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"[T]here was great joy with the natives last night in consequence of the arrival of the Salmon; one of those fish was caught; this was the harbinger of good news to them. They informed us that these fish would arrive in great quantities in the course of about 5 days. this fish was dressed and being divided into small peices was given to each child in the village. this custom is founded in a supersticiuos opinion that it will hasten the arrival of the Salmon." -- Meriwether Lewis
 Near the Dalles and all along the Columbia River, the Corps of Discovery witnessed a salmon economy in full swing. Salmon were at the end of their seasonal upstream surge and the Native Americans in the area had all the fish they could want and enough to trade. Clark noted wooden houses where half the rooms were devoted to dried salmon and estimated that stacks on nearby rocks contained 10,000 pounds of fish.
Even more frequently than they commented on the amount of salmon, though, the explorers mentioned the rough, surging currents that made canoeing a challenge. This was the key to the salmon's abundance; they thrived in the pure water and rapid rivers that characterized the Columbia River basin.
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The key actions we can take to return the salmon to healthy populations are:
Remove the four dams on the lower Snake River to restore a free-flowing river and a healthy migration and spawning corridor. These dams only produce 5 percent or less of the Northwest's power supply.
Halt National Marine Fisheries Service plans to dredge the estuary at the lower Columbia to allow additional ships and barges through. This dredging will stir up toxic metals in the riverbed and further degrade salmon habitat.
Fully fund the Northwest Final Salmon Plan. This National Marine Fisheries Service plan calls for restoring and preserving salmon habitat all along the Columbia River basin, managing water levels through dams to take into account wildlife needs, and reforming hatcheries. Currently the Bush administration has proposed funding the plan at half the recommended levels.
Protect remaining wildlands and roadless areas in our national forests, which contain some of the last, best plant and wildlife habitat in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, including additions to the Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness Area, and St. Joe, Nez Perce, Clearwater, Lolo, and Bitterroot National Forests.
Remove old logging roads in western Washington and Oregon to restore healthy ecosystems and forests.
Control sprawl and "nonpoint-source" pollution in Puget Sound and the Willamette Valley.
Protect land along the Columbia River Gorge by purchasing properties with Land and Water Conservation Funds.
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