Dear Friend,

Thanks to you, we are making progress on Winchester Dam.

Wednesday morning, representatives from three state agencies — the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW), Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the Oregon Water Resources Department (OWRD) — have been asked to speak before the state Senate Interim Committee on Natural Resources and Wildlife regarding this summer's calamitous repairs at the 133-year-old Winchester Dam on the North Umpqua River.

This is the highest level of government scrutiny this derelict, outlaw dam has received in decades, and YOU made this happen. Your protests delivered to our elected officials' offices — against the deaths of upwards of hundreds of thousands of Pacific lamprey, against the extensive use of tire mats in the river bed likely containing compounds lethal to salmon and steelhead, against repeated wet cement spills into the river impacting aquatic species and habitat, against the bottling up of iconic and imperiled North Umpqua summer steelhead during a heat wave solely for the economic convenience of the Winchester Dam owners, against the harmful Winchester Dam itself — these protests have started to be heard.

And Wednesday's meeting demonstrates that when we work together to compile evidence and message our concerns about scofflaws harming our rivers, we get results. And clearly, in the case of Winchester Dam, that unified voice has only been growing in volume demanding enforcement action from our state regulatory agencies. We have only just begun.

We invite you to watch the hearing Wednesday morning, or stream later at your convenience. Afterwards, if you have questions you would like to ask state agencies or the Governor's office about the situation at Winchester Dam, we'd love to hear it. Let us know here! While your questions may not be asked tomorrow, they could be a big help in future hearings, discussions and advocacy.

At WaterWatch of Oregon, we're often told to keep up the good work. But in this case, we want to share with you that YOUR comments, calls, protests and other good work are having results! This is a win in the ongoing fight to remove the derelict Winchester Dam, restore a free-flowing North Umpqua River, and help protect irreplaceable native salmon and steelhead. And — it's a win for you.

Thank you, and keep up the good work!