Saving Seafood

Northwest gains support in fight over salmon hatchery funding

July 17, 2026 — A growing effort to restore federal funding for a Columbia River salmon hatchery program is drawing support from Congress as concerns mount over the potential impacts on commercial fishing communities in Oregon and Washington.

Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash., announced July 15 that she has asked the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to explain its decision to end funding for the Select Area Fisheries Enhancement (SAFE) program, arguing the move threatens both salmon recovery efforts and the fishing communities that depend on the fishery.

Read the full article at National Fisherman

WASHINGTON: ‘Real consequences’: Washington congresswoman questions Bonneville for ending salmon hatchery funds

July 16, 2026 — Washington Congresswoman Marie Gluesenkamp Perez is questioning the Bonneville Power Administration after the agency decided to stop funding a Columbia River hatchery program.

On July 7, the congresswoman sent a letter to BPA Administrator Travis Kavulla, requesting more information about the decision to stop funding the Select Area Fisheries Enhancement (SAFE) program after supporting the program for over 30 years.

Since the program began in 1993, the SAFE program has created commercial and sport fishing opportunities in off-stem areas of the Columbia River, the congresswoman’s office explained.

“This is a decision with real consequences,” Representative Gluesenkamp Perez said in a statement. “For decades, hatcheries have made sure there is a healthy population of salmon in the river. This isn’t abstract to people here – commercial and sport fishing is part of our heritage and our way of life. Supporting hatcheries is critical to sustaining the communities whose livelihoods depend on them.”

Read the full article at KOIN