IRU and Pacific Rivers have filed a petition to challenge the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s Clean Water Act certification of the Hells Canyon Complex of dams on the Snake River.

Idaho Rivers United has been dedicated to our Guide Education program for over 15 years; this tradition allows us to build stronger relationships with river lovers from all over the United States.  As the Outreach and Education Coordinator for Idaho Rivers United I was given the opportunity to travel along Idaho’s rivers educating guides for the last two months.

For The River’s,

Danielle Warnke

Governor Brad Little convened his Salmon Work Group for their first meeting Friday, June 28, in Boise. His opening remarks rang hollow as he stated, “I remain unconvinced at this time that breaching the dams will recover salmon in Idaho. In order to keep this diverse group of stakeholders (together), we will put polarizing issues aside and focus on pragmatic, achievable solutions." IRU, and other conservation partners remain steadfast, however, that the work group must address dam breaching as a viable option in their deliberations. To not do so would be to ignore sound science on salmon hydrosystem mortality and invite the recycling of decades of failed recovery plans. 

We are pleased with the recent announcement concerning the first meeting of the Governor’s Salmon Workgroup in Boise. Governor Little has assumed a position of leadership on the recovery of our native salmon and steelhead, an issue IRU has been passionately involved in for the last two and a half decades.

The public comment period for the Black Rock Land Exchange draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) has opened and will last until the 5th of July. A full EIS is due to be completed in order to study the impacts of the land exchange proposed by the J.R. Simplot Company with federally owned lands managed by the BLM.

Our work is inspired daily by the love and passion our members have for Idaho and her rivers. Our friend Earl Dodds, has written a wonderful article, published by The Star-News, which so eloquently expresses the power of an individual, especially those who fight to protect what they love. Earl served as the Big Creek District Ranger on the Payette National Forest for more than 25 years.

IRU is pleased to welcome Nic Nelson as our incoming Executive Director. Nic, a Wyoming native and a graduate of the University of Idaho, has been a professional in the fields of conservation, development and nonprofit administration for over 12 years. Most recently Nic has been with the Peregrine Fund as the Director of Partnerships.

Last week a packed Boise State Andrus Center room listened in rapt attention as both Congressman Mike Simpson and Governor Brad Little spoke at a conference on energy, salmon, agriculture, and community. Restoring Snake River salmon and steelhead runs that are dangerously close to blinking out was the conference’s major theme. Meeting energy needs and maintaining agricultural ways of life were important caveats to the discussion.

IRU, along with a group of partners, recently filed an Amicus Brief following a bad decision out of the D.C. Appellate Court regarding Clean Water Act certification of federally licensed hydropower projects.

The South Fork of the Salmon, a whitewater river with important spawning habitat for migrating fish, has again been named a Most Endangered River on American River’s annual list. The reason and threat are still the same: Midas Gold’s Stibnite Project, a proposed gold mine at the headwaters of the river, that threatens downstream tribal nations, communities, and species that rely on a healthy South Fork.

Ben Lzicar, a Boise resident and avid river recreator, shares his concerns with how Idaho Power’s clean energy goals have failed to acknowledge hydropower’s drawbacks. He brings up the detrimental impacts dams have on Idaho’s native fish populations, as well as the fact that the reservoirs dams create emit a significant amount of greenhouse gases.

Aveda is credited with raising over $60 million dollars through their Earth Month program between 1999 and November 2018. Idaho Rivers United is lucky enough to be one of the beneficiaries of Aveda salon efforts in Boise, Twin Falls, Hailey, Pocatello and Idaho Falls. Join us this April to celebrate Earth Month, our partnership with Aveda and the phenomenal people who make it all possible.

On an advertising panel in Boise’s Camel’s Back Park, Midas Gold lays out the attractions of their proposed Stibnite Project located in the headwaters of the East Fork of the South Fork of the Salmon River. The advertisement claims the project will boost Idaho’s economy, provide employment opportunities, and restore fish migration to the nearby rivers and streams. Nowhere on the sign does Midas acknowledge that the Stibnite Project is a massive open-pit gold mining operation that will put a unique and cherished place at risk of losing its wild heart.

This week a judge has ruled in favor of the Forest Service in their case against 35 placer mining claims located along the South Fork of the Payette River. The decision signifies a victory for the numerous local outfitters, rafters, kayakers, businesses, and conservation groups that opposed the development of mining activities along this stretch of river.

Following a public meeting where Valley County residents expressed to their commissioners a strong opposition to the proposed agreement, Midas withdrew their offer. Moreover, the Idaho Attorney General’s office has raised valid issues regarding Midas Gold’s Stibnite Advisory Council. At IRU, we were leery about this partnership agreement from the very beginning, Assistant Chief Deputy Brian Kane solidified our concerns.

In the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr’s 1963 - I Have a Dream Speech, Bert Bowler shares “A Dream for Restoring Wild Snake River Salmon and Steelhead".”

Midas Gold has been working diligently to convince the communities of the West Central Mountains to sign a partnership agreement which is being touted to investors in exchange for rising stock prices. This past Monday notched a big win for those who oppose the Stibnite Gold Project. After due diligence by the City of McCall, the Council unanimously voted not to sign an agreement with Midas Gold.

If I had to describe Idaho’s South Fork of the Salmon in one phrase, I’d call it the rowdy cousin to its more famous and beloved drainage to the east, the Middle Fork. I’d even go a little further and call it the three-bourbons-deep, wrassle-you-to-the-ground, slap-your-ass-and-leave-some-pawprints babe of a cousin to the Middle Fork.  I had the pleasure of getting my first taste of a solid South Fork welcoming slap a couple years ago.

Fall 2018 semester, IRU was fortunate to work with Boise State University’s Service Learning Program. We coordinated with Professor Mari Rice’s Environmental Studies class to recruit passionate students to join IRU for a semester. Over the course of the semester, students researched conservation policy, assisted in our education program, and created helpful communication tools we plan to implement over the next several months. These eight students surpassed our expectations.

Idaho Rivers United encourages the Idaho Fish and Game Commission to move quickly to reopen steelhead fishing while awaiting a final permit from NOAA.