More Positive Press on Pomeroy Dam Removal Project
This ongoing WaterWatch-led project has already demolished the 10-foot high, 270-foot wide Pomeroy Dam on the Illinois River to restore access to 100 miles of salmon and steelhead habitat, replaced the dam's diversion function with two screened and metered pumps, and replaced two fish-blocking county road culverts. Project improvements to local road and irrigation infrastructure continue into 2025. There's more in a Grants Pass Daily Courier story, a segment from KOBI-TV News in Medford, and at our media and press page.

End of the Year Report Highlights 2024 Accomplishments
At WaterWatch we're mindful our efforts aren't possible without your support, and every day we're inspired by your passion and concern for Oregon's rivers. We're proud to partner with you. As we prepare to celebrate our 40th anniversary throughout 2025, consider making an end-of-the-year gift today. There are many ways to give. Reach out to WaterWatch development officer Jesse Robbins with any questions, and spend some time with our 2024 End of the Year Accomplishments report that arrived in mailboxes last weekend.

WaterWatch at Portland Patagonia Thursday, Dec. 19th
Join us at the Downtown Portland Patagonia store across from Powell's Books at 1106 W. Burnside St. this Thursday, Dec. 19th, from 3 to 6 p.m. as WaterWatch of Oregon returns to Patagonia to talk about our work to preserve streamflows in Oregon rivers, remove outdated dams and impediments to fish passage, share our 2024 successes and accomplishments, and share holiday cheer as we help gift wrap purchases in recycled Patagonia tote bags with a few WaterWatch extras included. Visit our Events page for more!

Instream: Attention in Klamath Turns to Keno Dam
With the removal of the four lower Klamath River dams, attention now turns to the Keno Dam on the upper Klamath, which transferred from PacifiCorp to U.S. Bureau of Reclamation ownership. Keno Dam doesn't generate hydropower, but does regulate upstream water levels for the benefit of irrigation diversions. Keno's problematic fish ladder impedes access to over 300 miles of salmon and steelhead habitat, making it one of the highest priorities for fish passage correction. WaterWatch covered the dam's status in our fall issue of Instream.

Planetary Impacts from Ongoing Groundwater Depletion
In an astonishing story featured last month in Popular Mechanics, it appears the ongoing depletion of groundwater worldwide has been a "significant contributor to global sea level rise" since the 1990s, and that groundwater pumping has a "substantial impact on the tilt of Earth's rotation." So much so, in fact, that the Earth's axis has, according to a study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters in 2023, shifted 31.5 degrees as a result of groundwater pumping, which equates to .24 inches of sea level rise.

Conservationists Welcome Monarch Butterfly Listing
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced plans this week to list monarch butterflies as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act, primarily due to the ongoing drop in monarch butterfly populations, a result of habitat loss from increased development and the continued eradication of milkweed, a critical food source for monarch butterflies that's often considered a pest. In Oregon, wild milkweed untainted by pesticides can be found in wetland areas like the Klamath Basin, a critical program area for WaterWatch.