Posts Filed Under: HABITAT

Volunteer Opportunity! Kalama River Cleanup

Join us from 9am - Noon on July 23rd to clean up the Kalama River! The Kalama River is a tributary to the Lower Columbia River and provides important spawning habitat for steelhead and cutthroat...

Giving the Molalla River a Chance

Guest Post by Luke Whitman and Ben Walczak of Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Historic land use practices have taken their toll on native fish in the Molalla River, especially salmon and...

Court Hits Pause on Termination of Harmful Hatchery Program

PORTLAND, Ore – On May 18, 2022, a Marion County Circuit Court judge granted a preliminary injunction that pauses the elimination of the Rock Creek Hatchery summer steelhead program pending the...

Native Fish Society Conservation Campaigns 2021

Native Fish Society's work to revive abundant wild, native fish has never been more ambitious and expansive. As our River Steward and Native Fish Fellowship community grows, we're increasing the...

Volunteer Opportunity! Bakeoven Creek Habitat Revival

This summer, Native Fish Society joined forces with Deschutes River Alliance to begin work on the Bakeoven Watershed Rehabilitation Project - a collaborative effort to clear hundreds of pounds of...

Volunteer Opportunity – Rangewide Bull Trout eDNA Project and the Upper Deschutes River basin

This fall, 2021, there is an opportunity to take part in a cutting-edge project to determine if threatened Bull Trout still reside in the Upper Deschutes basin. The focus will be on Little...

Bring on the Goats! A Small Part of the Larger Picture

It was the middle of May on the Deschutes, the time of year when the salmonflies are prolific and unavoidable. Tom Derry, Liz Perkin, and I were walking up the tracks to Tommy’s secret fishing...

Wild Steelhead Release

Since 2017, fishing guide Harvey Young, local River Stewards, and other grassroots advocates have advocated for the sustainable management of wild steelhead in Southern Oregon - the only place in...

Native Fish Society Conservation Campaigns 2020

Native Fish Society's work to revive abundant wild, native fish has never been more ambitious and expansive. As our River Steward and Native Fish Fellowship community grows, we're increasing the...

Wild Fish Wins in Oregon!

Earlier this month, the Oregon Board of Forestry and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) Commission, undertook significant votes that will have direct impacts on the state’s wild...

WA Governor requests alternative to proposed dam on the Chehalis River!

On July 22, 2020 Washington’s Governor Jay Inslee sent letters to the members of the Chehalis Basin Board, Washington Department of Ecology and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife requesting...

Klamath Revival

Nestled in South Central Oregon is the beautiful Klamath River Basin, a high elevation desert home to pristine watersheds. These small rivers and streams feed the Klamath River, one of few rivers...

Oregon Coast Spring Chinook Salmon One Step Closer to Endangered Species Protections

PORTLAND, Ore.— The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announced today it will consider Endangered Species Act protections for spring-run chinook salmon on the Oregon coast. NMFS's positive...

Native Fish Society Conservation Campaigns 2019

Native Fish Society's work to revive abundant wild, native fish has never been more ambitious and expansive. As our River Steward and Native Fish Fellowship community grows, we're increasing the...

Conserve Little Skookum Inlet!

This significant stand of forest is becoming increasingly squeezed by development. Keeping the property in forest use protects water quality and provides critical habitat for marine wildlife such...

Roseburg Water Symposium "Protecting the Headwaters in an Extreme Climate."

Water is essential to all life and is rapidly becoming a critical, life threatening environmental and social issue around the world.Join us for an evening of information about the state of Southern...

Board of Forestry Grants Petition to Protect Coho Salmon Sites from Private and State Logging

For Immediate Release, July 29th, 2019 Contacts: Conrad Gowell, Native Fish Society, Nick Cady, Cascadia Wildlands, and Mary Scurlock, Oregon Stream Protection Coalition SALEM, Ore.— Late...

Oregon Senators Introduce Key Recreation and Land Protection Bill

This week, River Stewards and NFS members are applauding U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley from Oregon for their re-introduction of legislation to help boost recreation and advance key river...

