Thursday July 25, 2024
NBC Right Now —
State, local and Tribal leaders met with U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland at the Cle Elum Dam on Wed., July 24 to celebrate the opening of nearly 30 miles of habitat for salmon and steelhead populations.
The Cle Elum Fish Passage Project began in 2015 and hopes to restore salmon and steelhead populations in the Cle Elum River, which was once one of the largest sockeye salmon runs in the lower 48 states.
Haaland was joined by Governor Jay Inslee, Senator Maria Cantwell, leaders from the Yakama Nation, Lower Elwha Klallam and Puyallup Tribes and more, along with firefighters from the Yakama Nation that worked on the Slide Ranch Fire in White Swan.
“Today’s announcements demonstrate why the Yakima River Basin Integrated Plan is the premier model for uniting diverse stakeholders behind a plan to protect salmon and agricultural communities,” said Sen.Cantwell in a press release. “Investing in our aquifer recharge projects and improved water delivery strengthens the Basin’s over $4 billion ag economy, and the completion of the fish passage facility at Cle Elum Dam has us one step closer to opening nearly 30 miles of habitat and restoring one of the country’s largest sockeye salmon runs.”