The Trinity River, which begins in the Trinity Alps and eventually joins the Lower Klamath River on its way to the Pacific Ocean, is renowned for its strong returns of both steelhead and salmon. The river serves as both a recreational haven for fisherman and other outdoor enthusiasts as well as a subsistence fishery for the Hoopa Indian Tribe. Over a decade ago, habitat studies were initiated whose results led to the establishment of the Trinity River Restoration Program (TRRP), which began efforts to reverse damage caused by dam and water diversion projects established during the 1950s and 1960s and to restore naturally-spawning populations of salmon and steelhead to near pre-dam levels. Today, fishing guides and the California Water Impact Network (C-WIN) are calling for a halt to these restoration efforts.

In a letter to the TRRP, co-authored by the Trinity River Guide Association and C-WIN, these organizations are requesting that a moratorium be placed on further restoration efforts -- halting Phase 2 of the TRRP slated to begin in 2012 -- until a proper assessment of Phase 1 efforts can be completed. Specifically, Phase 1 efforts have raised concerns regarding the fill-in of holding pools due to the introduction of excess gravel introduction into the river as well as the failure of side channels constructed as part of restoration efforts. The letter calls the TRRP's restoration efforts "ill-designed", stating that there has been "significant negative environmental consequences of the TRRP’s actions that have not been adequately analyzed ... and we can no longer idly stand by."

Tomorrow, the Supreme Court will begin hearing arguments in a case where the methods of determining stream ownership rights are at issue. In the case, PPL Montana LLC vs. Montana, the Supreme Court is faced with deciding what the proper criteria for determining whether a river is navigable, specifically as it relates to title rights, is the current navigability of a river or the navigability of a river at the time the state in which it is found was incorporated. Though this distinction may seem insignificant, the court's decision could have far reaching impacts on stream access rights around the country.

PPL Montana, a Montana power generation company that owns hydroelectric dams on the famous Missouri, Madison and Clark Fork Rivers, is arguing that the Montana Supreme Court decision which gave ownership rights of the streambeds of these three rivers to the State of Montana was an erroneous one. Both sides will present arguments on what the proper legal distinction determining navigability is, and both sides reportedly plan to cite information from the historical Lewis and Clark expedition.