Salmon released above dam mark first of their kind in 79 years

The Colville Tribes released 30 Chinook salmon at the Keller boat launch, just north of the Keller Ferry, on Aug.16, the first time salmon have been above the Grand Coulee Dam in nearly 80 years.

Roughly 300 people attended the event in which people formed two parallel, single-file lines stretching from a Colville Tribes Fish and Wildlife truck containing the salmon, to the shore.

The large fish were scooped out of the truck one at a time, placed into a rubber bag that was then passed along the lines of people to the shore, where the fish were emptied into Lake Roosevelt, the stretch of the Columbia River flooded by the Grand Coulee Dam.

Barb Aripa, a tribal elder, released the first salmon into the water.

Colville Business Council Chairman Rodney Cawston was among those who spoke at the event, reflecting on the history of the salmon being the primary staple in the diet of local area tribes, and the impact their disappearance had on their way of life.

"Ever since that time, with blocking the salmon, it impacted our people here on the Colville Reservation and the people around the Northwest," Cawston said. "We've lost so much."

Cawston mentioned the "Ceremony of Tears" held in 1940 at Kettle Falls, a longtime traditional fishing grounds that is now underwater.

Cawston reflected on that event, attended by thousands, as being the last time salmon had been in the upper Columbia River.

"Today, although we're only releasing 30 fish, it's very sacred to us, it's very important to us," Cawston said. "We have strong prayers today, because our ancestors, our elders at the Ceremony of Tears, they had strong prayers that one day we would see these fish return back to the river, back to our people."

A similar salmon release took place Aug. 9 at Lake Rufus Woods, the stretch of the Columbia River between Chief Joseph Dam and Grand Coulee Dam.

The releases are considered "cultural," and not a permanent solution to bringing salmon above the dams, as efforts for a more sustainable plan to keep salmon in the upper Columbia River continue.

Salmon migrate to and from the ocean during their lives, and with the dams in their way, that migration was made impossible. The Colvilles are among 15 tribes seeking to find a way to change that.

The salmon, taken from Wells Hatchery near Chelan, are fitted with tracking tags to monitor their behavior and activity, information that can be used to help future efforts to restore salmon above the dams.

Attendees included JT Austin, a senior policy advisor on natural resources for Gov. Jay Inslee, members from the Spokane and Kalispel tribes, CBC members, and more.