Agreement Supports Restoration of Eel River’s Imperiled Salmon and Steelhead Runs

In a historic milestone, two sovereign Indian tribes have joined together to reverse decades of fisheries decline on the Eel River, the second longest river in California. On October 28, 2025, the Round Valley Indian Tribes and the Yurok Tribe met at the Wildlands Conservancy's Eel River Canyon Preserve and signed a Treaty of Friendship that pledges their joint efforts to restore the Eel River.

“The Eel River is our lifeblood and when it suffers, our people suffer,” said Round Valley Indian Tribes President Joe Parker. “We are pleased to join with the Yurok Tribe, which is the leader in restoring the Klamath River through dam removal, revegetation, and habitat restoration. With this partnership, we hope all Native tribes around the world will be motivated to stand up and fight for their culture and rights.”

“We are honored to contribute the extensive knowledge and experience we have gained through Klamath River dam removal with our relatives from the Round Valley Indian Tribes,” said Joseph L. James, Chairman of the Yurok Tribe. “Together, we are uplifting our communities and forging a new path that aligns with our shared cultural values.”

The Treaty of Friendship will facilitate sharing of knowledge and expertise between the two tribes and foster collaboration on restoration projects on the Eel River. The Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project, whose dams block several hundred miles of critical fishery habitat, is being decommissioned by PG&E. These ecological impairments have contributed to the decline of imperiled salmon, steelhead, and Pacific lamprey populations.

The removal of these dams creates opportunities to restore the Eel River to the healthy, free-flowing river it once was. The experience of the Yurok Tribe in restoring salmon runs on the Klamath River will inform tribal efforts on the Eel River. “Based on the Klamath River and hundreds of other dam removals across the United States, we expect the Eel River to heal quickly once the river runs free,” said Chairman James.

The Round Valley Indian Tribes have lived along the Eel River since time immemorial. Like the Yurok Tribe, they have suffered significant cultural, subsistence, economic, and community impacts from the collapse of the fishery. With dam removal and comprehensive restoration efforts planned for the watershed, the tribes and fisheries experts expect native fish runs to gradually recover.

The Treaty of Friendship brings the Yurok Tribe into this process as a partner with the Round Valley Indian Tribes. For both Tribes, the Treaty is a tangible expression of their traditional and cultural ties to rivers that have sustained them since the beginning of their existence.