Twenty Oregon Fishing and Conservation Groups Petition for New Logging Rules to Protect Coho Salmon

Media Contacts: Nick Cady, Cascadia Wildlands, nick@cascwild.org, (314) 482-3746 Conrad Gowell, Native Fish Society, Conrad@nativefishsociety.org, (971) 237-6544 Mary Scurlock, Oregon Stream...

Let's tip the scales of justice for wild fish recovery!

On Thursday, April 4, 2019, the Willamette's threatened wild spring Chinook salmon and winter steelhead will go head-to-head with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in U.S. District Court. Please...

Envision A Wild & Free Klamath River

We envision a Klamath River with abundant wild salmon and steelhead that return from the Pacific Ocean with a bounty of marine nutrients, and nourish the river’s human and environmental communities...

Native Fish Society Comment to Oregon Ways & Means Committee

February 20, 2019 FR: Native Fish SocietyTO: Ways & Means CommitteeRE: Comments on the Oregon Governor’s Budget NFS Supports the Following POPs POP 100 - “Protecting Oregon’s Forests and...

2019 State of the Beaver Conference

Voice of the Beaver The focus of the 2019 State of the Beaver Conference is dedicated to speaking on behalf of the beaver, its plights, contributions to ecosystem viability and natural solutions...

Looking ahead for the Eel River and the Potter Valley Project

A great deal has happened over the last four years since we started our temperature monitoring work throughout the headwaters of California’s Eel River to prepare for the relicensing of the Potter...

Map of Native Fish Society's Conservation Campaigns

Native Fish Society's work to revive abundant wild, native fish has never been more ambitious and expansive. As our River Steward and Native Fish Fellowship community grows, we're increasing the...

River Steward comments on Oregon Board of Forestry Goals and Strategies Planning

The Oregon Board of Forestry took input from citizens and interested parties at their November 7th & 8th meeting, which includes definitions for goals and strategies found in the Planning Rule...

New ODFW assessment shows Conservation Plan is helping Rogue spring Chinook

In 2007, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission adopted a Rogue Spring Chinook Conservation Plan (Conservation Plan) to help improve conditions for the struggling wild salmon that had seriously...

Native Fish Responds To Washington's Orca Whale Crisis

The Washington State Governor’s office created an Orca Whale Task force to address the declining health of Pod J, a pod of 76 whales that lives in and feeds on Chinook salmon in Puget Sound. This...

The Last Steelhead: An Eco Rock Opera

When the going gets tough, the tough pick their guitars and play. Or at least that's what angler, author, lifelong musician and wild steelhead advocate Chris Santella and his band Catch & Release...

​Knock 'em Down: Recreational rock dams pose a challenge to native fish

During the heat of the summer, anglers, campers, hikers, and other outdoor recreation enthusiasts spend time around rivers to cool off and enjoy the natural beauty. Our waterways provide refuges...

Another perilous year for Spring Chinook in California's Salmon River

This week I joined a small team of volunteers and hiked several miles up one of California’s most remote Wild and Scenic Rivers, the North Fork of the Salmon River, which flows into the rugged...

Abundant wild fall Chinook salmon in the Rogue show us what’s possible

There is much to celebrate about this year’s forecast for close to a half million wild fall Chinook salmon returning to the Rogue River in Southern Oregon. At a time when we hear more about the...

A Stream Transformed - Deer Creek Restoration Project

Before and after Deer Creek Restoration- US Forest Service Photo Beginning at Clear Lake as a series of springs and seeps, the upper McKenzie River tumbles its way down the west side of the...

Fishing, Conservation Groups Sue to Protect Coho Salmon From Oregon State Forest Logging

For Immediate Release, June 13, 2018 Contacts: Noah Greenwald, Center for Biological Diversity, (503) 484-7495, ngreenwald@biologicaldiversity.org Glen Spain, PCFFA and IFR, (541)...

Wild and Scenic Rivers Act - 50 Year Anniversary Celebration on the Rogue River

Come and join us at the 50 Year Celebration of the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act! 50 Years of Local Gems: Partners Come Together to Host Celebration for Wild and Scenic Rivers and the National...

Beardslee Trout

Reflections of Place Seven thousand years ago, Lake Crescent was shaped like a lightning bolt. It drained east from its outlet at Indian Creek to the Elwha River and into the Strait of Juan de...

Landslides, Good and Bad

Let's stop clearcut logging on steep slopes in state and private Oregon forests Since the 1994 adoption of the Northwest Forest Plan, which regulates logging on federal land in Oregon, commercial...

New Science: Fall Chinook don't turn into Spring Chinook.

Written by Native Fish Society member Renee Fitts Thompson et al., in their new paper,“Anthropogenic habitat alteration leads to rapid loss of adaptive variation and restoration potential in wild...

New River Steward Introduction: Andrew Chione, Yamhill River

Born and raised in Illinois, Andrew now lives in Newberg, Oregon. He is studying Fisheries and Wildlife Science at Oregon State University. In his spare time, he explores Oregon’s Cascade and Coast...

NFS Comments on Klamath Spring Chinook Listing Petition

In response to a petition for listing submitted by the Karuk Tribe and Salmon River Restoration Council, the National Marine Fisheries Service initiated a process to solicit comments and review...

ON THE BRINK

Coalition takes Army Corps to court over the future of the Willamette's anadromous fish The Willamette Valley is the most populous watershed in the state, home to about 70 percent of Oregonians....

NFS opposition to Oregon House Bill 4016

Chair Helm and Members of the House Energy and Environment Committee, Thank you for the opportunity to provide comments on HB 4016 with - 1 Amendment. Native Fish Society is writing in...

FERC needs to consider impacts of climate change in relicensing Eel River dams

Last year marked the start of a five-year process for relicensing the three-part hydroelectric and water diversion project known collectively as Potter Valley Project in the headwaters of...

Environmental Assessment: Willamette reservoir water allocation

The Army Corps of Engineers was directed in a 2008 Biological Opinion by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA) to improve conditions for threatened and endangered fish in the Willamette...

The future of wild salmon in Canada depends on successful implementation of the Wild Salmon Policy

The Wild Salmon Policy was created in 2005 by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) with the goal to "restore and maintain healthy and diverse salmon populations and their habitats for the benefit and...

Public meeting announced for in-stream mining regulations in Oregon's Essential Salmonid Habitat

In the 2017 legislative session, Senate Bill 3 was passed by the Oregon State Legislature and signed by Gov. Brown that restricted in-stream motorized mining in all of Oregon's Essential Salmonid...

Comments on Oregon Department of Transportation Culvert Repair Program

Dear Chair Finley and Members of the Commission, Please consider the following comments by WaterWatch of Oregon, the Native Fish Society and The Conservation Angler on the proposed renewal of...

Corps on Notice for Failing to Protect Willamette River Chinook and Steelhead

Missed deadlines, postponed actions, poor communication drive fish closer to the brink. Contacts: Lizzy Potter, Advocates for the West, 503-914-6388, epotter@advocateswest.org Marlies...

Klamath River dam removals moving forward for 2021

Update: Klamath River dam removal and opportunities to be involved Update: The KRRC has recently announced that demolition will occur January - March in 2021. Stay tuned for more updates. Plans...

Molalla Side Channel Restoration Project

October 30th, 2017 Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board ATTN: Meta Lofsgarden, OWEB Executive Director Liz Redon, Willamette Basin Regional Office 775 Summer Street NE Suite...

Congressman Uses Falsehoods to Urge Reopening Kalmiopsis and Wild Rivers Coast for Strip Mining

For immediate release Contacts: Dave Lacey, Hunter Creek River Steward & Oregon South Coast Tours, 541-373-0487, dave@southcoasttours.net Susan Jane Brown, Western Environmental Law Center,...

Dam removal to be considered on the Eel River

Eel River Headwaters Campaign Update Thank you to everyone who submitted comments to Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) regarding the upcoming relicensing of the Potter Valley Project on the Eel...

Action Alert: Restore access for wild salmon and steelhead to the cool headwaters of the Eel River!

Help restore access for wild salmon and steelhead to the cool headwaters of the Eel River! California’s Eel River represents one of the greatest opportunities to recover wild Chinook salmon and...

Support Conservation in Your Homewaters

North Creek Campaign from Native Fish Society on Vimeo. With your help we can increase the health and abundance of wild salmon, steelhead, trout and Lamprey on Oregon's central coast. The...

Native Fish Society joins the Eel River Forum

We are pleased to announce that on Wednesday, June 14th, Native Fish Society became charter members of the Eel River Forum, a group comprised of 23 public agencies, tribes, non-profit conservation...

Governor Brown Signs Suction Dredge Mining Reform Bill to Protect Oregon Rivers

Today, Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed the Suction Dredge Reform Bill (SB 3) legislation which establishes a permanent framework to manage in-stream motorized mining across Oregon. The bill...

Elk River Salmon Symposium: Local Knowledge and Emerging Science

From the Sponsors: Come hear from local stewards and stakeholders about conservation efforts in the Elk River watershed. Researchers will present emerging science and current research, and we'll...

Suction Dredge Mining Reform passes Oregon House of Representatives

May 31, 2017 Salem, OR – The Oregon House passed legislation today in a bipartisan vote to protect sensitive salmon and lamprey habitat from suction dredge mining. The Suction Dredge Reform bill...

Together Against the Mines

Wild Rivers Campaign Just seven miles upstream from River Steward Dave Lacey’s home in southern Oregon a foreign owned mining company was quietly working to develop a nickel strip mine on public...

Suction Dredge Mining Reform in Oregon moves ahead

Last month the Oregon State Senate passed the Suction Dredge Reform Bill (SB 3-A Engrossed) with a vote of 21-9 to send it over to the Oregon House of Representatives, a move that would establish...

Vigilance | Rails, Trails & Zombie Trains on the Salmonberry River

In 1993 a small group of volunteers under ODFW’s direction began a five-year project to collect winter steelhead spawning and summer temperature data. Twenty-three years later, we’re still at it;...

Coastal Cutthroat Curious

A field update from the Puget Sound coastal cutthroat campaign Words by James Losee, WDFW Fisheries Biologist It’s winter on Puget Sound. Recent rains and rising rivers have cleared local...

South Umpqua Nominated!

Oregon is home to a wide selection of fine rivers. In honor of these special places, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, by way of direction from the governor, has revitalized Oregon’s...

Coho on Tour with Paul Engelmeyer

District Coordinator Paul Engelmeyer will lead a series of free tours, open to the public, to discuss the recently released Federal Coho Recovery plan. During the field trips attendees will view...

New Heritage Trout Waters on the Smith

Thank you to all our members and supporters who sent comments to the California Fish and Wildlife Commission in October. With your encouragement, and help from our local River Steward and partners...

Recognize the North Fork Smith River As Outstanding Resource Waters

Testimony to the Department of Environmental Quality for the Outstanding Resource Waters designation for the North Fork Smith River, its tributaries and wetlands. February 22, 2017 Greetings...

Final Oregon Coastal Coho Federal Recovery Plan Released

Out of all fish in the Northwest currently threatened with extinction, the National Marine Fisheries Service believes Oregon Coast Coho have the best chance at recovery in the next decade per the...

Oregon State Legislature hears testimony on Suction Dredge Mining Reform (SB3)

February 3, 2017 To: Oregon Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee Re: Native Fish Society Testimony on Oregon State Legislature 2017 Session SB3 Greetings Chair Dembrow,...

Following Through

The sun begins to glimmer , illuminating the highest hills in the coast range. My truck rattles down a gravel road leading to an intimate Oregon coastal stream within the Siuslaw National Forest: a...

A Photo Finish for the Wild Rivers Campaign

Brookings, Ore. | As the new year begins we’re teeming with joy for native fish and wild rivers! It was a photo finish, but with just 48 hours left in 2016, the Assistant Secretary for Lands and...

Public Hearings on the Board of Forestry's Proposed Coldwater Protection Rule

Overall Message: We strongly support the Board of Forestry’s finding that Oregon’s current forest practices cause excess water pollution and logging rules need to be improved, but the proposed new...

Keeping it Wild

SILETZ — Francis “Doc” Reedy raises a pair of binoculars to his eyes and scans the large pool of still water where the north and south forks of the Siletz River come together. It doesn’t take him...

Locals Stand Up for Wild Rivers & Native Fish

Hunter Creek, Oregon - Last night was another inspiring public hearing. Our River Stewards and staff really appreciate everyone who came to the Brookings-Harbor High School Auditorium for the...

Native Fish & Wild Rivers Have Friends in High Places

Hiouchi, CA - This past Friday, U.S. Congressmen Peter DeFazio (OR-4) and Jared Huffman (CA-2) gathered with local supporters on the banks of California's Smith River to reiterate their strong...

NOAA Fisheries releases its Final Recovery Plan for California Coastal Salmon and Steelhead

Last week, NOAA Fisheries released its final version of a recovery plan set to recover California's Coastal Chinook Salmon ESU and the Northern California Steelhead DPS. In January 2016, Native...

Take Action: Honor California's South Fork Smith River as Heritage Trout Waters!

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is currently proposing to designate 25 miles of the upper South Fork Smith River as Heritage Trout Waters, and we hope that you join with us...

Wenatchee Cold Water Campaign

Last year, during a June river snorkel on the Wenatchee River I stumbled upon dozens of adult bull trout, salmon, and steelhead sheltering in the frigid outflow of a small creek. At first, it was...

Thank Congressman DeFazio for His Efforts to Protect Southern Oregon's Wild Rivers

Please consider attending next Monday’s Town Hall Meeting with Peter DeFazio in Grants Pass at Anne Basker Auditorium (map found below). For two years Native Fish Society River Stewards have worked...

Wild Rivers, Wild Brews Event at Migration Brewing!

5pm - 10pm Thursday, August 18th 2016 at Migration Brewing Company

Denial and Delay Endangers Willamette Wild Winter Steelhead Crisis

Since the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife released a press statement at Willamette Falls, there has been a public outcry about the conflict between wild winter steelhead and sea lions. Dr....

Of Wild Winter Steelhead, Sea Lions, and Crisis Management

Since the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) released a press statement at Willamette Falls, there has been a public outcry about the conflict between wild winter steelhead and sea...

Oregon Fishing Guide Discusses Logging Practices

Oregon's Most Deforested Watershed

The Siletz Watershed has experienced intense logging, being named the most deforested watershed in Oregon. Between the period of 2000-2015 Siletz 42% of the watershed was clearcut.

Oregon Coastal Coho Federal Recovery Plan Comments

December 31, 2015 To: Mr. Rob Walton National Marine Fisheries Service 1201 NE Lloyd Boulevard, Suite 1100 Portland, Oregon 97232 From: Native Fish Society 813 7th St, Suite...

EPA/NOAA Proposed Disapproval of Oregon's Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program under CZARA

March 20, 2014 Joelle Gore, Acting Chief, Coastal Programs Division (N/ORM3), Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management National Ocean Service, NOAA 1305 East-West...

Oregon and California Land Grant Act of 2013

February 13, 2014 Senator Ron Wyden 221 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator Wyden: Re: Oregon and California Land Grant Act of 2013 The Native Fish Society...

Mirror Pond Fish Passage Comments

February 10, 2014 To: Mirror Pond Ad Hoc Committee, Bend City Council Re: Mirror Pond Fish Passage In just a few years the Deschutes River flowing through the City of Bend has transitioned...

State Fish Managers Put Oregon Coast's Wild Fish in Jeopardy

State fish managers put Oregon coast’s wild fish in jeopardy Oregon City, OR: Two panels of independent scientists criticize the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Coastal Multi-species...

Northwest Power and Conservation Council Comments

Dear Mr. Bill Bradbury, Chairman NW Power and Conservation Council851 S.W. Sixth AvenueSuite 1100Portland, Oregon 97204-1348 The Native Fish Society and the Wild Steelhead Coalition appreciate...