Securing Legal Protection for Coastal Cutthroat Trout

Earthjustice is involved in a long-running effort to gain protection for coastal cutthroat trout in the Pacific Northwest.

Case Overview

Cutthroat trout that live in coastal rivers in the Pacific Northwest and California have declined sharply owing primarily to habitat destruction, but the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuses to protect them. A lawsuit aims to rectify that dire situation.

After the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals told the Fish and Wildlife Service to take another look, the agency again refused to extend protections for these cutthroat based on recent increases in part of the population.

We and our clients continue to monitor the status of the population.

Coastal cutthroat trout and steelhead spawning in the Upper Mainstem of Freshwater Creek, Humboldt Bay, CA.
Coastal cutthroat trout and steelhead spawning in the Upper Mainstem of Freshwater Creek, Humboldt Bay, CA. (NOAA Fisheries West Coast)

Case Updates

April 21, 2008 Press Release: Victory

Coastal Cutthroat Trout to Be Considered for Endangered Species Protection

Court overturns decision to deny trout protection in lower Columbia River and southwest Washington

April 21, 2008 document

Coastal Cutthroat Decision (04/21/08)

Court overturns decision to deny trout protection

February 3, 2005 Press Release

Groups Move to Save Imperiled Coastal Trout

Four conservation groups take first step in suit to protect trout as endangered species