After more than a century without salmon in Okanagan waters, a new fish passageway means that salmon and numerous other fish species will be
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Sockeye salmon are able to return to historic spawning grounds in B.C.'s Okanagan region for the first time in over a century, thanks to a new fish passageway built by the Syilx Nation in partnership with the City of Penticton, the province and Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO).
The Okanagan Dam Fish Passage bypasses a dam in Okanagan Lake, and according to the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA), will allow steelhead, rainbow trout and sockeye, chinook and kokanee salmon to migrate back into the lake and its tributaries through the Columbia River.
"For myself, to know that my kids will see many future generations of salmon coming back to their historic waters, it's a very special day."
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California salmon conservation efforts are getting a boost from high school students who track, tag, and protect endangered species in local
by Grant Brown, Wed 16 Jul 2025
A unique high school program empowers students to play a vital role in California salmon conservation efforts.Â
In an era when most teenagers are glued to their phones, Casa Grande High School students wade through cold creeks to save endangered fish. Their unusual after-school program strengthens California salmon conservation efforts while making waves in the scientific community.
The United Anglers program at Casa Grande High School in Sonoma County represents a new model for California salmon conservation. In 2023, these teenage conservationists tracked 33 salmon in local waterways, providing vital data to federal wildlife officials. Each fish represents a small victory in the ongoing battle to protect Northern Californiaâs aquatic ecosystems.
These are not just casual observations. The students hold an official state permit to catch, tag, and release salmon. They record the location, size, and health condition of each fishâinformation that strengthens California salmon conservation by filling crucial gaps in scientific knowledge about the Petaluma watershed. This data helps shape conservation policies and wildlife management strategies.
Climate change and urban development pose growing threats to local fish populations. As rivers warm and change course, salmon struggle to find their way back to their breeding grounds. The studentsâ work helps scientists understand how these changes affect fish migration patterns. Their findings could influence future urban planning and environmental protection measures.
What started as a club for habitat cleanup and tree planting 42 years ago has evolved into a sophisticated conservation program. Todayâs students handle complex responsibilities and contribute meaningful data to federal research efforts. Their work exemplifies the potential of youth-led environmental initiatives.
The studentsâ newest challenge focuses on steelhead trout, a threatened species that is becoming increasingly rare in local waters. After years of preparation, the program received federal permission to rescue and shelter juvenile steelhead from drying riversâa significant achievement for a high school program. This new permit allows students to remove fish from threatened areas and care for them until conditions improve.
Daily responsibilities keep these young conservationists busy. They feed fish, clean massive tanks, monitor water temperatures, and transport heavy equipment for fieldwork. Many students find an unexpected passion in this hands-on conservation work, and the program often sparks lifelong interest in environmental protection.
The programâs success stems partly from the studentsâ fearless approach to fieldwork. They scramble up muddy riverbanks and wade through icy waters with enthusiasm. This practical experience prepares them for future environmental science and conservation biology careers.
Dan Hubacker, the science teacher overseeing the program, emphasizes its importance for steelhead trout conservation. He said adult steelhead have not been seen near the school in years. The studentsâ work could help prevent this species from disappearing from local waterways.
The program also creates strong bonds among participants. Students report finding their place in school through this shared mission. As they care for juvenile fish struggling to survive, these teenagers gain perspective on their journey to adulthood. Many form lasting friendships through their shared commitment to conservation.
Darren Howe, San Francisco Bay branch supervisor of NOAA Fisheries, praises the studentsâ contributions. Their ongoing data collection helps fill gaps in understanding fish populations, providing vital information for conservation decisions. This collaboration between students and federal agencies sets a promising example for future conservation efforts.
The success of United Anglers demonstrates the untapped potential of engaging young people in scientific research and environmental protection. These students collect valuable data while developing real-world skills in field research, data analysis, and wildlife management.
The programâs impact reaches beyond immediate conservation goals. It shows how environmental education can transform students into active champions of California salmon conservation. As climate change threatens more species, programs like United Anglers become increasingly crucial for protecting vulnerable wildlife.
The United Anglers program shows how young people can contribute to wildlife conservation. From its humble beginnings as a creek cleanup project, it has evolved into a model for hands-on environmental education. Their success has inspired similar initiatives across California, advancing salmon conservation through youth engagement and citizen science.
Back-to-back record spawning seasons suggest that reconnecting tributaries and restoring salmon habitat is supporting Central California Coa
From the article:
During the 2024â2025 spawning season, endangered Central California Coast coho salmon (CCC coho) migrated to Mendocino Coast rivers in numbers few scientists thought they would see in their careers. Monitoring teams estimated that more than 30,000 adult coho returned, double the previous seasonâs record-breaking return of 15,000 coho. These numbers represent a significant leap from the past decade, where as few as 3,000 fish returned annually.
Several factors contributed to this surge. Many scientists believe that reconnecting spawning streams to mainstem rivers and other large-scale habitat restoration projects significantly boosted their productivity and abundance. These actions expanded and improved the habitat available for salmon to spawn and grow. Since 2000, NOAA has supported more than 100 restoration projects across the region.
For biologists and restoration practitioners who have spent decades surveying streams with few or no fish, the new numbers feel profound.
