Sockeye salmon over Bonneville Dam on the Columbia River. Lower temperatures in 2008 North Pacific waters brought in fatter plankton, which, along with greater outflows of Columbia River water, fed the resurgent populations. Proposed legislative efforts, such as the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act, are attempting to protect the headwaters of the sockeye salmon by preventing industrial development in roadless areas. Record numbers of a once-waning population of sockeye salmon have been returning to the Northwest's Columbia Basin (as of June 2012), with thousands more crossing the river's dams in a single day than the total numbers seen in some previous years.
Sockeye Fire By the morning of Monday, June 15, the fire had grown to over , and had destroyed 40–45 structures, roughly half of which were primary homes occupied by local residents, with the other half being described as "secondary structures". Local schools and churches were used as emergency shelters. In addition to Willow, air quality has been affected in the communities of Nancy Lake, Houston, and Big Lake. The Sockeye Fire has impacted the sled dog teams living in the area, with as many as 4,500 dogs moved away from the impacted areas. Other sled dogs, owned by local participants of