NOAA recommends removing four Lower Snake River dams to restore salmon

Last Friday, NOAA released their final report on rebuilding endangered salmon and steelhead populations in the Columbia River Basin.

The report called for a number of actions to recover these fish, including removing the four lower Snake River dams. Other recovery actions include habitat restoration and improving water quality.

The report notably states:

It will be essential that we implement all of these actions, and that we do so at a large scale.

Time is of the essence to recover these endangered fish. Salmon are on a path to extinction, and the Southern Resident orcas which rely on salmon as their primary food source continue to struggle. In fact, the Center for Whale Research’s annual census just confirmed the deaths of two more Southern Resident orcas this year.

Sen. Murray and Gov. Inslee’s recent report laid out a path for dam removal by replacing the services the dams currently provide. Environment Washington, Environment Oregon, and our national partners will continue to urge our elected leaders to act swiftly to ensure that salmon and orcas remain with us for generations to come.

Take action below to call on congressional leaders to act with urgency to remove these dams.