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Category: Fish Management
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  • Corps begins spring spill operations with new flexibility to benefit fish and hydropower

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will begin implementing its 2019 Fish Operations Plan at the four lower Snake River dams April 3, and at the lower Columbia River dams April 10. The 2019 plan includes spill and transport operations for the spring and summer juvenile fish passage seasons at these dams, as specified in the NOAA Fisheries 2019 Columbia River System Biological Opinion.
  • River operators increase flows to welcome returning chum salmon

    Sometimes being underwater is a good thing, especially for Columbia River salmon nests, called redds. This fall, federal agencies are increasing Columbia River flows below Bonneville Dam to ensure the redds of spawning chum salmon stay covered with water. The agencies have conducted these “chum operations” every fall since 2000. Beginning Nov. 2, the river will be held between 11.5 to 13 feet above sea level to ensure chum can spawn at the mouth of Hamilton Creek in the Columbia River Gorge. For chum operations to occur, water is released from reservoirs as far away as Hungry Horse and Libby dams in Montana, more than 850 river-miles upriver from Bonneville Dam. The water is then captured and released as needed to create spawning flows that keep the redds underwater.
  • Partners united for salmon, steelhead and lamprey extend Columbia Basin Fish Accords

    States, tribes, and three federal agencies continue to work side by side for the good of endangered salmon and steelhead as they extend the historic Columbia Basin Fish Accords for up to four more years. The original agreements, signed in 2008, provided states and tribes more than $900 million to implement projects benefitting salmon, steelhead, and other fish and wildlife, and $50 million for Pacific lamprey passage improvements at federal dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers.
  • Corps begins spring fish operations

    Portland, Ore. — On April 3, the U.S. Army Corps ofEngineers (Corps) began implementing its 2016
  • Corps gears up for transition to summer fish operations

    This month the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will transition to summer operations for fish. Beginning on June 16, USACE will begin summer spill for fish at Bonneville, The Dalles, John Day and McNary dams while the lower Snake River dams will transition to summer spill operations on June 21.
  • Corps begins spring fish operations

    In an effort to help young fish pass the dams safely to the ocean, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has begun implementing its 2015 Spring Fish Operations Plan. The FOP provides for spill at the four lower Snake River and four lower Columbia River dams to facilitate the timely and safe passage of juvenile salmon and steelhead. As specified in NOAA Fisheries’ 2014 Supplemental Biological Opinion, the FOP calls for spill to begin at the lower Snake River dams April 3 and lower Columbia River dams April 10. The annual plan, prepared by USACE, is coordinated with states, Tribes, and other federal agencies in the region.