3 Apr 2023

Water managers begin spring spill to benefit juvenile salmon

Federal water managers will begin spilling hundreds of thousands of gallons of water over spillways instead of through turbines during annual “spring spill” operations at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ dams on the lower Snake and Columbia rivers.

21 Apr 2021

Spring Spill begins facilitating fish passage at Snake and Columbia river dams

Federal water managers have begun the annual spill of water past hydroelectric dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers to help juvenile salmon and steelhead migrate to the ocean this spring. The spill began April 3 on the lower Snake River and April 10 on the lower Columbia River. Spill for juvenile fish passage helps reduce the proportion of juvenile fish that pass dams through the turbines and helps reduce passage delay at each dam, thereby shortening their travel time through the Snake and Columbia rivers.

8 May 2020

Corps begins flexible spring spill operations to benefit fish and hydropower

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began implementing its 2020 Fish Operations Plan at the four lower Snake River dams April 3 and at the lower Columbia River dams April 10.

12 Mar 2020

Feds shift Seattle, Portland CRSO EIS meetings to 'phone only'

Officials from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation and the Bonneville Power Administration decided that the in-person public comment meetings planned for Seattle and Portland will not be held due to the high number of COVID-19 cases reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in those geographical areas and calls from local officials to limit public exposure. Phone-in options have been added to the formal comment choices for those avoiding crowded venues.

2 Apr 2019

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.

15 Oct 2018

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.