Monday March 31, 2025
Central Oregon Daily News —
A record number of adult steelhead returned to the Upper Deschutes Basin during the 2024-2025 run, Portland General Electric announced Thursday, marking the strongest migration since the 1960s. PGE owns and operates the three-dam Pelton Round Butte hydropower complex along with the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.
Here is the full announcement from PGE:
Record numbers of adult steelhead returned to the Pelton Round Butte hydropower project on the Deschutes River during the 2024-2025 run, which ends this month. With more than 950 fish passed upstream of Round Butte Dam, the Upper Deschutes Basin is now home to more steelhead than at any time since the 1960s. Scientists attribute this year’s returns to beneficial ocean conditions and improvements in fish management practices.