Water/River Issues

Follow the Colorado River, source to sea, with photographer Pete McBride who takes an intimate look at the watershed as he attempts to follow the irrigation water that sustains his family’s Colorado ranch, down river to the sea. Traversing 1500 miles and draining seven states, the Colorado River supports over 30 million people across the [...]

  2011 was an historic year for rivers.  The two dam removal projects that began as “crazy ideas” 30 years ago kicked off this year on the Elwha and White Salmon Rivers in Washington. These dam removal projects are the largest in history and represent a turning point in the effort to restore freeflowing rivers [...]

For the past 12 years, Club Náutico Escualo, a youth kayak club in the remote Patagonian town of Cochrane, Chile has taught kids between the ages of 4 and 18 to kayak on the emerald waters of the nearby Baker River. In the process the club has fostered integrity, community, and love for the environment. [...]

This film highlights issues on the Mokelumne River including a proposed new Dam expansion that will flood critical habitat and unnecessarily destroy more river. From its headwaters in the high Sierra to the San Joaquin Delta, The Mokelumne River is a shining gem of nature. A National Wild and Scenic River Designation will ensure this [...]

Mono Lake is one of the most beautiful and productive lakes on the planet, yet excessive water diversions by the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power threatened its ecosystem. A passionate grassroots campaign came to Mono Lake’s defense and through a monumental struggle, won its protection. The course of this historic effort transformed water [...]

Over the past century more than 45,000 large dams have redefined the course and health of the planet’s rivers with disastrous impacts. Chile is now on the verge of building 5 hydro-electric dams in the heart of Patagonia. Tracing the Baker River from ice to ocean, Patagonia Rising brings voice to the frontier people caught [...]

“Rivers are life” is the unifying theme motivating activists in the global movement to protect rivers from the ravages of big dams. A River Runs Through Us offers a personal and hopeful introduction to one of the biggest threats facing many rivers today, as told by the people at the forefront of the global dam-fighting [...]

In the artificial landscape that is Los Angeles, where even palm trees are imported, nothing epitomizes man’s short-sighted efforts to reshape the face of the earth more than the LA River: modified beyond recognition, its flow tapped before it even reached the surface, the river was used, abused and essentially forgotten. But when an unassuming [...]

Fly fisherman Bruce McGlenn and Elwha Klallam Tribal member Robert Elofson describe the anticipation building for the largest dam removal project in history on the Elwha River in Washington. Set on a beautiful summer evening, McGlenn sets out in search of Elwha trout trapped between the two soon-to-be-removed 100-year-old dams.

The 125 foot tall Condit Dam has held the White Salmon River back for nearly a century—affecting both salmon migration and whitewater recreation. Two women—kayaker Heather Herbeck and conservation superhero Phyllis Clausen—explain why they are excited about the upcoming dam removal and river restoration project.

Conservation advocates Rick Rutz and Shawn Cantrell have been working for 27 years to make the Elwha River dam removal project a reality.   On a rafting trip down the Elwha, they tell the story of taking the concept from “crazy idea” to landmark victory.