Karim Zayed April 22nd, 2010 Environmental Conservation Jason Vokoun Case Study 3 In the Northwest region of the United States there is a large snaking river that covers a lot of groundin four different states. The river is named characteristically “Snake River”. In the middle of the 1990’s we saw a lot of controversial talk over the four large dams placed in different parts of the River. We continue to hear talks more than a decade later about the possible removal of these dams. The dams bring a lot of money to the Northwest region and support a lot of jobs among, farmers, barge operators, and people who work at the dam themselves. This is not to mention that it supports recipients of hydroelectric power in this region and the removal would leave them without energy; in this case without clean energy. However these dams have also affected many other people who live in this region but not for the better. Native Americans who ritually let the first Salmon pass up the river have been hurting for some time. They say their soul is weak and their main source of food is no longer plentiful like it used to be. The Native Americas went through some hard times when the government told them they couldn’t fish for these Salmon anymore because they were closed to being endangered. I’m hoping my thoughts can persuade you to remove the dams and let the wild salmon swim freely again. Imagine having a main source of food for the whole tribe and the government who has destroyed this one source is physically and lawfully removing members of the tribe from the river telling them they are not allowed to fish. Yet at the same time they are allowing commercial industries to fish in the same spot. As a Native American in this region I would be outraged. Outraged because the river that I have fished on for all my life is being taken right out from underneath me. The Native Americans have fished this river since before America was even established. I think the Native Americans should have the most influence on the outcome. I believe this because they were here first. “The early bird catches the worm” or at least this is true in most other aspects of our lifestyle today except in this case. I believe the Native Americans should have the most influence but realistically if the government doesn’t listen to scientists than they are most likely not going to listen to the Native peoples. Farmers should absolutely have a strong say in this rising issue. I believe their say should be an alternative to the dams. They may not think this is best for them but in the end there are plenty of ways to find irrigation for their plants. Maybe they can lobby for the removal of the dams but ask for part of the river to be rerouted for their use. There doesn’t have to necessarily be one winner. This whole region can win if they all decide to work together to do the right thing. Barge operators are very similar to farmers in that they too should have an influencing say. Their job is based off of exporting materials from port to port along this river and without any dams the river would be to shallow for them to cross. Well in their case they should work together with the farmers and maybe make an agreement or pact to export the farmer’s materials via a different route. This would save the Snake River valley from pollution and over usage. The recipients of electrical power should have little say. It is only a small portion of the Northwest region that is supplied by these dams. They will get their energy even if it comes from a different source, the same way the rest of America does. Conservation Scientists on the other hand should have the strongest say because after all they know the most about our environment and how it works. Also they are familiar with many other successful operations of removing dams all over the United States. This is evidence enough that the possible removal will most likely be successful. Scientists have spent practically their whole life studying organisms like us humans, and the ecosystems we live in. They know what’s best for the earth and therefore what’s best for the people. The senators who are lobbying against the removal have muddied the waters and gave facts that aren’t exactly facts. The American Corps has over estimated long-term losses and at the same time they have underestimated long-term gains if removal occurred. They did a great job of assuming what was to happen and not actually researching. In the end yes we would probably lose more jobs than gained but in the long run removing these dams would do a lot more good than bad. The actual percentage of jobs lost would be 1/15 of 1 percent of all jobs in the Washington, Oregon & Idaho region. This “economic blow” as some senators would call it could recover within a few years instead they are assuming that everyone that loses a job won’t go on to find another one. If we look at areas surrounding the river we would see a loss of 1/5 of 1 percent of jobs still a very low number compared to what the American Corps had predicted. At the same time if you look at the American Corps since these four dams have been opened you will see that they have had four contraction changes, which has affected more jobs than the maximum prediction of the Corps had the dams been removed already. As humans one of our needs is to have a plentiful and diverse ecosystem that maintains species balance and therefore species life. The Salmon and Steelheads are much more a part of the Northwest region than four hydroelectric dams. These Salmon have been here for centuries, long before we decided we wanted to destroy their habitat. Salmon and Steelhead runs have depleted ninety percent. These fish should absolutely have a standing in the issue. They are endangered and the endangered species acts states they much be protected. So our idea of protecting this species was doing our own style of breeding and refilling the river. What did we think was going to happen? The fish are much weaker, and we have receded their evolution back many years. Our world works through natural selection and that’s how we have the strongest species on this planet today. We are going to lose a prized possession if we don’t knock down these dams. Water is the source of life and instead of using it for our needs and the planets needs we have decided that the water is all ours. The Salmon are dying and the spirits of the Native Americans are dying. When we look at the stats is all this really worth it? One percent of the total economy would be lost and that’s if everything goes as bad as American Corps predicted which is inconceivable. Only three point five percent of the electricity comes from the dams to provide surrounding areas. This can easily be fixed by simply rerouting another electricity system to these people’s homes. After all what about all the people who want to see these dams fall? Their mind would be at ease and the nutritious river would flock full of strong healthy salmon again. We could have a stronger fishing industry among this area and anglers, kayakers and hikers would bring money to local economies. Not seeing the four dams on the river would do tremendous amounts for people’s well being. The jobs and electricity can all be gained back in a matter of time. Instead people want to shorten the amount of time we have on this earth as a whole because they are not directly affected in their lifespan. But think about your children and their children. Do you want to see your family grow stronger or do you want to see them disappear because of something you could’ve done. Out of the 2.5 million dams in America alone I think we can afford to lose a couple. Also the U.S. American Corps is the largest owner of hydroelectric power in the U.S. and one of the largest in the world, I think they can afford to lose a couple as well. As for the economy, it may struggle a little but with the times were facing today, who isn’t struggling a little? In truth the only people not struggling are these huge corporations that make billions of dollars off of us. If we take away this ridiculous economic standpoint what do we have? So if it’s not economical it has to be ethical. Do we take away the jobs of many American Citizens and risk their retirement funds for a fish or do we save a symbol of the Northwest and allow these Salmon runs to increase? This would do a lot for the minds of the Native American tribes and most nature gurus. It would take away from the overall economy of the area but not the natural beauty or the repairing ecosystem. What’s important to realize is that so many scientists have agreed that the best thing to do in this case is to remove the lower dams and let the river run freely again. If the dams were never put up in the first place we wouldn’t have had this problem. The fish would’ve been healthy, the Native Americans happy, and the rest would gloat in their ignorance. Although this is a healthy way to supply the area with energy we should realize what’s more important at this point and time and that’s the general health of the river and fish within it. The people arguing to keep the dams up have little to no scientific back ground and the ones telling us to take it down are scientists. They are simply trying to not lose money as a trade for the health of our environment. We need to look at the well being of our earth as a whole not what’s best for our organism. What’s best for us now is not necessarily what’s best for a future and we need to make a stand. We need to lobby for our earth and not for our money. Money can’t buy what’s truly important to us and this is what we have lost sight of. As humans we need to realize what is more fulfilling and ethically right. Look after our earth as it has looked after us. Take these dams down for the betterment of our earth and take a stand to fulfill your life with more than money.