âI am overjoyedâeverybodyâs just ecstatic about how many coho there are,â said NOAA Marine Habitat Resource Specialist Joe Pecharich, who has been supporting restoration projects in the region for 20 years. âWe have conducted intensive sampling since 2009 in these watersheds and many of us never thought weâd see something like this in our lifetime.â
Only four months after dams blocking migration were removed, the first Chinook salmon traveled 230 miles to return to the Klamath River Basin. This was the first fish to come home to their ancestral migration routes since 1912.
Over 100 years shut out and it only took them four months to return home once they had the chance.
From the article:
âThe return of our relatives the câiyaalâs is overwhelming for our tribe. This is what our members worked for and believed in for so many decades,â said Roberta Frost, Klamath Tribes Secretary. âI want to honor that work and thank them for their persistence in the face of what felt like an unmovable obstacle. The salmon are just like our tribal people, and they know where home is and returned as soon as they were able[.]"
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'A glimmer of hope': Tribe offers prayers for endangered Chinook salmon as eggs are returned to the McCloud River for the first time since t
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California is working on several dam-removal projects, which will allow species like winter-run Chinook salmon to access parts of the river that have been closed off to them for decades.
This will be the first time in 80 years that these salmon have been returned to the McCloud River. The first release of the salmon eggs was a joint endeavor between state and federal wildlife officials and members of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe.
"As [Caleen Sisk] carried a cupful [of salmon eggs] to the tank, she said she was 'talking to the eggs about their ancestors,' the salmon that swam there long ago. 'And just trying to give them the courage and support,' she said, 'that weâre here for them and weâre going to do the best that we can.'"
Klamath River dam removal deal signed by top federal, state officials
KLAMATH RIVER -- It was dĂŠjĂ vu for what could be the largest dam removal project in U.S. history.
The governors of California and Oregon stood side-by-side with the U.S. Secretary of the Interior to sign their commitment to remove four hydroelectric dams from the 236-mile Klamath River.But unlike the previous version of the agreement signed in 2010 that failed to gain traction in Congress, the new agreement signed Wednesday contained a new set of signatures, a new game plan, and a new federal entity to overcome.
Speaking to a crowd of about 200 people at the signing ceremony in Requa, Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell said it was "a day to reaffirm our shared commitment to restore and heal the Klamath Basin" and to recognize that "coming together is our only path forward."
"While today is a historic day in the Klamath Basin, it is just the first of many steps needed to restore the water and the fisheries resources of this basin, as well as the communities that rely upon them," she said.
California Gov. Jerry Brown, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, and several other state, federal, power, irrigator and environmental officials joined Jewell on Wednesday to sign the new Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement. The agreement proposes to remove four Klamath River dams owned by PacifiCorp by 2020 to improve river flows and benefit fisheries and river communities.
"This is a good exercise of humankind correcting some of the mistakes that it's made in the past," Brown said while speaking on restoring the quality of the river. ... Now, putting it back together with science, with skill, with engineering, with a sense of beauty and sense of respect and obligation to the land that we've been given and the people that have taken care of it for so long -- that's a very profound challenge.
"... We're starting to get it right after so many years of getting it wrong," Brown continued.
While several Pacific Northwest tribes have yet to sign on to the new agreement, some tribal leaders stated that dam removal is a necessary step toward restoring the fish and habitat that are tied to their culture, economy and heritage.
"Those fish need to come back to our homeland in order for us to feel whole, in order for us to be the people our Creator intended us to be," Klamath Tribes of Oregon Chairman Don Gentry said. "It's a part of who we are. It's a part of what's been lost to us."
A new, separate agreement -- the 2016 Klamath Power and Facilities Agreement -- was also signed on Wednesday as a way to help Klamath Basin irrigators deal with the reintroduction of fish runs in the Upper Klamath Basin.
The new Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement signed Wednesday is the second version of the agreement to emerge in the past six years.
LNG terminals could collapse B.C. wild salmon run: SFU scientists
New science shows that Pacific Northwest LNG and Prince Rupert LNG are smack dab in the most sensitive spot for millions of Skeena salmon, treasured by fisheries, anglers, First Nations and sushi lovers
The gas terminals couldn't be in a worse spot, say scientists.
Two multi-billion-dollar LNG marine export facilities slated for the provinceâs northwest are under fire for being smack dab in the most critically important waters for rearing millions of wild B.C. salmon, a new Simon Fraser University scientific study reveals.
âThe worst case scenario is the [Skeena] salmon population would collapse, and to levels that would not allow commercial fishing,â said Assistant Professor Jonathan Moore with SFUâs School of Resource and Environmental Management.
Malaysiaâs state-oil company Petronas is seeking to build the $11-billion âPacific Northwest LNGâ terminal on Lelu Island near Prince Rupert (1,500 km northwest of Vancouver).
Next to it, a British-company -- BG Group -- wants to build the $16-billion âPrince Rupert LNGâ project on Ridley Island.
âThis area, right where this [LNG] development is proposed, has the highest abundance of some of the most important salmon species within the Skeena watershed," said Moore, an aquatic ecologist.
The SFU researchers netted salmon in 2007 and 2013 in the five possible zones where juvenile salmon swim northward and southward from the Skeena Riverâs exit onto the Pacific.
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Text credit: Mychaylo Prystupa
Image credit: Tavish Campbell and Brian Huntington
