NOAA Fisheries agreed in Oregon District Court to complete its long-awaited decisions to list coastal spring Chinook salmon in Washington, Oregon and Northern California under the federal Endangered Species Act.
NOAA must complete its decision by Nov. 3, 2025 to list or not to list Oregon Coast and southern Oregon/Northern California coast Chinook salmon, and by Jan. 2, 2026 for Washington coast spring-run Chinook salmon.
Protecting the salmon would also help the imperiled Southern Resident Killer Whales, who feed on the fish, according to the Center for Biological Diversity, one of the environmental groups that petitioned for a decision earlier this year.
“This is an important victory for these icons of the Pacific Northwest and brings them one step closer to lifesaving Endangered Species Act protections,” said Jeremiah Scanlan, a legal fellow at the Center for Biological Diversity. “The government has taken far too long deciding whether to protect these imperiled Chinook salmon, but these deadlines will hold officials accountable.”
The June 26 stipulated settlement agreement is the result of a lawsuit filed in Oregon District Court by plaintiffs Center for Biological Diversity, Native Fish Society, Umpqua Watersheds and Pacific Rivers against NOAA Fisheries in February, but the listing determination has a long history.
Three of the plaintiffs – Center for Biological Diversity, Native Fish Society and Umpqua Watersheds – petitioned NOAA Aug. 4, 2022, requesting that the agency list the Oregon Coast and Southern Oregon and Northern California Coastal evolutionary significant units of Chinook salmon as threatened or endangered under the ESA.
Several months later, on Jan. 11, 2023, NOAA published a “90-day finding” concluding that plaintiffs’ petition “presented substantial information that listing the [Oregon Coast and Southern Oregon and Northern California Coastal Chinook] salmon ESUs may be warranted under the ESA,” the settlement agreement says.
Two of the plaintiffs – Center for Biological Diversity and Pacific Rivers – petitioned the court July 17, 2023, asking NOAA to list the Washington Coast spring-run ESU of Chinook salmon as threatened or endangered.
NOAA followed Dec. 7, 2023, with a “90-day finding” concluding that the petition presented substantial information that listing the Washington Coast spring-run Chinook salmon ESU may be warranted under the ESA.
Little happened and so the plaintiffs notified NOAA on Nov. 15, 2024 their intent to sue to compel the agency to complete its “12-month findings” with respect to the petitions to list the spring-run Chinook salmon ESUs. They followed up Feb. 18, 2025 with the actual lawsuit, and in June all parties reached an agreement.
“This agreement requires a decision that is already overdue,” said Michael Morrison, chair of Pacific Rivers. “Science and law are crystal clear. These unique and endangered salmon urgently need and deserve protection.”
The Center for Biological Diversity, in a news release, said that “spring-run” Chinook salmon are ecologically essential to the overall health of coastal Chinook populations and the ecosystems of the Pacific Northwest.
“Once abundant, Chinook salmon populations are now threatened by habitat destruction from logging and road construction, water diversions, interbreeding with hatchery-raised fish, overharvest in commercial fisheries and dams obstructing their return migrations,” the news release said.
“King salmon are not just icons, they’re indicators of the health of the Pacific Ocean and Northwest ecosystems,” said Mark Sherwood, Native Fish Society’s executive director. “We’re eager to see NMFS’s overdue decision, so we can take the next step in this determined effort to revive these fish and the habitats that sustain us all to health and natural abundance.”
“Over the past 20 years I’ve personally watched this population decline, and we only had 28 spawners return in 2018,” said Stanley Petrowski from Umpqua Watersheds of the Southern Oregon ESU. “The threats to this magnificent keystone species have lurked in the shadows for decades. This settlement recognizes that these threats have been neglected for far too long.”
Spring-run Chinook salmon are also a preferred and primary food for endangered Southern Resident orcas, which has a population of only 73 individuals. “Diminishing salmon numbers and smaller body sizes of spring Chinook means that fish-eating orcas must travel farther and work harder to find sufficient food,” the Center for Biological Diversity said. “Pacific Northwest orcas have suffered in recent years from malnourishment and reproductive failures.”
