PHOTO: Starting January 2024, water levels behind the Klamath dams were gradually lowered over several weeks to prevent flooding and minimize downstream sediment impacts. (Credit: USGS ORWSC)
Portland State University’s Jill Marshall, an assistant professor in Geology (part of PSU’s new School of Earth, Environment, and Society) and Civil and Environmental Engineering, recently took a trip down the newly undammed Klamath River. She had the opportunity to witness something truly remarkable: the lower Klamath River flowing freely for the first time in over 100 years.
On June 19th, Jill joined seven friends, most of whom had worked on fish passage, water quality, and watershed restoration issues in some capacity, on a three-day, two-night trip down a section of the river that had been blocked by dams for nearly a century. For someone like Jill, who has spent close to twenty years working on river restoration and fish conservation, this was more than just a vacation; it was a dream come true. “The restored river is beautiful,” Jill wrote after the trip. “It was heartwarming to see the progress in revegetation and all the new access points going in, as well as the important role that Indigenous communities have played in the dam removal and ongoing rebirth of the river .”
The Klamath River begins in southern Oregon and flows over 250 miles to the coast of northern California. For decades, the lower Klamath was choked by a series of dams that blocked fish from migrating upstream, dried out or drowned entire stretches of riverbed. The ecosystem suffered, and so did the Indigenous communities. Now, in what has become the largest dam removal project in U.S. history, those barriers are finally gone. The entire Klamath Watershed contains 420 miles of Salmon habitat that is now fully connected with the removal of four of the six dams, according to NOAA Fisheries. The lower Klamath is running again, and with it, hope for fish, wildlife, and people.
Jill said one of the most stunning parts of the journey was a place called Kikacéki Canyon, also known as Ward’s Canyon, a steep, rocky section of the river that hadn’t seen flowing water in 99 years. Jill wrote, “Much work went into removing trees that had taken root in the dry riverbed. It was by far my favorite part of the trip. Coming out into the valley, you can still see the faint remains of one of the old dams peeking through the plants growing back.”
But the restoration isn’t just about the main river. Many smaller streams and creeks that flow into the Klamath are also being cared for. These cool, shaded waters are especially important for fish like salmon and steelhead, which need clean, cold water to thrive.
Much of the land near Kikacéki Canyon has been returned to the Shasta Nation, who have lived in this region since time immemorial. This restoration is already making headlines. Earlier this summer, Paddle Tribal Waters organized Tribal youth who completed the first full descent of the undammed Klamath River, paddling through stretches of water that hadn’t flowed in their lifetimes or their grandparents’ lifetimes.
At the same time, California’s Department of Fish and Wildlife is working on a long-term plan to help wild salmon and steelhead return and thrive. Jill has spent years working on river and fish issues and came away from the trip feeling hopeful and deeply moved. “To witness a river coming back to life and to travel through a canyon that hadn’t seen water in nearly a century, it’s something I’ll carry with me forever.”
Jill Marshall is an Assistant Professor at Portland State University. She and her students work at the intersection of rock, water, and life to better understand how landscapes evolve as climate and their associated ecosystems change, and how rock properties shape rivers and river corridors. She is happiest in waders.