Sockeye are returning to the Columbia River in numbers not seen since the 1950s, helped by a multi-national effort that planted more than a million juvenile fish in Canada's Osoyoos Lake that feeds into the Okanagan River. ...more

The state of Oregon filed a supplemental complaint yesterday seeking judicial review of the latest hydro BiOp. The action was backed up by a press release from Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski, who said the feds' latest plan was still justifying status quo actions at federal dams on the Snake and Columbia rivers. ...more

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council heard a sobering analysis of toxic pollutants and their effects on Columbia Basin salmonids at last week's meeting, but federal scientists admitted they have little data that could actually quantify the effects. ...more

The Independent Scientific Review Panel has given a qualified thumbs-up to an ambitious 10-year, $27-million plan to improve fish stocks in the Klickitat River. ...more

The Independent Scientific Advisory Board has recommended that state fishery agencies declare open season on certain species of fish like smallmouth bass and channel catfish, fish that are not native to the Columbia Basin. It's sure to give some fish managers heartburn because there are programs in place to enhance the numbers of these predators. But the ISAB said the Northwest Power and Conservation Council should urge state agencies to find ways like this to reduce the numbers of non-native predators, especially the ones that prey on young salmonids. ...more