In June, the Western Division of American Fisheries Society (WDAFS) announced that it has passed a resolution acknowledging that based on the best available science, the four lower Snake River dams and reservoirs present a significant threat to the continued existence of remaining wild fish populations.
The threatened fish populations include wild salmon and steelhead, as well as Pacific lamprey and white sturgeon. It goes on to say that if society wishes to save and restore these imperiled species, “then a significant portion of the lower Snake River must be returned to a free-flowing condition by breaching the four lower Snake River dams[.]” The resolution passed with 86.4% approval.
“This resolution simply tells it like it is from the science perspective: if we want to save Snake River salmon as habitats warm, we have to remove the four lower Snake River dams. There is just no evading that reality,” said Don Chapman, fisheries biologist, former fisheries professor, and consultant to industry, Native Americans, and management agencies.
The resolution follows previous WDAFS assessments in 2004 and 2009 of the federal Biological Opinion regarding Columbia and Snake River salmon policy. Those assessments also indicated that restoration of natural river conditions where the four lower Snake River dams occur has the highest likelihood of recovering wild salmon and steelhead.
The resolution comes in advance of a Federal judge’s ruling on the legality of the federal government’s current Biological Opinion regarding wild salmon and steelhead in the Columbia and Snake Rivers.
source: wildsalmon.org