You’ve provided security for yourself in the future, now you can plan to provide security for Idaho’s rivers. Your retirement plan is a simple, tax-efficient way to invest in Idaho’s rivers, helping secure the future of our fisheries and waterways.

IRU staff and several other organizations and members of the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes recently had the opportunity to tour the Owyhee canyonlands by air, courtesy of Ecoflight. This vast sagebrush steppe and remote river canyon covers parts of Idaho, Nevada, and Oregon and is home to over 600,000 acres of Wilderness and 324 miles of Wild and Scenic rivers. It’s Wild and Scenic Values are currently threatened by proposed flight operation changes over the canyons.

IRU Board Member, Pete DeLuca, shares his story on how he fell in love with Idaho’s rivers.

“When I was 15 years old, I had my first white water experience….We paddled Navy surplus rubber rafts and had two guides (rowing team members from Harvard). The first two days, I was terrified. But by the time we reached Shoup, I was hooked on whitewater.”

The settlement forces the state of Oregon to develop a plan to limit dangerous methylmercury pollution and accelerate critical remediation of water temperature impacts at the Hells Canyon Complex on the Snake River.

A low winter snowpack that melted off more rapidly than normal, followed by extreme temperatures, has left much of the state hot and dry. Our river systems and lakes are no exception, with this summer’s warm water conditions hurting native fish populations.

The Mountain Home Air Force Base is proposing changes to military overflight operations in the Owyhee canyonlands of Idaho, Oregon, and Nevada. The impacts of these changes on the people, wildlife, and character of this remarkable region would be significant and violate the Wild & Scenic protections for the area.

Environmental restoration, social justice, clean-energy measures, and endangered species recovery. These sound like pillars of the Democratic platform, yet it’s an Idaho Republican championing these efforts in the Pacific Northwest.

Meet IRU Member Doug Zamzow (IRU’s 2020 Member of the Year award recipient!). Doug has been a member of Idaho Rivers United since 2004, and has been an advocate for our rivers for decades.

Meet our newest Brewshed Alliance member: Mother Earth Brewing!

The public and conservation organizations pushed for a new environmental review of Perpetua Resources’ (formerly Midas Gold) Stibnite Gold Project after several major changes were made to the DEIS. The USFS responded, and will conduct a new Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, pushing further out the project timeline and offering new hope for the East Fork South Fork Salmon River.

Streamtech Boats was started by Link Jackson, who wanted to use his passions for boat building and art to make a difference for our rivers and fish. Streamtech Boats decided to partner with IRU, using their platform to support conservation initiatives and further awareness of our imperiled salmon and steelhead.

Eastern Washington legislators are using small fluctuations in spring Chinook to tout that dams and fish can coexist, but these arguments miss the reality that salmon populations are still far below recovery goals and on a downward trend.