00. latest

Ocean Conditions Off Washington Coastline Key Influence In Columbia River Salmon, Steelhead Mortality; More Ocean Research Funding Needed

Above table shows the years ranked low to high (numbers) based on whether ocean conditions are favorable or unfavorable for juvenile salmon survival. It’s an impossible task to manage salmon and steelhead ocean mortalities along the entire west coast of the United States, so fishery managers should concentrate more on influencing the environment along Washington’s…

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Lower Columbia River Spring Chinook Fishing Update: One More Fishing Day Added As Managers Balance Catch Rates With Protecting Upriver ESA Fish

Climate Warming Driving Starving Gray Whales Into San Francisco Bay Where They Are Hit, Killed By Vessels

Yakima River Basin Salmon Recovery: Removing Earthen Berm In River Delta Improves Access To Hundreds Of Miles Of Spawning Habitat

Invasive, Destructive Golden Mussels Found On Boat Entering Oregon, Prompting Washington To Undertake Emergency Rule

PFMC Finalizes 2026 Recreational, Commercial Ocean Salmon Fishing Seasons For California, Oregon, Washington

01. river

Ocean Conditions Off Washington Coastline Key Influence In Columbia River Salmon, Steelhead Mortality; More Ocean Research Funding Needed

Above table shows the years ranked low to high (numbers) based on whether ocean conditions are favorable or unfavorable for juvenile salmon survival. It’s an impossible task to manage salmon and steelhead ocean mortalities along the entire west coast of the United States, so fishery managers should concentrate more on influencing the environment along Washington’s…

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Lower Columbia River Spring Chinook Fishing Update: One More Fishing Day Added As Managers Balance Catch Rates With Protecting Upriver ESA Fish

Yakima River Basin Salmon Recovery: Removing Earthen Berm In River Delta Improves Access To Hundreds Of Miles Of Spawning Habitat

Federal Agencies Seek Appeal At Ninth Circuit Of Preliminary Injunction Directing Columbia/Snake River Operations For ESA-Listed Salmon

Alaska Study Details How Rising Temperatures Lead To Hungrier Invasive Northern Pike In Salmon Streams

Columbia Riverkeeper Issues Report On Power/Water Use For Developing Data Centers Along Columbia River, Calls For Moratorium

02. wildlife

Invasive, Destructive Golden Mussels Found On Boat Entering Oregon, Prompting Washington To Undertake Emergency Rule

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has undertaken emergency rule making to classify golden mussels as a Prohibited Level 1 invasive species statewide in response to the imminent threat of introduction and spread to Washington’s waters. As a Prohibited Level 1 species, live golden mussels may not be possessed or retained, introduced on or…

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Genetic Exchange: Female Grizzly Captured In Montana, Translocated To Wyoming Emerges From Den With Two Cubs

WDFW Completes Western Butterfly Conservation Plan Aimed At Boosting Startling Low Population Numbers

Scientists Link New California Population Of Invasive, Destructive South American Rodent (Nutria) To A Re-Introduction From Central Oregon

New UW Study Finds Parasitic Tapeworm In One-Third Of Coyotes Surveyed In Washington, Can Be Passed To Domestic Dogs, Humans

03. habitat

Though Good In North Part Of Columbia Basin, Snowpack Has Disappeared In Some Areas To The South; Summer Streamflows In Jeopardy

A huge snowpack in Canada provides a stark contrast to the nearly empty snowfields in southern Idaho where snowpack is at record lows this year and in eastern Oregon, with much of that area in drought or developing drought, according to an April National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration report.

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Wildfires, Winter Rainstorms In PNW Accelerating Winter Snowmelt, Less Mountain Snow Available As Water Storage During Summer

UBC Research: Summers Expanding 50 Percent Faster Than Thought, Quicker Transitions Between Seasons

Over 100 Habitat Restoration Projects For Salmon Yielding Big Results On Central California Coast, Record 30,000 Endangered Coho Return

Melt Seasons And Net Loss Of Ice: Study Shows How Alaska’s Glaciers Melt Additional Three Weeks With Every 1.8 Degree F Increase

Warming Climate In PNW Making Avalanche Forecasting Difficult, Cooler Inland Areas Seeing More Rain-On-Snow Crust Layers

04. power

Corps Taking Interim Measures At Willamette Valley Dam Due To Risks Associated With Major Earthquake From Cascadia Subduction Zone

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Portland District, will host two virtual public information sessions on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, to discuss proactive safety measures being implemented at Hills Creek Dam in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.

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Corps Opens Public Comment On Proposed Renewable Diesel Refinery In Columbia River Estuary; Could Produce 1.4 Billion Gallons Per Year

Corps’ ‘Building Infrastructure, Not Paperwork’ Initiative Aimed At Cutting Red Tape, Says Won’t Change Public Processes, NEPA, ESA

BPA First Quarter Financials Show Mixed Results As Revenues Fall Short, Agency Closely Monitoring Such Variables As Snowpack

Corps Opens Environmental Review Of Proposed Transmission Line In Columbia River Bed From The Dalles To Portland

Over 130 Northwest Utilities Sign Long-Term Wholesale Power Contracts With Bonneville Power Administration

05. law

PFMC Finalizes 2026 Recreational, Commercial Ocean Salmon Fishing Seasons For California, Oregon, Washington

Above Photo by: Gavin Ullom Significant improvements in key California salmon populations – specifically Sacramento River fall-run Chinook and Klamath River fall-run Chinook – will allow for more ocean salmon fishing opportunities this year. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife says that commercial ocean salmon fishing is back after being closed three straight years and that recreational ocean salmon anglers will have…

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USFWS Approves Oregon’s Wildlife Action Plan, Stronger Focus On Climate Change, Invasive Species; Eligible For Federal Funding

‘Judicial Overreach Must Stop’: Agencies Ask Appeals Court To Throw Out Injunction Guiding Spill For Salmon At Columbia/Snake Dams

Lawsuit Launched Against USFWS Over ESA Protection For Western Ridged Mussel, Lives In Columbia/Snake River Basin Streams

Though Petition Denied, ODFW Working With NOAA On Conservation Plan To Reduce Whale Entanglements In Crab Fishery

Work Begins To Improve Passage Conditions For Migrating Salmon, Steelhead In Yakima River Delta

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