In addition, the Wild Fish Conservancy recently filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington D.C. in an effort to speed up NOAA Fisheries’ review of the Washington-based conservation group’s proposal to list Chinook salmon in Alaska under the federal Endangered Species Act. The lawsuit was filed in May.
The group said in a news release that NOAA is failing to meet an essential legal guideline under the ESA and delaying the federal protections a listed species would have, in this case “at-risk Alaskan Chinook salmon.” The Conservancy formally petitioned NOAA on Jan. 11, 2024, nearly one-and-a-half years ago, to list the fish and to grant it federal protection under the ESA in rivers that flow into the Gulf of Alaska.
NOAA issued a finding May 24, 2024 that the petition filed by the Conservancy contained substantial information indicating that federal listing and protection could be warranted. According to the group, that triggered a review at NOAA that should have been completed by Jan. 11, 2025.
Also recently, two other conservation groups – The Conservation Angler and the Wild Fish Conservancy – made a similar court filing after NOAA Fisheries had taken what the groups said was too much time to act on a listing of Western Washington’s Olympic Peninsula summer and winter steelhead. In a biological status review of the fish, NOAA had found in November 2024 that the fish are at moderate risk of extinction, but the agency had yet to list the fish as threatened or endangered under the ESA. That status review was in response to the groups’ petition in August 2022 that asked the court to direct the federal agency to reevaluate the status of Olympic Peninsula steelhead.
According to the new complaint, the final ESA listing was to occur nearly a year ago, but as of Jan. 17 the action required under the ESA was 536 days late. The two groups filed their complaint Jan. 17 in the District Court of Western Washington.
For background, see:
— CBB, May 23, 2025, Lawsuit Seeks Quicker Action On NOAA Pending Determination Whether Alaska Chinook Salmon Warrant ESA-Listing, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/lawsuit-seeks-quicker-action-on-noaa-pending-determination-whether-alaska-chinook-salmon-warrant-esa-listing/
— CBB, CBB, February 7, 2025, Conservation Groups File Lawsuit Calling For NOAA Fisheries To Speed Up ESA Listing Of Olympic Peninsula Summer, Winter Steelhead, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/conservation-groups-file-lawsuit-calling-for-noaa-fisheries-to-speed-up-esa-listing-of-olympic-peninsula-summer-winter-steelhead
— CBB, December 15, 2024, NOAA Status Review Of Four Northern California/Southern Oregon Salmon/Steelhead Species Says All Should Remain ESA-Listed, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/noaa-status-review-of-four-northern-california-southern-oregon-salmon-steelhead-species-says-all-should-remain-esa-listed/
— CBB, December 9, 2024, New NOAA Status Review Shows Olympic Peninsula Wild Steelhead Numbers In Steep Decline, Now At Moderate Risk Of Extinction, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/new-noaa-status-review-shows-olympic-peninsula-wild-steelhead-numbers-in-steep-decline-now-at-moderate-risk-of-extinction/
— CBB, October 26, 2023, Conservation Groups Say Very Low Return Of Wild Spring Chinook To Southern Oregon Coastal River Shows Need For ESA Listing, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/conservation-groups-say-very-low-return-of-wild-spring-chinook-to-southern-oregon-coastal-river-shows-need-for-esa-listing/
— CBB, February 17, 2023, NOAA Fisheries To Conduct Status Review Of Olympic Peninsula Wild Steelhead To Determine If ESA Listing Warranted, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/noaa-fisheries-to-conduct-status-review-of-olympic-peninsula-wild-steelhead-to-determine-if-esa-listing-warranted/
— CBB, January 13, 2023, NOAA To Consider ESA-Listing For Oregon Coast, Northern California Spring/Fall Chinook Salmon, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/noaa-to-consider-esa-listing-for-oregon-coast-northern-california-spring-fall-chinook-salmon/
— CBB, April 16, 2020, NOAA Fisheries Announces Status Review Of Oregon Coast Spring-Run Chinook To Determine If Petitioned ESA Protections Warranted; Currently Managed With Fall-Run, https://columbiabasinbulletin.org/noaa-fisheries-announces-status-review-of-oregon-coast-spring-run-chinook-to-determine-if-petitioned-esa-protections-warranted-currently-managed-with-fall-run/