Special Reports: Elwha River Valley http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/flatpages/specialreports/elwha/ Elwha ceremony recalls how treaty fight changed Northwest http://voices.idahostatesman.com/2011/09/19/rockybarker/franks_impromptu_comments_elwha_recognize_treaty_fights Wild-fish groups to sue over Elwha River hatchery http://www.chron.com/news/article/Wild-fish-groups-to-sue-over-Elwha-River-hatchery-2177879.php Farewell, Dams. Hello, Salmon? http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/20/farewell-dams-hello-salmon/ Olympic National Park: Elwha River Restoration http://www.nps.gov/olym/naturescience/elwha-ecosystem-restoration.htm Man to Machine: Peninsula Logging http://content.lib.washington.edu/cmpweb/exhibits/logging/ This weekend, a number of scientists, engineers, tribal representatives, and government officials gathered in Washington's Olympic Peninsula to commemorate the start of a major dam removal project. Over the next few years, the Elwha Dam and the Glines Canyon Dam will be removed in attempt to restore the Elwha River to its natural course. The removal of these dams will be completed by 2014, but restoring the salmon runs in the area (a major goal of the project) may take much longer. The start of this project is a big victory for dam removal advocates, who are also looking into dam removal initiatives along much larger rivers in the West, such as the Snake and Columbia. Commenting on the potential salmon runs in the future, Adeline Smith, 93, a member of the Lower Elwha Klallam tribe, remarked, "I probably won't see it, but my grandchildren and great-grandchildren probably will." The first link will take interested parties to an excellent special report from the Seattle Times on this massive project. The site includes interviews, planning documents, blogs, and first-hand reporting. The second link will take users to a piece by Rocky Barker from this Monday's Idaho Statesman about the tribal presence at these recent celebrations for the dam removal project. The third link will take users to a piece from this Monday's Houston Chronicle about the ongoing battle between wild-fish advocates in Washington and those who want to use hatchery fish to restock the Elwha River. Moving along, the fourth link leads to a post from the New York Times' "Green" blog about the dam removal project by Sean Patrick Farrell. The fifth link leads to the National Park Service website about the Elwha River Restoration. It includes official planning documents and a set of webcams for a first-hand look at the project. The final link leads to a fine digital collection from the University of Washington which offers photographs and other documents that tell the story of logging on the Olympic Peninsula.