By Richard C. Harrington | Jan. 20, 2026 | The River Rambler WaterWatch Southern Oregon program director Jim McCarthy returned to The River Rambler podcast with Jake Crawford of The Steamboaters to give an update on the North Umpqua River and the WaterWatch-led campaign to remove Winchester Dam, and spoke about the cost of owning […]
The River Rambler Episode 158 – Winchester Dam, Part Three Read More »
Sept. 14, 2024 WaterWatch was thrilled to present angler, musician, and Mountaineers Books author Steve Duda for two of his recent Oregon appearances to promote his book River Songs: Moments of Wild Wonder in Fly Fishing in a special evening at Powell’s Books in Beaverton on Aug. 22nd, and Roundabout Books in Bend on
Thank You to Everyone Who Joined Us for Our Events with Author Steve Duda Read More »
Hosted by Mike Green | Sept. 11, 2024 | Jefferson Public Radio Jim McCarthy, Southern Oregon program director at WaterWatch of Oregon, joined the Jefferson Exchange to discuss the controversy over incomplete repairs of the 134-year-old Winchester Dam on the North Umpqua River in Douglas County, and the growing movement to remove it altogether. Listen
Jim McCarthy on Campaign to Remove Winchester Dam on JPR’s Jefferson Exchange Read More »
By the Jefferson Exchange Team | July 10, 2024 | Jefferson Public Radio By one person’s description, Evans Creek went from “a hot bathtub to a flowing stream.” The key was the removal of a dam, more than a century old, 100 feet long, and six feet high. Evans Creek is a Rogue River tributary
Jefferson Exchange: Dam Removals Continue on Rogue River Tributaries Read More »
By Richard C. Harrington | May 21, 2024 | The River Rambler WaterWatch Southern Oregon program director Jim McCarthy made another appearance on The River Rambler podcast, again with Kirk Blaine of the Native Fish Society and Steamboaters, to discuss the ongoing WaterWatch-led campaign to remove Winchester Dam from the North Umpqua River. Jim and
The River Rambler Episode 122 – Winchester Dam, Part Two Read More »
By Nathan Wilk | Nov. 3, 2023 | KLCC Radio A proposal for a new dam in rural Marion County has drawn criticism from wildlife advocates. On Wednesday, a state court ruled against it. The East River Water District has been trying to build a reservoir at Drift Creek for a decade. They say it
Court Rules Against a Proposed Dam in Marion County Read More »
Sept. 27, 2023 As always, we had a wonderful time seeing so many long-time friends and WaterWatch supporters last Saturday at the World Forestry Center as we auctioned off dozens of one-of-a-kind donor packages at our 21st Annual Celebration of Oregon Rivers. Because of your generosity and support we have an even stronger hand heading
Our 2023 Celebration of Oregon Rivers Auction Event Was Everything We Hoped For Read More »
By Richard C. Harrington | Aug. 22, 2023 | The River Rambler WaterWatch Southern Oregon program director Jim McCarthy made an appearance on The River Rambler podcast with Kirk Blaine of the Native Fish Society to give an update on the ongoing emergency on the North Umpqua River and at Winchester Dam as the dam’s
The River Rambler Episode 103 – Winchester Dam, Part One Read More »
https://www.theradicalsongbook.com/fishing-with-jeffhttps://youtu.be/U4mfSflSVGo
Craig Harper of the Rogue Valley Council of Governments explains why the water diversion dam was removed in July 2008 from the Rogue River. https://youtu.be/U4mfSflSVGo
The story of removing the Gold Ray Dam on the Rogue River. https://vimeo.com/135799225
A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers video shows an explosion Tuesday, July 15, 2008, that begins demolition of Elk Creek Dam in Southern Oregon. The Pulitzer Prize winning Mail Tribune is one of the oldest and most trusted newspaper organizations in Oregon. Based in Medford, OR, we cover Southern Oregon’s breaking news, local news, sports,
The Savage Rapids Dam built by the Grants Pass irrigation District in 1921 was designed to deliver Rogue River water to the fields of local farmers; It did not offer water retention, electrical creation, or flood control. Because the age of the dam was leading to costly replacement issues and its disruption of adult and
WaterWatch of Oregon began a campaign 20 years ago to improve fish passage on the Rogue River in Southwest Oregon. Through WaterWatch’s efforts four dams have been removed: Savage Rapids Dam, Gold Hill Dam, Gold Ray Dam, and Elk Creek Dam. https://youtu.be/VLOUgDoD6ek
Three mainstem dams were removed on the Rogue River between 2008-2010 and this is a flyover of each site in 2017. https://vimeo.com/222089256
