One of the most promising conservation campaigns of this era is making steady progress in a river system that, historically, has been the third most productive for salmon and steelhead on the West Coast. A new video from Trout Unlimited showcases some of this progress, and the people who are making it happen.
The long effort to restore the Klamath River has passed several milestones over the past year, and TU and other signatories to the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement are committed to the primary goals of this effort. These include removing four old dams downstream of Klamath Lake, improving water quality throughout the basin, and building water management agreements that help all of the basin’s residents, both human and wild.
TU’s contributions to this campaign over the past two decades are numerous. One of our principal investments in the Klamath Basin is leading restoration projects in the upper basin that repair habitat and improve fish passage to prepare for the return of anadromous fishes to Klamath Lake and its tributaries, while helping to sustain and invest in viable ranching and farming operations.
The new video from TU’s senior producer, Josh Duplechian, documents TU’s work to restore water quality, streamflow and fish passage in important spawning and rearing tributaries to Upper Klamath Lake. It features TU’s Oregon Director Chrysten Lambert and Nell Scott, TU’s Klamath restoration director, along with project partners—landowners, ranchers and resource agencies.
Water quality is the primary limiting factor for salmon, steelhead and other imperiled native fishes in the Klamath River system. TU believes that if we improve water quality and restore aquatic habitat then we will have enough water to meet the needs of everyone in the basin. Our new video highlights the places where we are accomplishing this restoration work, its benefits for both fish and human communities—and the people who make this work possible.