In Eastern Washington State, four large hydroelectric dams span the breadth of the lower Snake River, the largest tributary of the Columbia. These dams have come under increasing criticism from environmental groups for their negative impact on salmon runs, which are both a cultural icon and economic resource for various peoples of the Pacific Northwest.

Most radical of the proposed plans is an effort to actually remove the dams, returning the river to its original state and restoring the natural habitat for salmon. But removal of the dams could conceivably entail a high cost to society: in addition to the clean and inexpensive electricity generated by the dams’ turbines, the dams also support a thriving barging industry serving the rural economies of the region.

The controversy resulting from this seemingly simple proposal has been unprecedented. Similar in scope to the spotted owl issue some fifteen years ago but a great deal more complicated, the debate pits environmentalists, Native Americans, and fishermen against family farmers and industry advocates before a backdrop of multi-disciplinary science and massive government bureaucracy.

Some of the key interest groups involved in the issue are described below. In addition to these major interest groups, River Ways explores a great variety of other aspects of the issue and the people involved. River Ways follows environmentalists, citizen activists, biologists, sportfishers, workers from the tug boat industry, and more as they go about their lives, and as they struggle to have their points of view heard above the ubiquitous din of regional politics.

Commercial fishermen
After the arrival of Europeans in the early to mid nineteenth century, the lower Columbia River witnessed the boom of the commercial fishing industry - fish wheels and traps lined the river banks from Astoria to The Dalles, and canneries and packing houses prepared caught fish for market throughout the world. At first due to overfishing and then to the installation of hydroelectric dams throughout the Columbia River basin, the commercial fishing industry declined dramatically over the course of the twentieth century. Today, only a few hundred fishermen continue to earn their living in this way, using drifting gill nets to capture salmon migrating upriver from the Pacific Ocean. These fishermen struggle to earn a living at this difficult vocation, which is greatly restricted by regulations designed to protect endangered species of fish, including Snake River stocks. Generally the commercial fishing industry supports the removal of the Snake River dams, out of a hope that healthy fish runs will restore their livelihood. But in many ways they compete with other supporters of dam removal for fish in the river - the Tribes and the increasingly influential sportfishing industry. In spite of these challenges, commercial fishermen continue to fish because of the immense feeling of independence afforded by their unique profession.

Family wheat farmers
Family wheat farmers in Eastern Washington State enjoy some of the best conditions for wheat in the country, but struggle to maintain a decent living for themselves and their families in the face of strict environmental regulations, competition from corporate agriculture, and low prices for wheat on the world market. The possible removal of the Snake River dams poses an additional burden on their ability to earn a living: because of impounded water made navigable by the presence of the dams, farmers are able to ship wheat via barge down to Portland, and from there out to Asia, the major market for Northwestern wheat. Removal of the dams means sharply increased transportation costs; many of the farmers claim that these increased costs would be enough to put them out of business forever. On opposite sides of the issue but in many ways similar to the commercial fishermen, these farmers continue to farm despite the challenges because of the independence farming provides, as well as the joy of working in the fields and in the outdoors.

Tribal fishermen
Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest have a unique and complex relationship with salmon in the Columbia River system. At the same time commercial, recreational, and ceremonial, salmon fishing traces its history among the tribes back thousands of years. The United States recognized the cultural importance of fishing to the tribes when it signed treaties with them granting them sovereign rights and reservation lands: the treaties also included grants of rights for Indians to have access to the Columbia River and its tributaries to continue their usual and accustomed fishing practices. Tribal fishermen have exercised these rights since they were established in the mid-1800s, but over the course of the twentieth century fishing has become increasingly difficult because of drastically dwindling fish numbers in the river and the strict regulations meant to prevent overfishing. The reduction in fish numbers is blamed at least partly on dams, and various tribal organizations such as the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC) are major players in the efforts to get the Snake River dams removed. River Ways follows several fishermen throughout the river system to examine their fishing practices, the significance of fishing to their culture today, and their struggle to ensure that salmon runs continue to be sustainable into the future.



Producer/Director: Colin Stryker
Director of Photography: Matt Reynolds