Idaho Conservation League

10/08/2026

How do you like to cast your ballot? 🗳️🦅

Whether you’re a Mountain Chickadee who gets things done early, a Bluebird who migrates and votes from afar, or a Red Tailed Hawk who shows up in person on Election Day, there’s more than one way to cast your ballot in Idaho. 🐦👏

Take a few minutes now to figure out which option works for you—and put it on your calendar.

💚 Idaho’s wild places, clean waters, and abundant wildlife are worth showing up for. Find voting information for your county at the link below.

https://voteidaho.gov/

10/07/2026

ICL is partnering with the City of Sandpoint to clean up City Beach, Sand Creek, and the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail! 🏖️👏

Bring your family and friends on Saturday, October 17th to clear our shorelines and waterways of trash. 🚮

Rain or shine, we’ll meet at the City Beach Park Pavilion at 8:00 am to enjoy coffee & pastries, grab supplies, and choose your trail. Meet back up at 10:30 am with your trash for collection & sorting, a group photo, and prizes!

🚗 The City of Sandpoint will be waiving all parking fees at waterfront parking spots during the time of this event, from 8-11am, on Saturday, October 17. You do not need to pay to park or check in at a kiosk. This includes City Beach, Bay Trail, and Sand Creek parking lots.

Can’t wait to see you there! Learn more and RSVP at the link below. 🔗

☕️ Coffee provided by Evans Brothers
🥐 Pastries provided by Winter Ridge

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fall-shoreline-clean-up-with-icl-tickets-2001025310570?aff=oddtdtcreator

10/02/2026

When the four lower Snake River dams are removed, how do we maintain the services
they provide? 🚛🌾

Abbie Abramovich, ICL's Salmon Program Senior Associate, explains how four new Washington State studies offer a roadmap to a free-flowing lower Snake River,
while keeping essential services.🤝

The Transportation study is a plan for shipping wheat if barging on the lower Snake
River ends. Rail is a key component.
One option on the table reduces the miles trucks drive to grain terminals. This will
improve public safety, reduce carbon emissions, and lower toxic pollution into our water.🛤️🚂

Attend an upcoming WSDOT open house to speak up for new infrastructure that allows
Washington to restore a free-flowing lower Snake River! Click the link below for more info.

📍 COLFAX — Tuesday, Oct. 6 | 5–7 p.m.
Whitman County Library
102 S. Main Street

📍 CLARKSTON — Wednesday, Oct. 7 | 5–7 p.m.
Clarkston High School Library
401 Chestnut Street

📍 PASCO — Thursday, Oct. 8 | 5–7 p.m.
Mid-Columbia Libraries Pasco Branch
1320 W. Hopkins Street

https://idahoconservation.org/blog/washington-state-transportation-study-paves-the-way-for-barge-replacement-on-the-lower-snake-river

10/01/2026

It’s officially October, and we’ve got some exciting events coming up this month, across the state! 🎃

Join us in Idaho Falls, Boise, Sandpoint, and even Spokane, WA for events ranging from educational presentations to shoreline cleanups and hikes in the foothills. 🥾💚

🔗Click the link below to learn more about what we’ve got on the calendar and to RSVP. See you there!

https://idahoconservation.org/events

10/01/2026

For the fourth year in a row, invasive quagga mussels are back in the Snake River. 🦪⚠️

This is a no-win situation. Quagga mussels may be tiny, but their impacts are enormous. If quaggas become established in the Mid-Snake River, there is little doubt they would significantly disrupt the aquatic ecosystem while also causing widespread economic damage by clogging irrigation systems, impairing hydropower facilities, and affecting other critical infrastructure.💧

😷Unfortunately, the eradication effort itself carries significant environmental costs. The copper-based aquatic pesticide being used to eliminate quagga mussels does not selectively target mussels; it kills a broad range of aquatic organisms within the treated stretch of river.

Whether or not this ambitious eradication effort succeeds, one thing is clear: prevention is critical. We cannot afford to let quaggas spread to other waterways in our state. That means Idaho needs stronger measures. 🤝

🔗Read more about quaggas and the future of the Snake River at the 2026 State of the Snake River report, linked below.

