Water Quality May Stop Migrating Klamath Salmon Even If Dams Do Not

Science review panel worries that excessive water diversions and lack of wetlands that filter and store clean water may hamper restoration efforts.

A panel of independent scientists says a billion dollar plan to remove four dams and balance the needs of agriculture and fish on the Klamath River might not increase Chinook salmon runs.

The scientists were hired by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to conduct an independent review. They say that even if four PacifiCorp dams come down on the Klamath it’s a stretch to imagine Chinook salmon going back to their pristine spawning grounds above the dams.

Climate change and low river flow may keep the river unusually warm. And that could kill migrating salmon.

The panel says farm runoff helps make the river a friendly environment for algae, even without dams. And plans to tackle the algae problem by restoring wetlands aren’t realistic.

The scientists say 40 percent of farms in the Upper Klamath Basin would have to be converted to wetlands to make that work.

U.S. Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar has until March next year to decide if removing the Klamath dams is a good idea. It’s the largest proposed dam removal project in the Northwest.