The US Supreme Court reversed a Ninth Circuit Court decision last week that could have important ramifications for salmon litigation in the Northwest. In a 5-4 ruling, the high court ruled in the case of National Association of Homebuilders v. Defenders of Wildlife that the Endangered Species Act does not trump other federal laws like the Clean Water Act. ...more

At a June 20 status update, U.S. District Court Judge James Redden told all parties in the collaboration for the next hydro BiOp that a science panel would be needed to sort things out. ...more

An Oregon proposal to end the state's 15-year moratorium on withdrawing new water from the Columbia River died in the state senate after Gov. Ted Kulongoski promised to veto the bill if it reached his desk because it threatened salmon. ...more

The commissioners who oversee Oregon's Department of Water Quality have approved a proposal from the Corps of Engineers, USFWS and NOAA Fisheries that grants a two-year waiver of the 110-percent total dissolved gas standard for the operation of mainstem dams on the lower Columbia River. ...more

The spring chinook season officially turned into summer on June 15, as far as Columbia Basin harvest managers are concerned, and they say about 46,000 summer chinook are expected to return to the river this year. Most are headed upstream of Priest Rapids Dam. ...more