Ocean temperatures were the warmest in recorded history in 2019, according to a study published in February's Advances in Atmospheric Sciences. Read more
After years of delay, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has 30 days to develop and issue technical documents outlining the causes of high water temperatures in the lower Snake and Columbia rivers, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled. Read more
Clean energy legislation and plans to retire more coal-fired power plants in the next 10 years have upended conclusions of the 2018 Lower Snake River Dam Replacement Study, according to an analysis by Energy GPS and commissioned by Northwest RiverPartners. Read more
In a unanimous vote on Jan. 23, seven members of the Orcas Power & Light Co-op board rescinded a resolution the board adopted in September opposing removal of the four lower Snake River dams while supporting "effective" actions to restore salmon runs and save endangered southern resident orcas. Read more
Over the past 30 years, salmon production at hatcheries operated by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has been cut nearly in half—from about 275 million releases in 1989 to a low of 145 million in 2017. Read more
Washington and Oregon have both adopted revisions to their water quality standards that will allow operators of the eight lower dams on the Snake and Columbia rivers and five mid-Columbia dams to increase spill to create up to 125 percent total dissolved gas (TDG) saturation during the sprin… Read more
Tests of a new turbine at Ice Harbor Dam show the new fixed-blade design is 4 percent more efficient than the prior version and improves survival rates of juvenile salmon that migrate downstream past the turbine, officials say. Read more
The Wild Fish Conservancy filed notice on Jan. 9 it intends to sue the U.S. Department of Commerce and the National Marine Fisheries Service for authorizing what it calls an overharvest of Chinook salmon in the southeast Alaska troll fishery. The group claims the NMFS-approved harvest threat… Read more
Reactions to Washington state's newly released draft report examining the positive and negative impacts of removing the four lower Snake River dams are as varied as the views represented in the report itself. Read more
Dismantling or breaching the four lower Snake River dams would add 1.2 million tons of CO2 and other harmful emissions annually to the atmosphere, and cost more than $2.3 billion over the next 30 years, according to a study commissioned by the Pacific Northwest Waterway Association (PNWA). Read more
Construction began Jan. 10 on a new hatchery east of Milton-Freewater, Ore., that's expected to double the number of spring Chinook smolts released into the South Fork Walla Walla and Touchet rivers to 500,000 releases annually. Read more
Idaho Power is asking an Oregon judge to dismiss a lawsuit in Multnomah County brought by two conservation groups challenging the issuance of a water quality certification for the utility's Hells Canyon Complex. Read more
After 18 months of accepting recommendations, drafting new language, and receiving and reviewing public comments, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council adopted Part II of its 2020 Fish and Wildlife Program Addendum on Jan. 14. Read more
A Wenatchee-area fruit processing company has agreed to reduce the copper and zinc it discharges into the Wenatchee River and pay $150,000 for projects that improve local water quality under a settlement agreement with Columbia Riverkeeper. Read more
The Northwest Power and Conservation Council (NWPCC) on Jan. 14 elected Richard Devlin, of Oregon, to be the Council's new chair in 2020, replacing Jennifer Anders, who chaired the Council through 2019. Devlin has served as vice chair for the past year, a post that will now be filled by Mont… Read more
