Monday June 16, 2025
The Hill —
President Trump pulled the U.S. out of a Biden-era agreement with several tribes that aimed to restore salmon in the Pacific Northwest.
Trump, in a late Thursday memo, described the Biden administration’s agreement as an example of “radical environmentalism” and said his administration would instead prioritize power generation from hydroelectric dams in the region.
The Biden-era agreement came after decades of litigation related to the federal government’s use of hydroelectric dams in the Columbia River Basin. It included funding to help restore salmon populations as well as support for renewables to replace power from the dams if they are removed.
Environmentalists have said four dams in Washington state, in particular, have blocked off salmon from important habitats where they lay and fertilize eggs. Tribes in the region have historically relied on these fish.
The Biden administration had said its agreement would “prioritize” restoring native salmon, steelhead and other fish. It added that the fish are being “severely depleted” and that they are “essential to the culture, economy, religion, and way of life” of Indigenous people.