The Habitat Problem

Human actions over the past century have led to a progressive decline in the health and productivity of Oregon’s river and streams. Though they made era-appropriate decisions, the settlers’ arrival have dramatically affected our freshwater ecosystems today. Further, timber extraction, large-scale hydropower development, hatchery production and inefficient agricultural irrigation have impaired the ability of our salmon runs to sustain themselves.

Today more than 85% of historic salmon habitat has been lost or compromised throughout our region. Pacific salmonid populations flicker at less than 4% of their historic abundance. And more than 30,000 miles of Oregon’s rivers and streams fail to even fully support aquatic life.