Winchester Dam, The Most Dangerous Dam in Oregon

Conservation Today

Permit violations during the August 2023 repairs of the Winchester Dam on the North Umpqua River near Roseburg, resulted in the biggest fish kill on an Oregon River this year. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife fined the dam’s owners and their contractors $27.6 million dollars for the needless death of hundreds of thousands on native fish.

The Winchester Dam was condemned in 1976. The Oregon Water Resource District gave the dam their highest danger rating, “high hazard,” meaning: “the department expects loss of human life to occur if the dam fails.”

Mike Ruehle and Adam Miller of Community Rights Douglas County chronicle the history of the Winchester Dam. They describe the ongoing pattern of violations of both permit and law that culminated in the massive fish kill and unprecedented monetary penalty, how it could have easily been prevented, and what can be done to remove the Winchester Dam so this never happens again.

The Winchester Water Control District, owners of the derelict and condemned Winchester Dam, have perpetrated a litany of documented violations including:

• Illegal water storage in excess of their water rights.

• Pollution of the North Umpqua River.

• Privatization of publics lands and waterways.

• Killing of millions of threatened and sensitive aquatic species.

• Repeated failure to comply with state and federal laws and regulations.

• The use of toxic and carcinogenic building materials that leach copper, arsenic, and chromium 50 feet upstream of the intake to the public drinking water source for 37,700 residents – one third of the residents of Douglas County, Oregon.

For more information, visit WinchesterDam.com