Farm, range, forest, and salmon: The Tucannon watershed of the Columbia River Basin, 1850-1995

This account of a human community clustered around a river in an arid land traces how residents of that community groomed the watershed into an economically productive system at the expense of the environment and its fish and wildlife.; Several factors contributed to the degradation of natural resources. Laws and regulations protecting the environment evolved slowly and were often inadequate. Antagonism between landowners and various government agencies, as well as conflict between the agencies themselves, inhibited the effectiveness of regulatory codes. Creative solutions for integrating farm, range, and forest economies with environmental protection goals developed in a halting fashion.; In recent decades deteriorating environmental conditions within the Tucannon watershed, as well as the listing of the river's spring chinook salmon run as "endangered," have prompted both landowners and public land managers to work together more effectively toward long-term environmental sustainability rather than short-term economic gains. As a result, the community has made some progress toward restoring the health of the watershed and the river, although for the endangered salmon, it may be too late.; This study traces the history of economic development in the watershed, the effects of that development on the river and its fisheries, and attempts over time to give environmental concerns fair consideration in the predominantly economic calculus of decision-making.