October 6, 2023 2:40 p.m.  (photo credits: Will Geschke)

On Friday, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife filed a $27.6 million claim for recovery of damages in Douglas County Circuit Court against the Winchester Water Control District and associated contractors for the alleged loss of 550,000 juvenile Pacific lamprey during the WWCD’s recent repairs to the Winchester Dam.

An ODFW release said the number of lamprey killed as a result of an inadequate fish salvage effort was “significant and preventable”.

ODFW said the North Umpqua River’s diverse fish populations are unique within Oregon and are of considerable social, cultural, and economic importance locally and regionally. The damages claim seeks reparation for the loss of “a valuable public resource”.

This is one of the largest damages claims for illegal killing of wildlife that has been filed in the state.

The release said Pacific lamprey are listed as a Sensitive Species on ODFW’s Sensitive Species List and are culturally significant to Pacific Northwest tribes.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality also issued a pre-enforcement notice to the WWCD for alleged water quality violations associated with the Winchester Dam repairs in the summer of 2023. The release said these violations risk significant environmental harm to the North Umpqua River. DEQ’s Office of Compliance and Enforcement is reviewing all the relevant details of the alleged violations and will issue a final enforcement order in the next few weeks.

More information on the Winchester Dam repair project is available on the ODFW website: https://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/passage/winchester_dam_repair.asp