ODFW

State Considers Penalties, Fines After Umpqua River Dam Repair Kills Thousands of Fish

By Alex Baumhardt  |  Sept. 27, 2023  |  Oregon Capital Chronicle The operators and renovators of a controversial dam on the Umpqua River in southern Oregon could face state fines and civil penalties following repairs that killed hundreds of thousands of fish and resulted in environmental violations. The privately owned Winchester Dam north of Roseburg […]

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Conservation Groups Call for End to Aging Umpqua River Dam After Emergency Fish Salvage

By Alex Baumhardt  |  Sept. 18, 2023  |  Oregon Capital Chronicle The 133-year-old Winchester Dam, which essentially provides a private lake for 100 “influential” people near Roseburg, has a history of environmental violations. For two days in early August, a dozen staff from the natural resources department of the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe

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River Advocates Warn of Another Possible Fish Kill Triggered by Winchester Dam Repairs

Aug. 15, 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For information please contact: Jim McCarthy, WaterWatch of Oregon, jim@waterwatch.org Kirk Blaine, Native Fish Society, kirk@nativefishsociety.org PLEASE NOTE: River advocates are preparing to document another fish kill if it materializes and will be available to reporters for comment and to provide photos and video. River Advocates Warn of Another

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Winchester Dam Repairs Spark Massive Pacific Lamprey Kill

Aug. 10, 2023 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For information, please contact: Jim McCarthy, WaterWatch of Oregon, jim@waterwatch.org Kirk Blaine, Native Fish Society, kirk@nativefishsociety.org Winchester Dam Repairs Spark Massive Pacific Lamprey Kill Public officials launch emergency effort after private dam owners fail to adequately rescue aquatic life stranded by reservoir dewatering. Winchester Dam, Oregon — This week,

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Urgent Groundwater Reforms Needed for a Sustainable Water Future

By WaterWatch Staff  |  April 5, 2022  |  Instream WaterWatch works across Oregon in administrative, collaborative, legislative and legal forums to advocate for reforms needed to secure sustainable groundwater management. WaterWatch has identified five critical and urgent reforms needed to put Oregon on a course to manage groundwater sustainably: 1  —  Stop issuing permits without

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Oregon’s Lake Abert is “In Deep Trouble.” The State Shut Down Its Effort to Figure Out Why

By Rob Davis  |  Jan. 16, 2022  |  The Oregonian When Oregon’s only saltwater lake mysteriously dried up in 2014, turning a vibrant landscape teeming with migratory birds into a desiccated, abandoned salt pan, state environmental regulators mobilized. Lake Abert, a 64-square-mile lake in south central Oregon’s high desert, had gone almost completely dry for

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Three Priority Dam Removals Completed in Rogue’s Applegate Subbasin

Oct. 13, 2021 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contacts: Jim McCarthy, WaterWatch of Oregon Brian Barr, Rogue River Watershed Council Harboldt Dam before and after removal images here: https://tinyurl.com/eaz9kswe Credit photos to Crystal Nichols, Rogue River Watershed Council Three Priority Dam Removals Completed in Rogue’s Applegate Subbasin Collaborative project benefits salmon and steelhead while meeting private land use needs. Wilderville,

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Last Chance – Please help Oregon’s rivers now and in the future by showing your support for the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife’s Water Program! 

Last Chance – Please help Oregon’s rivers now and in the future by showing your support for the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife’s Water Program!  Just a friendly reminder that ODFW is currently in the process of developing its 2019-2021 budget request. Today, May 1, is the last chance to submit written comments.  Please send in

Last Chance – Please help Oregon’s rivers now and in the future by showing your support for the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife’s Water Program!  Read More »

Draining Oregon: State Pours Million Into Fifteenmile Creek but Fails to Help Steelhead for Lack of Water

By Kelly House  |  Aug. 26, 2016  |  The Oregonian: Draining Oregon Government agencies have spent more than $2.8 million in taxpayer money on this tiny Columbia River tributary since 2004. Workers have planted shade willows on the banks, lined its rocky bottom with logpile hiding places, and fenced off cattle from the sensitive habitat.

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A New Look to the Rogue

By Jim McCarthy and Bob Hunter  |  Jan. 10, 2016  |  The Osprey The Rogue River basin leads a paradigm shift on dams. Three decades ago, the idea of removing dams to benefit fish and rivers conflicted with widely held values and beliefs. For many, dams were – and for some, still remain – symbols

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‘Mitigation banking’

‘Mitigation banking’ Project would allow smaller fish-habitat improvements to slide in favor of bigger returns By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune August 2, 2015 State fish managers hope a new, big-picture approach to fixing fish-passage barriers by bypassing otherwise required work on some bridges and culverts in favor of larger barriers will generate greater benefits for

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