Lawsuit Filed Over Hatchery Salmon

The state and federal governments’ annual release of hundreds of thousands of hatchery-raised spring chinook salmon into the McKenzie River is jeopardizing the recovery of the river’s dwindling wild salmon runs and must be dramatically curtailed, two fly fishing advocacy groups say in a federal lawsuit filed this week.

McKenzie Flyfishers and the Steamboaters allege in the suit that the state Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are violating the federal Endangered Species Act by not taking measures to prevent the crossbreeding of wild and hatchery spring chinook salmon in the McKenzie River.

LINK (via:OPB News)