Columbia River from Rowena Crest Viewpoint looking east. | Wikipedia
In 2023, Oregon, Washington, and Columbia River Treaty tribes entered into a deal called the Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement to restore salmon and steelhead populations in the Columbia River Basin while also investing in clean energy and pausing related litigation over the lower Snake River dams.
In June 2025, the Trump administration unilaterally withdrew the federal government from the agreement, deeming it “radical environmentalism” and threatening energy production and key industries.
And now, just earlier this month, the plaintiffs, including the State of Oregon, reignited its legal battle against the federal government.
There are many ways in which NFS is disappointed that this unprecedented agreement that honorably aimed to restore broken tribal treaty rights, investigate progressive energy production, and replace services in order to pursue breaching the lower Snake River dams, is off the table for now.
However, intention is not the same as execution. NFS believes the investments - including $300 million over 10 years from Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) were earmarked in part for hatchery modernization and repairs - committed by the Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement mistakenly funded detrimental hatcheries with little to no proof of concept.
Native Fish Society hopes and will continue to advocate for a future of the Columbia River that simultaneously honors tribal treaty rights, restores wild abundance and diversity of Columbia River salmon and steelhead, while supporting communities and ecosystems that depend on its anadromous fish.
