It's been almost 10 years since ODOT joined with other state agencies to help conserve coastal coho salmon. The once-plentiful fish were struggling, and the National Marine Fisheries Service was about to list them as a "threatened species." That would mean the federal government would get involved in trying to manage and save the fish. Instead, then-governor John Kitzhaber made a plea to the agencies he managed to create and implement a plan that would save the salmon and promote healthier watersheds. The result was the Oregon Plan for Salmon and Healthy Watersheds, and it has been key to saving a unique species.
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