Fish ladder dedication ceremony held in Thompson Falls

A dedication ceremony for the newly constructed fish ladder on the Thompson Falls Dam was held Sept. 8 in Thompson Falls, Mont. The dedication marks the completion of the multi-million dollar project, which was funded by the energy company PPL Montana.

The fish ladder is a steel and concrete construction, and features 48 separate pools that are stepped, which allows fish to navigate 75 feet over the top of the dam.

This makes it possible for fish to travel up the Clark Fork hundreds of miles, and makes spawning areas accessible that haven't been reachable by fish since the original dam was completed.

In addition to completing the fish ladder, the event also marked the completion of work on an observation platform above the dam, which allows visitors to peer down into the fish ladder and see the fish making their way up and over the dam.

In preparation for this project, work on the historic high bridge in Thompson Falls was also completed, and the bridge has been reopened.

According to David Hoffman, director of external affairs at PPL Montana, this construction is the first such project in the United States that was specifically designed to accommodate bull trout. It is also the largest such project ever completed in Montana.

Pete Simonich, vice president and COO of PPL Montana, was among the individuals in attendance at the event, and spoke to the environmental significance of the project.

According to Simonich, this project is the first full-length fish ladder built specifically for bull trout, a species of fish whose status is threatened. The project is also meant to accommodate other species of fish, such as westslope cutthroat trout.

The project comes as the result of years of study on migrating behaviors of area fish species, and was built with further research in mind.

The fish ladder has many features built in that accommodate biologists and researchers, including a diversion pool, which can be used to separate fish for tagging and monitoring.

This project was completed through work with the Confederated Saleesh and Kootenai Tribes, and is part of PPL Montana's action working toward compliance with the Endangered Species Act.