Largest Dam Removal in US to Begin in 2023

Largest Dam Removal in US to Begin in 2023
The Iron Gate Dam, powerhouse, and spillway on the lower Klamath River near Hornbrook, Calif, on March 3, 2020. Gillian Flaccus/AP Photo
The Associated Press
Updated:
0:00

HORNBROOK, Calif.—Tribal, state, and federal officials on Thursday cheered a plan for the largest dam removal in U.S. history along the Klamath River near the California–Oregon line as a major step toward restoring a once-thriving watershed that tribal communities have long relied on.

“Clean water, healthy forests, and fertile land made the Klamath River Basin and its surrounding watershed a home to tribal communities, productive agriculture, and a place where abundant populations of migratory birds, suckers, salmon and other fish could thrive,“ U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said. “We must take urgent and necessary action to protect this special place.”