Frankly, My Dear, I Don’t Want A Dam On The Klamath

This webinar is about the legal struggle to restore and preserve public lands which resulted in the recent approval by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission of a plan to remove 4 large dams on the Klamath River which flows through Oregon and Northern California.

It is the culmination of a 20-year campaign by the Karuk Tribe, the Yurok Tribe, and its tribal and other conservation partners, who formed the Klamath River Restoration Corporation. The dams no longer generate electricity and not only prevent migrating salmon and steelhead from reaching their spawning areas but create huge algal blooms in the reservoirs behind the dams.

The effect on the local tribes, whose culture is deeply enmeshed with the salmon, has been disastrous.

Our panelists are Brian J. Johnson, California Director of Trout Unlimited and President of the KRRC Board, and Wendy Ferris-George, the Karuk tribe appointee to the KRRC and long-time leader in the Klamath Basin. Brian is an attorney and was Communications Director at the White House environmental office from 1993-97. They will explain the history of the campaign, discuss the legal and administrative hurdles they faced, and explain how their small group was able to achieve this remarkable success. It is an inspiring story that stands as a model to be used to remove other old dams on rivers around the country