Installation of two hydroelectric dams on the Elwha River has disrupted habitat forming processes in downstream reaches. Construction of Elwha dam in 1912 immediately limited salmon distributions to the lower 5 miles of the river. Habitat conditions in the lower river degraded over time as the supplies of sediment and large wood were eliminated following dam construction. Habitat forming processes were further disrupted by channelization in the lower river during most of the twentieth century. This included systematic removal of log jams, diking, meander cutoffs, and floodplain logging. In response, the mainstem of the Elwha River has incised into its bed causing partial disconnection from its floodplain. This has resulted in loss of spawning gravel and high velocities during flood events. As a result of the cumulative effects of habitat degradation, all native salmon stocks have declined to very low levels in the Elwha River and three stocks are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Removal of two hydroelectric dams on the Elwha River began in the fall of 2011 as authorized by the Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Act (PL102-495). Full removal will be completed by summer 2013 and for the first time in over a century, anadromous fish will have access to over 70 miles of mainstem and tributary habitat. The project as a whole will also help to restore those processes which are necessary for a functioning ecosystem.

While dam removal is funded, there are many needed yet unfunded restoration and recovery actions which will help to restore the Elwha Watershed.