President Donald Trump just saved the Snake River from a muddy grave. Last week, he issued a memorandum halting a Biden-era plan to dismantle four hydroelectric dams, as Just the News reports, a move that could have wrecked the region’s ecosystem and economy. This isn’t just a policy win -- it’s a middle finger to reckless environmentalism.
Trump’s memo scraps a Biden-Harris directive pushing for the Snake River dam removals, a plan mirroring the disastrous Klamath River project. The Klamath’s 2023 dam removal turned a pristine waterway into a sediment-choked mess, killing fish and gutting local livelihoods. Progressives called it “restoration”; locals call it ruin.
The Klamath saga started in 2010 with the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement, signed by federal agencies, tribes, and green groups. It birthed the Klamath River Renewal Corporation, tasked with overseeing the removal of four dams near the Oregon-California border. The agreement promised thriving fish and stable water for farmers—promises now drowned in mud.
By 2018, Siskiyou County residents were sounding alarms. Their lawyers warned the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission about risks to salmon, water quality, and local communities, slamming the corporation’s 2,300-page plan as flimsy on environmental review. Yet, the green machine rolled on, undeterred by reason.
In 2022, 79% of Siskiyou County voters rejected the Klamath dam removal. Despite this, the county board greenlit the project in May 2023, caving to pressure from California Gov. Gavin Newsom and environmentalists. The dams came down between September 2023 and October 2024, leaving devastation in their wake.
Sediment from the Klamath dam removal turned the river into a murky death trap for salmon. These fish, vital to the ecosystem, follow three-year cycles, swimming to the ocean and back to spawn. The sludge killed them en route, proving the “save the fish” mantra was a hollow sales pitch.
“They claimed it was to save the fish, but it was never really about fish,” said Richard Marshall, a Fort Jones resident. He’s right -- dam removal was about ideology, not ecology. Marshall’s community fought hard but lacked the cash to counter global eco-warriors.
Fishing tourism along the Klamath is dead. Al Kutzkey, owner of Kutzkey Guide Service, saw his business collapse: “My business is gone. It’s dead.” The river’s muddied waters are unfishable, and Kutzkey doubts any trout remain.
Salmon flies, a key food source for fish, have vanished. “This time of year, they should be everywhere,” Kutzkey noted, lamenting their absence. Without these insects, the entire river ecosystem—from fish to bugs—faces collapse.
The Klamath disaster was no surprise. Siskiyou County’s objections in 2018 highlighted risks to species, roads, and water supplies, but environmentalists ignored the warnings. Their “Definite Plan” underestimated costs and overstated benefits, a blueprint for failure.
Despite the carnage, green groups refuse to rethink dam removal. Jeff Reynolds, senior editor at Restoration News, predicted they’ll “push out propaganda” claiming success. Facts be damned -- narrative is king in their world.
Contractors and rafting guides have cashed in, with rafters now navigating a longer river. But this small gain comes at a brutal cost: fishing guides are bankrupt, and farmers face ruin if the last two Klamath dams are targeted. The agrarian heart of the region hangs by a thread.
Trump’s memorandum isn’t just about the Snake River -- it’s a stand against eco-fanaticism. “The negative impacts would be devastating,” he warned, citing the loss of low-cost energy. He’s not wrong; dams provide stable power, unlike the intermittent whims of wind and solar.
The Klamath debacle proves that dam removal is no silver bullet. Sediment-choked rivers, dead fish, and shattered communities are the real legacy of these projects. Biden’s team ignored this; Trump didn’t.
Siskiyou County’s fight shows the little guy can’t always win against well-funded green agendas. But with Trump’s intervention, the Snake River has a fighting chance to avoid Klamath’s fate. Common sense just scored a rare victory.
