Outlet Dam News Today

Outlet Dam construction is in full swing this month and during this phase, 100% of the river’s flow is being directed through a man-made flume within the dam.

Construction on Priest Lake’s Outlet Dam resumed construction in October and will be undergoing renovations throughout the winter of 2023.

Officials have announced that Lake Pend Oreille is beginning its annual fall drawdown on Sept. 19 this year. The lake is generally held at a normal pool of 2,062.5 until the third Sunday in September or Sept. 18, whichever is later.

Recent spring rains and late snow have helped the area's watershed, Idaho Lakes Commission officials said recently. "We need [the rain and snow] to keep the watershed full, the rivers flowing, the groundwater replenished, and so much more," Molly McCahon, Lakes Commission executive director, said in a recent update. "Every year the hydrology in the Pend Oreille Basin varies, but there are some general patterns and dates you can expect, just do not bet the farm on these."

Priest Lake is a prime summer destination for many in the Inland Northwest — with cabins and resorts dotting its shoreline and a steady water...

Not all rivers are created equally. Some, like the St. Joe River in North Idaho, boast good habitat and reliably cold water, resulting in robust coldwater fish populations, such as westslope cutthroat and bull trout. However, others, like the Priest River, are not so fortunate. For decades, Priest River has suffered from warm water temperatures during the summer months.

The last time alewives made the 70-mile journey from the ocean to China Lake in central Maine, the American Revolution had just come to an end in 1783. Since then, the sea run fish, also known as river herring, have been blocked from their historic spawning grounds by a series of dams. But this week, something remarkable happened: the fish returned.

The last time alewives made the 70-mile journey from the ocean to China Lake in central Maine, the American Revolution had just come to an end in 1783. Since then, the sea run fish, also known as river herring, have been blocked from their historic spawning grounds by a series of dams. But this week, something remarkable happened: the fish returned.

Maine officials are warning people who catch and eat fish in seven specific freshwater lakes, streams and other bodies of water about harmful PFAS chemicals...

UNITY — The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC) issued Thursday new freshwater fish consumption advisories on seven waterbodies in Maine, including one in Waldo County. The new advisories come after testing of fish in these...