What Will it Take to Restore the Klamath River?
Following the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, News outlets, Organizations, and Agencies began to speculate the impacts the Act could have on America's Rivers. $162 million of the package has been allocated to the Klamath Basin for River restoration activities. What sort of projects will receive funding has yet to be determined, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will be the ultimate deciders. We encourage you to read "Small fortune headed to Klamath Basin for ecosystem restoration" to learn more.
In addition to the infrastructure funds, the Bureau of Reclamation recently announced $2.7 million for the Klamath River Coho Restoration over the next three years. The potential for additional restoration projects on the Klamath River, in conjunction with Dam Removal, inspires some hope after such a dire summer. California Fish and Wildlife only just this month released 1.1 million juvenile chinook salmon into the Klamath River after dismal water conditions halted their summer release.
Long-form pieces reflecting on the impacts of this summer's drought in the upper Klamath Basin continue to pop up. Read the Washington Post piece below if you are out of the loop on that. And if you're interested in learning more of the history that led to this summer's troubles, check out the piece by The Counter.
If you need a better understanding of why river restoration is so critical, read "No Fish Means No Food" to glean a better understanding of how the Klamath River's health is intricately tied to the health of the people who live on it.
News
Small fortune headed to Klamath Basin for ecosystem restoration - oregonlive.com
More than $160 million will be headed to the Klamath Basin over the next five years, thanks to the recent passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act by Congress. It is likely the largest singular federal investment in the basin to date, and it could help watershed restoration efforts take a big step forward.
Reclamation announces $2.7M for Klamath River coho salmon – Red Bluff Daily News
The Bureau of Reclamation recently announced $2.7 million for the 2021-2024 Klamath River Coho Restoration Grant Program.
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation will administer the grant program, which will fund activities and projects to enhance survival and recovery of natural populations of coho salmon in the Klamath River Basin.
Klamath River basin drought leaves families, farms dry, reignites longstanding conflicts - Washington Post
The simple way to think about this crisis: There’s no longer enough water to go around to meet the needs of farmers and Native American populations as well as fish and birds.
How a federal drought relief program left southern Oregon parched—and contributed to the ongoing groundwater crisis in the West
For two decades, the Bureau of Reclamation incentivized farmers to pump water faster than the resource could recover, despite warnings from its own scientists. This year, residents of Klamath County paid the price, as hundreds of household wells went dry.
'No Fish Means No Food' | News | North Coast Journal
How Yurok women are fighting for their tribe's health
CDFW News | CDFW Saves More Than 2 Million Chinook Salmon From Drought; Begins Releasing Fish into Klamath River as Conditions Improve
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has begun releasing juvenile fall-run Chinook salmon into the Klamath River now that river conditions have improved with cooler temperatures and increased flows that give the young salmon their best chance at survival and reaching the Pacific Ocean
What would a healthy Klamath River look like? An illustration of a complex ecosystem that could exist again. — High Country News
If it wasn’t dammed, overirrigated and degraded by habitat loss, the Klamath would be a very different place. Under balanced conditions, anadromous fish disseminate marine-derived nutrients throughout the basin to create thriving networks of interconnected life.
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Why "Infrastructure Week" was a big deal for trout and salmon | Trout Unlimited
What do bridges, highways, and rail have to do with wild and native trout and salmon? In the case of the recently enacted bipartisan infrastructure bill, known as the BIF, a whole lot.
Celebrate the wins for rivers and clean water in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act - American Rivers
On Monday, November 15th President Biden signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), capping a long and painstaking process that includes critical investments in rivers and clean water infrastructure, but it was well worth it.
Infrastructure bill: an opportunity for Lower Klamath — California Waterfowl
The massive federal infrastructure bill signed into law by the president on Nov. 15 provides a significant opportunity to aid the parched Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge: $162 million to be used by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for “Klamath Basin restoration activities.”
Dispossessed, Again: Climate Change Hits Native Americans Especially Hard - The New York Times
Many Native people were forced into the most undesirable areas of America, first by white settlers, then by the government. Now, parts of that marginal land are becoming uninhabitable.
National and International Media Focusing on the Klamath River Basin - Reconnect Klamath
Good Morning America showcased the struggle to restore Klamath River salmon populations in their November 12th episode. The morning television program broadcast by ABC opened the segment with a brief overview of where the Klamath River is and the history of its fisheries. It showed Cultural Biologist and Karuk tribal member Ron Reed catching salmon with a dipnet and speaking about the juvenile fish kill of this past spring.