What Returned to the Klamath River Within Weeks of the Dams Coming Down

The Klamath River once produced one of the largest salmon runs on the West Coast. Four hydroelectric dams built between 1918 and 1962 cut the fish off from hundreds of miles of spawning habitat. In 2023 and 2024, all four came down — the largest dam removal project in United States history. This investigation covers what happened next: the sediment release everyone feared, the water quality readings, the tribal-led campaign that spent more than two decades getting to this point, and the salmon that were documented above the former dam sites within weeks of the river running free. 📍 In this investigation: Why the runs collapsed and what disease outbreaks revealed The sediment problem that made removal so contentious What the Yurok, Karuk, and Klamath Tribes spent twenty years arguing How quickly fish moved into reopened habitat What is still uncertain about the recovery 📚 Sources: Klamath River Renewal Corporation, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, NOAA Fisheries. #KlamathRiver #DamRemoval #SalmonRecovery