to the editor: Contributing writer Jacques Leslie's recent article misrepresents Klamath Project farmers and ranchers (“The return of salmon pits nature against the Trump administration,” November 5).
The Department of the Interior's May 2025 memo does not ignore the Endangered Species Act. Rather, it is anchored in legal principles of section 7; Only discretionary federal actions are subject to Endangered Species Act review. The courts will ultimately decide whether it is in any way “misleading” to the Klamath Project, although the government has successfully defended it elsewhere since at least the Obama administration.
It is about justice and consistency as much as it is about law. For decades, irrigators and rural communities have suffered from shaky implementation of the Endangered Species Act, which divides water rather than addressing species needs.
Advocates spent decades removing dams while promises to protect irrigators and fish, such as building fish pass improvements and fish screens, remain unfulfilled.
We continue looking for balance and stability. This is achieved by applying the law as it is written and fulfilling commitments.
Elizabeth Nielsen, Klamath Falls, Oregon.
This writer is executive director of the Klamath Water Users Ass.north.
