The recently completed removal of dams on the Klamath River is raising hopes of rebuilding the population of threatened spring-run chinook salmon.

Over 16 months, four dams built between 1903 and 1962 came down as part of a monumental effort to clear 35 river miles in Oregon and California.

The largest dam removal project in U.S. history was completed Wednesday, marking a major victory for tribes in the region who fought for decades to free hundreds of miles of the Klamath River near the California-Oregon border.

Now, the Klamath River Renewal Corporation will spend the next several years attempting to revitalize river health by sewing native plants, gradually releasing sediment and improving water and

The Copco No. 1, Copco No. 2, J.C. Boyle, and Iron Gate Dams have been removed from the Klamath River, and restoration and recovery will follow.

The Klamath River Renewal Corporation (KRRC) is announcing the completion of the Klamath Dam Removal project Wednesday. According to KRRC, the contractor Kiewit has finished removing all four of the lower Klamath hydroelectric dams within the purview of the project and completed all work in the river.

KLAMATH RIVER, Calif. -- Work has wrapped up on the world's largest dam removal project. The Klamath River Renewal Corporation announced today that the four hydroelectric dams in the Klamath River have been completely removed.

Rivers don’t fix themselves and heal overnight from 100 years of degradation and damage," one expert said. "This is a process, and the healing process is

Advocates see their work as far from finished, with some already focusing efforts on revegetation and restoration on the Klamath River and surrounding land.