Klamath basin irrigation managers say return of salmon has brought new challenges

KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. — It's a been a little over a year since the last of four dams on the Lower Klamath River came down in Southern Oregon, opening up hundreds of miles of prime salmon spawning habitat that had been cut off for more than a century. Chinook salmon are once again making their way up the river, but some of them have taken a wrong turn.

"My district, the concern is we don't want the fish going where the fish shouldn't be going," said Scott White, general manager of the Klamath Drainage District, which provides irrigation water to 27,000 acres of farmland. "We don't want to see fish flopping around out in the fields. That's not a good thing."

The Lower Klamath dams had been in place since 1918 and most recently provided hydropower for PacificCorp, although the utility said