Winchester Dam Repairs Begin Despite Permitting Irregularities, Collapsing Summer Steelhead Run, Fears of Another Fish Kill

Aug. 3, 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information, please contact: Jim McCarthy, WaterWatch of Oregon, jim@waterwatch.org Kirk Blaine, Native Fish Society, kirk@nativefishsociety.org Winchester Dam Repairs Begin Despite Permitting Irregularities, Collapsing Summer Steelhead Run, and Fears of Another Fish Kill Repair at dam first since botched 2018 attempt caused fish kill and polluted drinking water […]

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Fifth Dam Removal Completed in Three Years in Rogue River’s Applegate Subbasin

Aug. 1, 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For information, please contact: Jim McCarthy, WaterWatch of Oregon, (541) 941-9450 Brian Barr, Rogue River Watershed Council, (541) 621-7226 Lovelace Dam before and after removal images available here: https://tinyurl.com/247hhk2b Credit photos to the Rogue River Watershed Council Fifth Dam Removal Completed in Three Years in Rogue River’s Applegate Subbasin

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Oregon Regulators Deny Another Bid for Water at Thornburgh Resort

By Emily Cureton Cook  |  July 25, 2023  |  Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) State regulators have rejected creating new groundwater rights for a controversial destination resort under construction in Central Oregon. The proposed Thornburgh resort is seeking wells for a development near Redmond, in an area where declining groundwater levels have long raised ecological concerns and

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Historic Change: Facing Drought, Legislators Impose Water Limits on Livestock

By Kendra Chamberlain |  July 13, 2023  |  Columbia Insight Under a new law, dairy and confined cattle operations in Oregon will no longer have unlimited access to water. Large livestock operations will face stricter water rules in Oregon under a bill passed by state lawmakers earlier this year, in the wake of controversies surrounding

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Support Rivers and Fish as Part of Oregon’s Integrated Water Resources Strategy (IWRS) Update

May 22, 2023 Oregon’s Kitchen Table recently posted a survey to help state officials better understand what water issues are important to you. The information and data collected will ultimately help shape the next iteration of the state’s Integrated Water Resources Strategy (IWRS). Background: The IWRS is Oregon’s blueprint for meeting both instream and out-of-stream

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River Action Alert: Speak Up for Rivers and Fish in Oregon’s Integrated Water Resources Strategy Update

May 9, 2023 We need your help in lending your voice to the water needs of rivers and fish as part of Oregon’s Integrated Water Resources Strategy (IWRS) update. Oregon’s blueprint for meeting both instream and out-of-stream needs, the IWRS is critically important in shaping policies, programs, and budgets for multiple state agencies. First published

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Instream: Federal Regulator Says Four Lower Klamath Dams May Come Down

April 4, 2023 By Jim McCarthy In Nov. 2022, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission granted final approval for the decommissioning of the lower four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River near the Oregon-California state line. The decision marked the end of two decades of advocacy, politics, and bureaucratic processes surrounding this hydro complex. It is

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River Action Alert: Please help Oregon’s rivers by speaking up in support of ODFW’s Water Program!

Please help Oregon’s rivers by speaking up in support of ODFW’s Water Program! The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s (ODFW) Water Quality and Quantity Program plays a vital role in protecting water in our state’s iconic rivers. Whether it’s reviewing new water right applications to ensure that they won’t harm our rivers, securing new

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We Now Know How Much Water Google’s Oregon Data Centers Use After The Dalles Drops Lawsuit Against Journalists

By Sebastian Moss  |  Dec. 19, 2022  |  Data Center Dynamics The data centers use more than a quarter of The Dalles city, and consumption is rising. The Dalles has dropped its lawsuit against The Oregonian, which filed a public records request to see the water deal it signed with Google. That means that how

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Google’s Water Use Soaring in the Dalles, Records Show, with Two More Data Centers to Come

By Mike Rogoway  |  Dec. 18, 2022  |  The Oregonian Google’s water use in The Dalles has nearly tripled in the past five years, and the company’s data centers now consume more than a quarter of all the water used in the city. That’s according to records released this week after the city settled a

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Thirty-Two Pacific Northwest Groups Urge U.S. to Take Action to Modernize Columbia River Treaty to Avoid Ecosystem Collapse

Sept. 14, 2022 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE Media Contacts: Joseph Bogaard, Save Our Wild Salmon Coalition, joseph@wildsalmon.org John DeVoe, WaterWatch of Oregon, john@waterwatch.org Thirty-Two Pacific Northwest Groups Urge U.S. to Take Action to Modernize Columbia River Treaty to Avoid Ecosystem Collapse Organizations call on the U.S. to add ecosystem function as a third primary purpose of

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Race to the Bottom: How Central Oregon Groundwater Sells to the Highest Bidders

By Emily Cureton Cook  |  July 19, 2022  |  Oregon Public Broadcasting In Oregon’s fastest-growing region, more residents are struggling to reach an affordable water supply. A developer’s quest to keep pumping tests what state officials are willing to do about it. Editor’s note: This is the third story in a series about how Oregon

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Stricter Groundwater Regulations Contemplated for Oregon

Mateusz Perkowski  |  June 17, 2022  |  Capital Press Oregon water regulators want to impose stricter rules for drilling new irrigation wells next year to preserve groundwater levels and prevent over-pumping. A preliminary analysis of available data suggests that little groundwater across the state is available for new allocations, said Ivan Gall, field services division

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Water Is the “Lifeblood” of Oregonians. How Will the Next Governor Manage a Future of Drought?

By Alex Schwartz  |  May 1, 2022  |  Jefferson Journal The Klamath Basin provides a cautionary tale for Oregon about the need to plan more intentionally and sustainably with its shrinking water supply. Despite growing up on a ranch near John Day and living in the Klamath Basin for more than 20 years, Misty Buckley

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Elk Creek Dam demolition

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,

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The Removal of Savage Rapids Dam

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

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Rogue River Dam Removals

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

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2015 Wimer Dam Removal

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

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Ongoing Harm at Winchester Dam

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,

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John DeVoe speaks on the water impacts of proposed Google data center in the Dalles

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

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Water is the “Lifeblood” of Oregonians. How Will Oregon’s Next Governor Manage a Future of Drought?

By Alex Schwartz  |  April 26, 2022  |  Jefferson Public Radio The Klamath Basin provides a cautionary tale for Oregon about the need to plan more intentionally and sustainably with its shrinking water supply. Despite growing up on a ranch near John Day and living in the Klamath Basin for more than 20 years, Misty

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