There Was No Planning for the “Day After” (Klamath) Dam Removal

by Elizabeth Nielsen, Klamath Water Users Association Executive Director, KWUA November 1, 2025, Herald and News November 7, 2025

KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. — The rapid return of Chinook salmon to areas above the former Lower Klamath River Dam sites has captured widespread attention. While we marvel at this milestone, we must also temper it by the recognition that commitments made have not been fulfilled. During the last few years, there was a singular focus on bringing about the largest dam removal in U.S. history. As dam removal advocates predicted, this action has opened hundreds of miles of habitat.

But there are promises made to farmers and ranchers that have been ignored too long. They were made under the Klamath Power and Facilities Agreement (KPFA) nearly a decade ago and included preventing negative regulatory impacts to rural communities. (KPFAdigest).

Since 1953, Klamath Water Users Association (KWUA) has represented family farmers and ranchers of the Klamath Project, committed to preserving agriculture while also standing for the health of the Basin’s communities.

KWUA has a long history of working to bring stability and balance to the Klamath Basin. For decades, federal and state agencies, NGOs, Tribes, and other entities worked to effectuate dam removal, first through the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (KHSA), and then through its amendment. During the development of the KHSA, there was also its sister agreement, the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement (KBRA).

KWUA, a key party to the KBRA, recognized that a watershed-wide agreement was instrumental to the future of the Klamath Basin. We could have blocked or opposed dam removal, but we remained neutral. However, for nearly two decades, dam removal advocates have promised that there would be no new regulatory burdens from having salmon in our neighborhood. These commitments were codified in the 2010 Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement (KBRA) and restated in the 2016 KPFA.

Over the years, KWUA has repeatedly urged that these promises be addressed and kept before dams were out. That has not occurred; the commitments were eclipsed by agencies’ and other parties relentless focus on dam removal and fighting over water.

As the KPFA states:

“The Parties commit to take every reasonable and legally permissible step to avoid or minimize any adverse impact, in the form of new regulation or other legal or funding obligation that might occur to users of water or land associated with the Klamath Reclamation Project from introduction or reintroduction of aquatic species to currently unoccupied habitats or areas, or from habitat restoration activities.”

The KPFA then refers to commitments to address fish passage issues at Keno Dam, and, on a non-reimbursable basis, construction of facilities to prevent fish entrainment, namely fish screens at diversion facilities. These measures were intended to restore connectivity for fish populations while maintaining the viability of the Klamath Project’s infrastructure, and the viability of our agricultural legacy.

Reports of Chinook salmon entering Project canals make it clear that the primary focus must be the immediate installation of fish screens to protect both migrating fish and irrigation infrastructure.

Klamath Drainage District, one of KWUA’s member districts, has been advancing fish screen installations at key diversions in coordination with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and funding from the Bureau of Reclamation, but administrative hurdles have slowed progress.

KWUA, our irrigators, and our member districts have long fought for stability and practical solutions in the Klamath Basin. We have negotiated agreements, advocated for balanced water management, and worked toward infrastructure improvements. Our commitment to this Basin has never wavered.

Now it is time for state and federal partners to fulfill the commitments made under the KPFA; to protect both salmon and family farmers and ranchers.

Implementing these measures immediately is in the shared interest of all parties and stakeholders throughout the Basin. We cannot wait any longer.

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