North Santiam River updates

What's Happening on the Willamette

Looking out across a barren landscape of thick mud dotted by boulders and tree stumps, you might perceive a scene of destruction, but to Native Fish Society Conservation Director Jennifer...

Willamette Dams Litigation - Legal Rulings and Implementation Reports

On September 1, 2021, U.S. District Judge Marco Hernandez issued a final opinion and order directing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to...

Win on the Willamette! ​Judge Issues Injunction to Save Willamette River Chinook Salmon and Winter Steelhead

On September 1, 2021, U.S. District Judge Marco Hernandez issued a final opinion and order directing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to...

Win on the Willamette!

Court finds Army Corps’ dam operations harm salmon and violate the Endangered Species Act We are excited to share a big win for Oregon's Willamette Basin and its wild fish! Today, Chief Judge...

ReWild the Willamette LIVE!

This week, Native Fish Society Conservation Director Jennifer Fairbrother sat down with our partners at WildEarth Guardians to discuss our ongoing collaboration in Oregon's Willamette River...

Reimagining the Willamette

What do you imagine when you dream of the future of Oregon's Willamette basin? Do you see clear waters roiling from thousands of fish jockeying for space on spawning gravel high in the Cascade...

Willamette Coalition Makes It Official at Public Kickoff Event

The Willamette Salmon and Steelhead Recovery Coalition has officially gone public! Last month, Native Fish Society and founding coalition members hosted the Rewild the Willamette event. Willamette...

River Steward Program Newsletter Winter 2018

We are starting to see rains show up earlier in southern Oregon than I can remember in the past couple of years, and I hope that this is the beginning to a long wet winter here in the Northwest. ...

​​NFS, conservation partners request preliminary injunction seeking immediate changes at Willamette dams.

As a result of the dire state of threatened Upper Willamette River wild spring Chinook salmon and winter steelhead caused by dams in Oregon’s Willamette River basin, a coalition of conservation...

For Willamette Fish, the Work is Far From Done

This week, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife was granted a five year federal authorization to lethally remove sea lions at Willamette Falls. While much attention has been given to the...

In Memoriam: Wayne Somes

Wayne Somes, an individual dedicated to the Willamette River, and the recovery of its iconic fish, passed away, Saturday, May 5th, 2018 at the age of 71, after a long battle with Parkinson’s...

Willamette Hatchery Plans Fall Short

This spring, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) released a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for hatchery operations in the Willamette basin. These Hatchery Genetic Management...

NFS and conservation partners file lawsuit to save Willamette River Chinook salmon and steelhead

After nearly a decade’s worth of missed deadlines, postponed actions, and poor communications from Federal Agencies, a coalition of conservation groups filed suit on March 13 against the U.S. Army...

Environmental Assessment: Willamette reservoir water allocation

The Army Corps of Engineers was directed in a 2008 Biological Opinion by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA) to improve conditions for threatened and endangered fish in the Willamette...

Corps on Notice for Failing to Protect Willamette River Chinook and Steelhead

Missed deadlines, postponed actions, poor communication drive fish closer to the brink. Contacts: Lizzy Potter, Advocates for the West, 503-914-6388, epotter@advocateswest.org Marlies Wierenga,...

A Conversation with the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission

On Friday, September 15th in Welches, Oregon the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission met to discuss several items important to fisheries conservationists throughout the state. First, the wild...

Governor Brown Signs Suction Dredge Mining Reform Bill to Protect Oregon Rivers

Today, Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed the Suction Dredge Reform Bill (SB 3) legislation which establishes a permanent framework to manage in-stream motorized mining across Oregon. The bill...

Suction Dredge Mining Reform passes Oregon House of Representatives

May 31, 2017 Salem, OR – The Oregon House passed legislation today in a bipartisan vote to protect sensitive salmon and lamprey habitat from suction dredge mining. The Suction Dredge Reform bill...