'DamNation' Celebrates Nature's Resilience

Documentary Depicts How Dam Demolition Restores Local Ecosystemsand Helps the Global Environment

Once considered marvels of engineering and the best way to provide power and water to towns and cities across America, dams are now considered harmful relics thatdamage river ecosystemsand contribute to global warming. The documentary "DamNation" chronicles the dam removal movement and its success in bringing rivers back to life and the shift in values and priorities that have made that happen.

After a screening of the film held by UCLA's La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science at the Los Angeles Museum of Natural History, Matt Stoecker, the film's co-creator, co-producer and underwater photographer, described the first time he became aware of the destructiveness of dams, when as a youth he saw a steelhead trout jump five feet out of the water and hit its head on the concrete and bounce off. He explained that the documentary is the product of a discussion with friend and fellow environmentalist Yvon Chouinard, the founder of the clothing company Patagonia. Another two-decade saga involves the Matilija Dam on California's Ventura River, which hit snags over demolition plans that involved a cement channel that would not allow sediment to flow properly or allow complete passage of fish. "It's taken a lot longer than we thought, but by the end of 2015, we should have a new plan in place and hopefully start construction in the next two to three years," Stoecker projected. "DamNation" also depicts the effects of fish hatcheries and the damage to the species whenfarmed fishmix with wild ones. "Hatcheries are the definition of unsustainable. It's like plugging into a life support system you can never unplug it from. You can never get back to self-sustainable populations of fish," said Stoecker, adding that building 'fish ladders' over dams or moving fish by barge or trucks is not the answer. "That is not restoration. Restoration is restoring ecosystem function." He conceded that dams and hydroelectric power plants have had their benefits in the past, "but it's time to transition away from them. We have better means of getting energy, storing and using water, conserving and reclaiming water and flood protection now. There has been a cultural shift, and it's time to phase out some of this harmful technology."

Stoecker's message, reinforced in the film, was clear: "Dams are a climate change culprit. They're destroying ecosystems. They're terribly inefficient at storing water. But there are a lot of great alternatives," he said. "Texas has the most dams, but it's also making this great transition. Realizing that storing water out in the sun is a terrible idea, they've begun this program from Austin to San Antonio, working with the Nature Conservancy and the state, to use the land that is really porous to store water in underground aquifers. There's endless space, there's no evaporation, no sedimentation issues, so the water is cleaner. Groundwater recharge and storage is the future."

Source: Mother Nature Network

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