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/67dc85385e35aa4eb80c4e56/t/6a4293a1c1c1cf497932fda5/1782748068097/2026-SotS-Report-FINAL.pdf

10/01/2026

💡We need your voice at the upcoming Northwest Power and Conservation Council’s hearing to shape the Northwest’s energy future and advocate for healthy and abundant wild salmon.

📣Make your voice heard in Idaho Falls. RSVP to receive more information on testifying: https://forms.gle/Ju24JCnfWyfHAzts9

🐟The region’s energy and fish recovery responsibilities are inseparable.🌊 Let's embrace this opportunity to build new energy resources to benefit fish, our waters and rivers, communities, and to honor our obligations to uphold Tribal Treaties.🌲

09/30/2026

Let’s invest in a free-flowing lower Snake River AND keep wheat moving! 🌾🚂

One of the transportation options puts grain terminals closer to farms. That means trucks
will drive fewer miles. This means safer roads, fewer diesel emissions, less pollution
from tires. All due to a shift from transporting wheat via barge to transporting it by rail.

People need solutions and our region needs salmon. Replacing transportation services
is part of restoring the lower Snake River and there are good options to do that. 🚛🐟

Come learn what WSDOT has found and share your perspective:

📍 COLFAX — Tuesday, Oct. 6 | 5–7 p.m.
Whitman County Library
102 S. Main Street

📍 CLARKSTON — Wednesday, Oct. 7 | 5–7 p.m.
Clarkston High School Library
401 Chestnut Street

📍 PASCO — Thursday, Oct. 8 | 5–7 p.m.
Mid-Columbia Libraries Pasco Branch
1320 W. Hopkins Street

🔗 Read more at the link below.

https://idahoconservation.org/blog/washington-state-transportation-study-paves-the-way-for-barge-replacement-on-the-lower-snake-river

09/29/2026

“The administration's interpretation, through this new memo, makes no sense biologically, ethically, or legally. We know that wildlife need habitat to survive. You can't destroy habitat and not harm the wildlife.”

Following the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's change in their interpretation of the Endangered Species Act, ICL's Public Lands & Wildlife Director John Robison weighs in on the consequences for some of Idaho's most beloved species.

Learn more from KTVB: https://bit.ly/4xO5bG3

In July 2026, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service changed their interpretation of the Endangered Species Act, scaling back protections for species like salmon.

09/28/2026

This season, our water quality stewards showed up for Lake Pend Oreille!

🤝 28 full-time and 5 substitute stewards making up 13 steward groups
📍14 sites and 54 total site visits
🧪 216 sample bottles collected
📊 486 data points gathered across 9 water quality parameters
⏱️ 12 hours spent getting samples safely to the lab
✨ 1 incredible lake and 1 incredible program

Behind every bottle, data point, and trip to the lab or lake is a dedicated group of people who care deeply about protecting the lake we all love. A huge THANK YOU to our water quality stewards for your time, commitment, muddy boots, and dedication. You make this program and the science behind protecting Lake Pend Oreille possible! 🌿💧

09/25/2026

🚨 ACTION ALERT: Say NO to data centers on public lands! 🏔️🌲

Rhea Data, a subsidiary of Nevada-based Arevia Power, has proposed building a massive 4-million-square-foot data center on roughly 3,700 acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) public land south of Boise near Interstate 84 and the Blacks Creek Bird Reserve. It would be the first data center on federal public land in Idaho.

Our public lands belong to all of us. Public lands should not be sacrificed to private companies looking for a place to build massive data centers. Whether you live in Idaho or beyond, our public lands should be managed for conservation, recreation, wildlife, and other public values—not converted into industrial sites. 🦌🌿

Congress should act now to prohibit data centers on our public lands.

📣 Take action: Visit the link below and urge decision makers to say NO to data centers on federal public lands!

https://secure.everyaction.com/cX52DXjphkGk8HLlPmMUsg2