Removal of the Wimer Dam on Evans Creek, Oregon to enhance fish passage and river connectivity. Spearheaded by WaterWatch and Geos Institute in cooperation with the landowner. Engineering by River Design Group and dam removed by Staton Companies. https://vimeo.com/135754205
A brief video from WaterWatch’s 2020 Celebration of Oregon Rivers about why WaterWatch’s mission and work is so important, especially in a climate-changed Oregon. https://youtu.be/sA4hAwV2qQA
WaterWatch’s Mission: Protecting and Restoring Oregon’s Rivers Read More »
WaterWatch captured this video of migrating salmon jumping repeatedly at false attraction flows gushing through the poorly maintained face of Winchester Dam. There are many such holes through the dam’s face and under its foundation. The delayed fish in this video risk injury and death when falling back on areas of eroded concrete, exposed rebar,
Several of WaterWatch’s program staff discuss what drives them in their work in this video that premiered at the 2020 WaterWatch Celebration of Oregon Rivers. https://youtu.be/Cx65RGUav_Y
The special appeal from WaterWatch’s 2020 Celebration of Oregon Rivers! https://youtu.be/lMzFZHiBjAs
Watch a video of WaterWatch’s 2021 Annual Celebration of Oregon Rivers Auction video, “Free Flowing Rivers Program” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hN79QbKrj4c
Watch an interview featuring WaterWatch Southern Oregon Program Director, Jim McCarthy. Jim McCarthy featured in The Conservation Alliance’s Rogue River video on dam removals https://vimeo.com/383363908
Jim McCarthy featured in The Conservation Alliance’s Rogue River video on dam removals Read More »
Listen to an interview featuring WaterWatch Executive Director, John DeVoe. X-Ray FM Non-Profit Happy Hour. https://soundcloud.com/the-non-profit-hour/nphh-s7e10-waterwatch-of-oregon
John DeVoe on X-Ray Radio’s Non-Profit Happy Hour Read More »
Watch an interview featuring WaterWatch Executive Director, John DeVoe “Google Threatens Water Supply of Drought-Stricken Town” 11.6.21 Google is racing to win approval for two massive new data centers—which use millions of gallons of water—in a small, drought-stricken farming town in Oregon. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRTHDERxANA
John DeVoe speaks on the water impacts of proposed Google data center in the Dalles Read More »
An OPB Audio Story Featuring WaterWatch Southern Oregon Program Director Jim McCarthy. “Klamath Basin drought: Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex” 7.13.21 https://www.opb.org/article/2021/07/13/klamath-basin-drought-klamath-basin-national-wildlife-refuge-complex/?fbclid=IwAR1bBFzbxDUOpMJbcgwiEQEkg7g_vilEQfVYu9rTJdRSlst-cuTPjFn7tC4
An NPR Audio Story Featuring WaterWatch Staff Attorney Lisa Brown. “Encore: A vital lake in Oregon, around for eons, could run dry within a generation” 4.11.22 https://www.npr.org/2022/04/11/1092117495/encore-a-vital-lake-in-oregon-around-for-eons-could-run-dry-within-a-generation
A recording of WaterWatch of Oregon’s Summer Webinar #4 on August 19th, 2020. Join us to learn from a true master of fly fishing. Dave Hughes will present ten practical tips on how to pursue, think like and catch more trout. Dave’s presentation will include great stories highlighting incidents where applying one of these ten
Recording of Summer Webinar Series #4: Dave Hughes, master fly fisherman Read More »
A recording of WaterWatch of Oregon’s Summer Webinar #3 on August 12th, 2020. Description: Not long ago, dam removal was perceived as an unrealistic and radical alternative in the river restoration and conservation movement. But within roughly the past two decades, hundreds of removals have happened, with many taking place here in the Pacific Northwest.
Recording of Summer Webinar Series #3: Dr. Peter Brewitt, author of “Same River Twice” Read More »
A recording of WaterWatch of Oregon’s Summer Webinar #2 on August 5th, 2020. Description: In this webinar, photographer Peter Marbach shares images, stories, and excerpts from essays from his recent book, “Healing The Big River – Salmon Dreams and the Columbia River Treaty.” In the book, readers are guided on a journey back in time
Recording of Summer Webinar Series #2: Peter Marbach, author of “Healing the Big River” Read More »
A recording of WaterWatch of Oregon’s Summer Webinar #1 on July 29th, 2020. Description: Join bestselling novelist and former Oregon fly-fishing guide John Larison for an interactive lecture on the creative power of water. John will guide you through a brief history of water’s effect on human creativity, from the salty origins of art on
Recording of Summer Webinar Series #1: John Larison, author of “Whiskey When We’re Dry” Read More »
