Salmon and steelhead are robust, adaptable creatures. They have survived across the eons, continuously adjusting to a changing ocean and landscape. Unfortunately, Idaho’s salmon and steelhead have not been able to adapt to the construction of the lower four Snake River dams. Since the 1970’s completion of Lower Granite, Little Goose, Lower Monumental, and Ice Harbor dams, Idaho’s salmon and steelhead runs have plummeted. Without bold action by congress, wild Snake River salmon and steelhead are likely to disappear in our lifetimes. Historically, the Snake River basin accounted for about half of steelhead and chinook production in the Columbia system.
