In less than a century, the impacts of irrigation, hydropower projects, and other human activities throughout the Deschutes Basin have disrupted the natural water systems and environmental conditions that sustained abundant steelhead populations for millennia.

In order to take steps toward habitat recovery, it is important to understand how we’ve fundamentally changed these waterways.

The steelhead trout is one of the Pacific Northwest’s most iconic species of fish.

In this series, we’re exploring the history of steelhead in the Deschutes Basin, the impacts irrigation and development have had on this species and their habitat, the actions water managers and regulators are proposing to address threats to this species, and whether they go far enough to restore the critical habitat this iconic species needs and deserves.