The Latest from ICL
Rocky Point: Building a Safer Path for Idahoans and Our Wildlife
A dangerous stretch of highway is getting a safer future for Idaho drivers and wildlife. The new Rocky Point Wildlife Crossing will help reconnect critical mule deer habitat, reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions, and show what’s possible when communities, agencies, and conservationists work together. Now, Idaho has an opportunity to build on that success.
There is an opportunity to resolve upper Lochsa land ownership, and we should embrace it
A long-standing checkerboard of public and private lands in Idaho’s upper Lochsa watershed has created challenges for wildfire management, wildlife habitat, public access, and economic development. A new proposal—the PG3 Upper Lochsa Acquisition—offers a potential path forward by consolidating 27,500 acres into the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest, supporting future growth around Powell, and providing funding to offset lost county tax revenue.
URGENT opportunity to take action for North Idaho Grizzlies!
The USFWS has primary responsibilities for recovering grizzly bears in the lower 48, including 6 western recovery zones. The Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee—a leadership team of state and federal agencies—is seeking comment on a draft conservation plan regarding multiple benchmarks in the Selkirk Cabinet-Yaak Ecosystem. Learn more and speak up for North Idaho grizzlies by August 24th!
Quaggas are still in the Snake River - here’s what you need to know
Earlier this week, the Idaho State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) announced that quagga mussels were once again detected in the Mid-Snake River.
Stolen Summers: Heat, Smoke, and the Summer We Knew
Climate change has hijacked our summers and replaced the joy of our favorite outdoor summer activities with the claustrophobia of being trapped inside to escape the lung-searing smoke. But summer is not entirely lost yet—and a healthy climate is not lost to us either.
Shared Waters: A Film for a Defining Moment for the Kootenai River
Shared Waters: Ktunaxa and the Coal Mines is a film that explores the long fight for clean water and cultural survival in the Elk Kootenai/ay River Basin, as the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho and other Ktunaxa Nation leaders confront unchecked coal mine pollution in British Columbia, and push for justice across international borders.
The Norm: Hot water and low fish returns
Idaho’s salmon are once again in hot water.
But we are not heading toward a crisis. We are in one.
After Decades of Investment, Salmon Mitigation is Falling Short
When the lower Snake River dams were built over half a century ago, a promise was made: the loss of salmon would be mitigated. Hatcheries became a central part of that promise, intended to replace fish lost to hydropower. Decades later, and after billions of dollars, a new paper led by Idaho Fish and Game asks: are those mitigation efforts achieving the goals they were created to meet?
NOAA Fisheries photo.