Judge Refuses to Divert Water for Endangered Salmon on Klamath River

Photo: The Klamath River near its mouth on the Pacific Ocean in Klamath, California. (By Daniel Wade – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0)

By SAN FRANCISCO (CN) — Despite claims the federal government is pushing threatened Coho salmon closer to the brink of extinction by cutting off extra water flows to the Klamath River, a federal judge on Friday refused to intervene in the long-running water dispute.

U.S. District Judge William Orrick III found the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation did not violate a short-term deal struck with the Yurok Tribe in March by halting planned water flows after an extremely dry April reduced the expected water supply.

“It appears the bureau is acting appropriately and complying with the interim plan,” Orrick said during a video conference hearing on the Yurok Tribe’s motions to lift a stay on litigation and issue a temporary restraining order against the federal agency.

After suing two federal agencies in charge of planning for and managing water resources for the Klamath Project on the California-Oregon border, the Yurok Tribe reached a temporary deal in March that promised flows of 40,000 acre feet of water in May and June through 2022 under certain conditions.

Then came an extremely dry April that that failed to produce the […]

Full article: Judge Refuses to Divert Water for Endangered Salmon on Klamath River