Eel River Forum

The Eel River once supported salmon and steelhead runs as large as a million fish a year, but more than a century of impoundment, water diversions, and habitat degradation brought those numbers down dramatically. Rebuilding a watershed this size takes more than any single organization can manage alone, which is why CalTrout helped found the Eel River Forum, a coalition of more than 22 public agencies, tribes, and conservation groups, including the Round Valley Indian Tribes, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Trout Unlimited, Humboldt County, the Mendocino County Inland Water and Power Commission, and Sonoma Water.

In 2016, the Forum released the Eel River Action Plan identifying its top priorities, and followed that in 2024 with a full Restoration and Conservation Plan tackling water diversions, water quality, habitat restoration, community engagement, and estuary protection together rather than piecemeal. That groundwork paid off in February 2025, when regional partners signed a historic Memorandum of Understanding advancing the removal of Scott and Cape Horn dams as part of PG&E's Potter Valley Project decommissioning, the single largest step toward the Forum's goals to date. CDFW committed $18 million to the effort, split evenly between building a new diversion facility designed to mimic a free-flowing river and seeding an Eel River Restoration Fund, while the Round Valley Indian Tribes are set to receive up to $2 million annually under the agreement's initial 30-year term.

Once complete, dam removal will reconnect nearly 300 miles of historic salmon and steelhead habitat and create the longest free-flowing river in California, a change projected to generate over 1,000 local jobs and as much as $278 million in regional economic benefit. The Forum's work continues in parallel on other fronts, including a 950-acre tidal marsh estuary restoration near the river's mouth and ongoing coordination through initiatives like the annual Eel River Expo.