Some groups are working on campaigns aimed at removing river dams that block salmon passage to the ocean. Other groups are focusing on controlling the number of salmon lost to harvesting and predators. They want to expand the Endangered Species Act so that it protects more salmon. The National Office of the Izaak Walton League, as well as many chapters, especially those in California, Oregon and Washington, have been concerned with salmon restoration for years. These groups have been involved in various projects, including fighting the construction of quite a few different dams, and working to improve fish habitat conditions through their Save Our Streams Program activities.
Several reasons are to blame for dwindling salmon populations.
Hydropower Operations dams set up on major waterways that migrating salmon travel block their passage. Although Atlantic salmon are found off the East Coast of North America, to keep things simple we will concentrate on the five species of Pacific salmon. They include Chinook salmon, Coho salmon, Chum salmon, Pink salmon and Sockeye salmon, and they inhabit the waters from California all the way up into Alaska. Each type of species has special characteristics, but one thing common to all of them is their life cycle. Adult salmon spawn in gravel beds of rivers and streams.