The snow is starting to fall in the Upper Salmon Basin marking the end of another irrigation season for the fish screen shop and our partners in agriculture. This summer 265 fish screens scattered across the Salmon River basin kept hundreds of thousands of fish from being diverted into irrigation ditches and farm fields.
During the summer the Anadromous Fish Screen program maintains and operates the fish screens to protect Chinook salmon, steelhead, westslope cutthroat, bull trout and resident fish. In the winter months our shop crew moves inside to refurbish screens and fabricate screens, head gates, and other infrastructure to support our growing needs.
This conservation success story is a cooperative effort between local irrigators and the Anadromous Fish Screen program. We are proud to work for the people and resources of the State of Idaho.