12/23 Tri-Cities Herald – Dam projects improve migration of salmon – By Tri-City Herald
Improvements at all eight federal Snake and lower Columbia River dams boosted the safe migration of juvenile salmon and steelhead last year, a federal study says.
Army Corps of Engineers officials said completion of improvements such as spillway weirs, also called fish slides, help speed young fish downstream past dams by keeping them near the water surface, where they naturally migrate.
For example, tests at Little Goose Dam on the Snake River found 99.4 percent of yearling chinook, 99.8 percent of steelhead and 95.2 percent of sub-yearling chinook passed the dam safely.
The assessment report says in-river survival of juvenile Snake River steelhead migrating to the ocean in 2009 reached its highest level in 12 years, a sign the fish are benefiting from improved surface passage.
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http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2013754442_damimprovements24.html