March 10, 2026
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, please contact:
Jim McCarthy, WaterWatch of Oregon, jim@waterwatch.org
Link to Ruling:
https://waterwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/DEQ_Proposed_Final_Order_030926_1.pdf
Images of Concrete Spills at Winchester Dam:
https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1dgZckdkZjwbbIwzJRrQZKg5Gg07VIxz6
Judge Upholds $77,767 in Fines Over Botched 2023 Winchester Dam Repairs
Second Water Quality Enforcement Ruling in Fewer than Five Years Against North Umpqua’s Biggest Fish Killer
Winchester, Oregon — Last week, river advocates welcomed the ruling of Oregon Senior Administrative Law Judge Elizabeth Jarry upholding $77,767 in fines issued by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) against Winchester Water Control District (WWCD) and TerraFirma Foundation Repair, Inc. (TerraFirma) for water quality violations during summer 2023 repairs to the 136-year-old Winchester Dam on the North Umpqua River near Roseburg. WaterWatch of Oregon, Steamboaters, Native Fish Society, Umpqua Watersheds, and Oregon Wild had intervened in the case on behalf of the river, water quality, fish, and wildlife, and were represented by Crag Law Center.
The ruling marked the second time in under five years a judge has upheld state fines for water quality violations during botched dam repairs attempted by Winchester Dam owner WWCD. The ruling is another victory for a coalition of local and statewide conservation, fishing, and whitewater advocates — including the intervenors in this case — who have worked for years to raise alarm bells with government officials over the WWCD’s chronic non-compliance with state and federal repair permitting, engineering, water quality, and dam safety requirements as well as their disregard for protections for fish and wildlife despite the essential habitat importance of the North Umpqua for salmon and steelhead.
Specifically, the judge upheld DEQ fines against WWCD and TerraFirma for violating nine conditions of the 401 Water Quality Certification intended protect the river during repair work on the dam: 1.) performing work that was inconsistent with the project description contained in the permit application materials submitted to the agency; 2.) failing to develop an erosion and sediment control plan, failing to implement erosion and sediment control measures to prevent or control the movement of soil into waters of the state, and failing to maintain an adequate supply of erosion and sediment control materials at the construction site; 3.) placing biologically harmful materials and construction debris (concrete) where they could enter waters of the state; 4.) placing biologically harmful materials and construction debris (tire mats) where they could enter waters of the state; 5.) operating equipment in the flowing channel of the river; 6.) failing to report discharges of deleterious materials into waters of the state; 7.) failing to remove all construction materials and temporary fill from the river bed before the expiration of the project’s regulated work window; 8.) failing to provide unobstructed fish passage for days after being told to do so; 9.) failing to fully isolate the repair work area from the active flowing stream.
In addition, the ruling upheld DEQ fine enhancements due to the dam owners’ “reckless” and “flagrant” conduct resulting in water quality violations.
The ruling also found that WWCD has a “history of hiring contractors inexperienced with complex in-water work” and demonstrated a “general disregard” for water quality protections during the 2023 repair work. TerraFirma is a building foundation repair company owned by the president of Winchester Water Control District which served as the primary contractor for the 2023 dam repairs. The judge found that “TerraFirma did not have a background with in-water projects with respect to dams or otherwise” and that the dam owners demonstrated a pattern of “choosing expediency and low cost over qualifications and experience when selecting a contractor for the 2023 repair project.”
Previously, in 2021, Oregon Administrative Law Judge Samantha Fair upheld $19,517 in DEQ fines issued after state investigators found that pollution from 2018 repairs at the dam degraded aquatic habitat, killed fish, and harmed the primary drinking water source for the City of Roseburg and the Umpqua Basin Water Association — serving approximately 37,700 people combined. Investigators also found that dam repairs were conducted without following known best management practices, even after authorities provided the dam owners with information in advance on how to protect water quality and fish. The 450-foot wide, 17-foot-tall Winchester Dam lies just 50 feet upstream of the City of Roseburg public drinking water intake.
In summer 2023, river advocates organized to monitor the repairs, document and report violations, and urge regulatory agencies to address the situation quickly. River advocates witnessed one ecological disaster after another, and the situation soon garnered intense media scrutiny and public outcry. Following the repairs, the Oregon State Senate Interim Committee on Natural Resources and Wildfire, led by Committee chair state Senator Jeff Golden (D–Ashland) and committee member Senator Floyd Prozanski (D-Springfield), grilled agency leaders during an information hearing on the widespread public perception of the agencies’ indifference to reported serial violations of state law and regulation committed at the dam that summer and in previous years.
“We are pleased this ruling upholds DEQ’s appropriate action to hold the dam owners accountable for the harm they have again caused to the North Umpqua River and the drinking water source for some 38,000 people,” said Jim McCarthy, Southern Oregon program director for WaterWatch of Oregon. “Unfortunately, we have learned the hard way that Winchester Dam will continue to harm the North Umpqua and its invaluable salmon and steelhead runs until it is removed. WaterWatch’s offer to remove the dam for little to no cost to the dam owners still stands.”
“The DEQ fines upheld are a wonderful victory for river and fish advocates nationwide who spoke up asking for accountability. Holding them responsible for their harmful actions is essential to restoring the native populations of fish that depend on North Umpqua River,” said Jeff Dose, Steamboaters’ vice president. “The reality is the 2023 repair project did nothing good to help improve fish passage for native migratory fish, and dam removal is critical if we wish to restore the imperiled salmon and steelhead populations of the North Umpqua River.”
“WWCD’s reckless and flagrant actions resulted in an unprecedented level of noncompliance with required water quality protections, the worst the DEQ inspector involved said they had ever seen,” said Victoria White, staff attorney for WaterWatch of Oregon. “It’s encouraging to see WWCD finally being held accountable for their repeated failures to follow laws and regulations — failures that have caused real harm for years.”
“This ruling is a testament to what happens when local people who love a river refuse to look away. Advocates showed up day after day, documented what they saw, and made sure decision makers couldn’t ignore it. That kind of sustained, on-the-ground presence is what agencies need to do their jobs — and what this river deserves.” said Charles Gehr, Southern Oregon coordinator with Native Fish Society.
Winchester Dam is ranked as one of the state’s highest priorities for fish passage correction because it impedes access to 160 miles of high quality habitat for salmon and steelhead. Last month, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission ordered the dam owners to install new, legally-compliant fish passage at the dam by 2029. The dam owners have publicly vowed to appeal the order. Previously the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife issued a $27.6 million fine to Winchester Water Control District, TerraFirma, and engineering firm DOWL for the unlawful killing of 555,000 Pacific lamprey during the summer 2023 repairs at the dam, which the dam owners are also fighting in court. Winchester Dam is maintained solely to provide a private recreational lake for approximately 110 landowners surrounding its reservoir pool.
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For 40 years, WaterWatch of Oregon has been committed to a single, clear mission: To protect and restore flows in Oregon’s rivers and waterways to sustain the native fish, wildlife, and people that depend on them. WaterWatch of Oregon was the first organization in the West to seek structural reform of antiquated water laws to protect and restore our rivers, and facilitated passage of Oregon’s landmark Instream Water Rights Act in 1987.