As we have for years, Steamboaters continue to push for rule of law at Winchester Dam until such time as this derelict structure can be removed, ending the needless harm it causes to the invaluable North Umpqua River and its native fish runs.
The longstanding federal case against the dam owners brought by Steamboaters, WaterWatch of Oregon, and Pacific Coast Federations of Fishermen’s Associations (PCFFA) in 2020 over the dam’s harm to threatened Oregon Coast coho listed under the Endangered Species Act went to trial in April. The trial took place over five days in the Portland federal courthouse, with attorneys from Earthjustice serving ably as our counsel. Among other witnesses called to testify, Steamboaters board member Jeff Dose did a superb job as one of our expert witnesses, while board members Kirk Blaine and Jim McCarthy served as fact witnesses. Post trial briefing will last into June, and it is likely the judge will rule in the autumn.
Unfortunately, the state contested case hearing over the fines issued by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality against the Winchester Dam owners and TerraFirma Foundation Repair, Inc. that had been set for April was pushed back until October. This proceeding concerns violations during the 2023 repairs at the dam. Last year, Steamboaters and our coalition allies successfully intervened in this proceeding to ensure accountability for those responsible for the well-publicized environmental catastrophe at the dam. The groups intervened in the case on behalf of the river, water quality, fish, and wildlife, and are represented by Crag Law Center.
Steamboaters, WaterWatch, and PCFFA continue to prepare for a proceeding scheduled for July regarding state fish passage enforcement at Winchester Dam. Our groups intervened in this proceeding in support of native fish runs and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), and against dam owner Winchester Water Control District’s legal challenge to an ODFW order requiring installation of new and improved upstream and downstream fish passage facilities at the dam in compliance with state law. We are jointly represented in this case by public interest environmental law firms Earthjustice and Crag Law Center, as well as the Law Office of Karl G. Anuta.
In other news, ODFW recently approved an updated Statewide Fish Passage Priority List for 2025. Periodic updates of this list are required by state law. The 450-foot wide, 17-foot tall Winchester Dam is now ranked 18th in the state, and is again the second highest ranked privately-owned structure on the list. A prior version of ODFW’s list, completed in 2019, ranked Winchester Dam as the 24th highest fish passage priority in the state. Since 2019, two dams ranked higher than Winchester have been removed – Pomeroy Dam on the Illinois River and J.C. Boyle Dam on the Klamath River. The 2025 list again notes that Winchester Dam impedes passage for coho, spring Chinook, fall Chinook, summer steelhead, winter steelhead, cutthroat trout, Pacific Lamprey, and other native species.
