Most of you are probably aware of the decision rendered by Oregon District Judge Michael R. Hogan in the case of Alsea Valley Alliance v. Evans which will remove Endangered Species Act protections for coho in Oregon's coastal rivers. A loophole in the ESA apparently allowed the plaintiffs to claim that the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife had violated the act by trying to differentiate wild and hatchery coho. Using this decision as a precedent, the Columbia-Snake River Irrigators Association has petitioned NMFS to de-list Snake River steelhead, spring-summer chinook, sockeye and fall chinook, as well as mid-Columbia steelhead and upper Columbia steelhead and spring chinook. Portland attorney James Buchal has filed a petition on behalf of the Kitsap Alliance of Property Owners and the Skagit County Cattlemen's Association to do the same with Puget Sound chinook and Hood Canal summer chum. NMFS has not yet decided to appeal Hogan's decision! Call the Portland office of NMFS (503-230-5400) and ask them to do so! The ramifications of this decision are far-reaching and would undermine many of the salmon and steelhead recovery efforts that are already under way.