Skip to Content

Related News

  • Related News

  • Habitat Restoration Underway on McKenzie River

    Partners at EWEB, McKenzie River Trust, the McKenzie Watershed Council, and the U.S. Forest Service broke ground on a major floodplain restoration project in Quartz Creek.

    Find Out More
  • Infrastructure upgrades at Nightingale Hosted Shelters made possible through powerful public-nonprofit partnership

    Nightingale Hosted Shelters, EWEB, and the City of Eugene celebrate infrastructure milestone

    Find Out More
  • Hayden Bridge celebrates 75 years of service as EWEB looks forward to a new era of water resiliency

    EWEB Water Treatment Supervisor, Toby Dixon, looks back at how the Hayden Bridge Water Filtration Plant has changed over the years and explains what EWEB is doing to secure a more resilient water future.

    Find Out More
  • EWEB opens applications for 2025 Electric Mobility Community Grant

    The Eugene Water & Electric Board is now accepting applications for the 2025 Electric Mobility Grant, reinforcing EWEB's commitment to sustainability and cleaner transportation.

    Find Out More
  • Walterville Hydroelectric Project to remain offline through 2025

    EWEB continues to pursue repair plans but must fulfill additional investigation requirements before resuming operation.

    Find Out More
  • Show More
Hundreds of students raise salmon in their classrooms, release them into the wild

December 12, 2024 Adam Spencer, Communications Specialist

Students from Adams Elementary School - and hundreds of Eugene 4J students from other schools - released young salmon they raised in their classrooms into the Willamette River via the Alton Baker Park slough.
After releasing his fish, the student in this picture commented that raising and releasing the fish, "was beautiful, magnificent, I couldn't ask for any more. I hope he lives."
EWEB/4J Education Partnership Coordinator Tana Shepard organized the experience. She worked with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife's "Fish Eggs to Fry" program to bring 6,000 eggs to 55 classrooms. The students cared for their fish for several months, feeding them, measuring their water quality and temperature, and watching them grow. Shepard said one student would even sit in a rocking chair next to their tank and tell the fish he loved them just to make sure they knew.
Shepard brought many students to Lake Creek near Triangle Lake to witness salmon spawning in the wild and catch the other end of their life cycle. Then, in December, they came out to Alton Baker Park to say goodbye and to give their well wishes to the fish they watched hatch and grow.
"Many students say 'I think I'm going to remember this for the rest of my life!' so we're definitely creating core memories," Shepard said. "It's one of the most valuable things that EWEB can fund for our community, not only for 4J but for Bethel and Springfield [school districts]. So - thank you, thank you, thank you, customers, for continuing to fund these education programs in our three districts!"