In regard to the Lyle Falls fishway project, The Columbian erroneously stated that the project would provide fish passage around a hydroelectric facility in the Klickitat River (“Cheers and Jeers,” Aug. 21). The reality is that Bonneville Power Administration is spending $12.5 million to upgrade an existing fish ladder around a natural migration barrier that historically determined which species could access the upper Klickitat River.
For better or worse, fish managers will now get an even greater opportunity to control which salmon stocks are allowed to succeed or fail in the Klickitat River.
I just wish BPA would have spent the funds on restoring habitat for native fish rather than upgrading a fish ladder that is an artifact of the glory days of 1950s fisheries management.
Tony Meyer
CAMAS
