The California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced that 830,000 salmon fry released in February from a new $35 million hatchery died while migrating downstream. Officials think the cause was "gas bubble disease", often associated with internal injuries caused by extreme pressure changes. The small fry were forced to migrate through the Iron Gate dam tunnel built in 1964. The tunnel and the dam are scheduled to be removed from the river. Work restoring river habitat is underway with four dams scheduled to be removed. The Department said the die off was yet another example of how man's dams have severely damaged the Klamath River for decades. After this latest mass die-off, officials will only release salmon below the tunnel.
[photo credit: CDFW]Fish Creek hatchery still holds about 3.27 million young Chinook salmon, and there are plans to release more at various life stages later this month. The fall Chinook run collapsed in 2022 triggering a ban on commercial and recreational fishing. Only the tribes are allowed to fish and their take is restricted to just 2,000 fish. The Kalmath is officially in a "overfished" condition. The poor conditions are the direct result of dams constructed beginning early last century for irrigation and water storage. It took decades of persistent conservation effort to finally get them removed and restoration to begin on the Klamath River system. Work has begun, but not a moment too soon. In the meantime salmon seasons are likely to remain closed this year.
