2008
1. Pollution from industry and agriculture, sewage from waste treament and introduction of non-native species have all created an unhealthy environment for the fisheries of the Potomac River. Fish kills, sightings of fish with lesions and a condition called intersex have all increased in recent years.
Read the press release and fact sheet. You can learn more about the threats to the fisheries and how you can help us help the Potomac!
2007
1. Massive gold and copper mine threaten salmon and trout of the Koktuli and Upper Talarik of SW Alaska. Read More.... Press Release and Fact Sheet
2. Copper mine in Gifford-Pinchot National Forest, Washington threaten trout and salmon of the Green River. Read More... Press Release and Fact Sheet
2006
1. Emergency Listing - North Fork of the White River, Arkansas - Development project with zero permit compliance which resulted in massive erosion into the river.
2. The Canadian firm, Atlanta Gold Company, has plans to construct an open-pit cyanide heap leach mine, located in the headwaters of the Boise River, Idaho.
3. The Salmon Trout River, located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is also threatened by a hard rock mine. The British firm, Kennecott Minerals Company, has plans to construct an underground mine to extract sulfide ore containing copper and nickel from a location in the headwaters of the Salmon Trout River.
2005
1. Sacramento - San Joaquin River Delta, California - Invasive species, toxins, and channelization. In addition, massive fresh water export threatens this important water resource
2004
1. Lower Snake River, Idaho - Federal dams impede the migration of salmon and steelhead.
2003
1. Chicago River, Cal-Sag Canal, Illinois - Exotic Bighead carp have been found in the Illinois River and Cal-Sag Canal leading to the Chicago River. Without the installation of a permanent electrical barrier in the Cal-Sag Canal, the Bighead carp could pass through the Chicago River locks to Lake Michigan. The introduction of Bighead carp to Lake Michigan would likely have a serious negative impact on the entire Great Lakes recreational fishery.
2. Ventura River, Ventura County, California -Matilija Dam, construction encroachment, erosion, exotic species, and non-point source pollution threaten endangered Southern California steelhead.
In 2003, Yellowstone Lake was removed from FFF's list of Endangered Fisheries when congressional funding for lake trout removal was restored and the program continued to provide protection for native cutthroat trout.
2002
1. Yellowstone Lake, Wyoming - Introduced lake trout threaten native populations of cutthroat trout. Congressional funding for lake trout removal was eliminated from the federal budget. Without this critical effort, cutthroat trout in Yellowstone Lake may face extinction.
2. Klamath River, Oregon and California - Once the third most productive salmon river system in the United States, agricultural runoff, impoundments, water diversion and logging have reduced the once abundant salmon runs to less than 10% of their historic size.
3. Gulf of Mexico, Southeastern United States - Over-harvesting, loss of critical habitats and destructive trawling techniques threaten fisheries throughout the coastal Gulf of Mexico. In addition, nutrient-laden pollution from agricultural runoff carried in Mississippi River waters has caused an oxygen-depleted "dead zone" covering thousands of square miles along the Texas-Louisiana coast.
2001
1. East Fork Lewis River, Washington - The impacts of gravel mining on water quality threaten salmonid populations.
2. Strawberry River, Arkansas - The proposed construction of the Bell Foley Dam by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the creation of a large reservoir threatens an important warmwater fishery.
3. Blackwater River, West Virginia - Logging, water diversions, and acidic mine waste threaten water quality. A move to change designation of parts of Blackwater River from a coldwater to a warmwater fishery would further lessen water quality protections for the local salmonid fishery.
4. Kansas River, Kansas - Pesticides have rendered bottom-feeding fish unsafe for human consumption. Numerous point sources and non-point sources of water pollution threaten the river's water quality and the long-term survival of the fish community.
2000
1. Guadalupe River, Texas - Diversion of water for municipal and industrial use threatens instream flow.
2. LeTort Spring Run, Pennsylvania - Proposed commercial and residential development threatens water quality and fish habitat.
3. Deep Creek, California - Development pressures and water diversion threaten habitat and instream flow.
4. Streams Containing Sea-run Cutthroat Trout, Washington - Development and impoundments threaten populations of sea-run cutthroat trout.
1999
1. Wolf River, Wisconsin - Potential zinc/copper sulfide mining threatens water quality.
2. Crooked Creek, Arkansas - Existing gravel mining degrades water quality.
3. Big Spring Run, Pennsylvania - Improper hatchery operations has resulted in poor water quality.
4. Snake River, Idaho - Federal dams impede the migration of salmon and steelhead.
5. San Joaquin River, California -Development, logging and mining threaten steelhead populations