Congress, businesses and organizations - are calling for. The Administration should convene an inclusive, settlement process (involving e.g. fishermen, farmers, utilities and energy consumers, tribes, states) to work together to craft a legal, science-guided salmon plan that both restores endangered salmon and steelhead and ensures that local, affected communities benefit at the same time.

Counsel to the President and his Administration keeps pouring in:
Just in the past several weeks, for example, President Obama and his salmon team have received lots of advice about what to do with the failed 2008 Plan that they inherited. Here are a series of links to review some this advice: