By John McMillan Should we invest in dam removal? It’s a question that many communities, businesses and policy-makers are facing these days — partly because of aging infrastructure and financial liabilities, and partly because of legal obligations to protect water quality and recover declining salmon and steelhead populations. To that, I say: let the fish tell us what works. One …
Science Friday: Who’s who in the Elwha after dam removal
By John McMillan We should not be surprised by steelhead and salmon rushing upstream to pass former dams. That is their nature — to push boundaries, access new habitat. Unbuild it, and they will come. And come they have in Washington’s Elwha River, where in 2014 two old dams were taken down. Not only have we observed hundreds …
Rise of the Phoenix: wild summer steelhead in the Elwha River
By John McMillan, science director, Trout Unlimited Wild Steelhead Initiative A few years back, while working on the Elwha dam removal project, I donned a wetsuit for one of many snorkel surveys I conducted that summer. I had been snorkeling the main-stem Elwha, but that day – a crisp cool day in mid-October – I found myself drawn to …
Lessons from Declines in Chinook Productivity
In this month’s Science Friday, we look at the loss of fecundity in Washington Chinook populations.
Science Friday: Rapid diversification in Salmon and Steelhead Populations Following Dam Removal
In this week’s Science Friday post, John McMillan is back with a breakdown of a recent study looking at how steelhead, chinook, and coho are re-establshing their populations and diversity, on a pair of Elwha River tributaries between the former dam sites.
Planning for Salmon and Steelhead to Return as the Klamath Dams Come Down
As the largest river restoration effort in history moves forward, Oregon and California plan for fish reintroduction and monitoring
A Wake-Up Call for the Washington Coast
A long-anticipated petition to list the Olympic Peninsula’s wild steelhead under the protections of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) has been submitted to federal agencies.
Dirt low and slotted up: Coastal Washington recap
WSU ambassador, Lee Geist, shares his winter report from the Washington coast and provides his reflections on the current management quagmire.
Flowing free in ’23
Part 3 of Life after dams: The Klamath River, straddling the border between California and Oregon, is the third most productive watershed for salmon and steelhead on the West Coast. The Klamath is also Ground Zero for one of the most challenging water conflicts in U.S. history.
Seven years of science, advocacy, and marching with the steelhead army
Today is Science Director John McMillan’s last day with Wild Steelheaders United and in his final post, he reflects back on seven years of his work alongside a mighty steelhead army.