The new hot topic is dam removal, everyone wants to get into the act. Where it interferes with spawning salmon sounds like a good idea as long as it is still viable. Some dams were built for flood control and maybe that is the highest and best use. Older dams built for mill ponds and to power industrial age machinery have some historic significance.
Some will say that they want to establish or re establish some sea run fishery, there I think some research is needed to see if that fishery has a historic presence . If it truly was never there or marginal habitat at best, one would wonder why. Just wanting something doesn't mean it will happen, nature can take only so much tinkering. Some study will be needed to see if there are any negatives that may complicate things. Sea borne invasive's are a bigger threat than the lack of a free flowing stream for a maybe sea run fishery. A prime example id the Welland canal, opened up the Great Lakes to the St Lawrence River. The result was lamprey that decimated the lake trout. Now the bordering states spend millions in attempts to control this major invader. The next invader into that system was the alewives, that further pressured the lakes, till finally pacific salmon were introduced to feed on the alewives. Poor planning and poor fixing all around! Dam!
