Salmon can now access 4 times more spawning area than they have for decades.
Since the 1930’s, a water-diversion dam about two miles east of downtown Lincoln has been a major problem for the salmon that swim up Auburn Ravine to spawn every fall and winter. In wet years, on average, 7 to 10 percent were able to get over that dam to reach good spawning areas upstream. In dryer years, none made it.
It was called the Hemphill Dam – probably named after a prominent Lincoln resident, Wallace Hemphill, who led various irrigation projects in the area around Lincoln in the 1920’s and 30’s.
The good news is that this dam has been removed. The site is now called the Hemphill Fish Passage Project. The salmon now have access to about eight miles of streambed. And they are using it!
Read More with HemphillDam.pdf