Andre Cramblit: Dams pose threat to survival of the Karuk Tribe

The health of the river is severely compromised by the six damns that block the flow of water. This causes toxic algae blooms that prevent people from swimming in the river, higher temperatures that leads to fish kills. In 2002 over 70,000 Chinook salmon died due to a higher water temperatures that led to a disease called gill rot. The combination of the damns and the California drought are already causing a larger than normal die off of salmon this summer.

The deaths of these salmon are not just an environmental tragedy but it is a profound spiritual wound to the Native peoples of this region. We are salmon people. Not only do we rely on them as an important food source, they play a significant role in many ceremonies.

The entire watershed plays a major role in the lives of our Native people. We rely on the flow of our rivers and creeks to ensure we have the items we gather for food and basket materials. We are people who supplement meager incomes by subsistence living and relying on gathering of food resources of the environment. With water being diverted for agricultural purposes, even in draught times the impact will be severe for the people who rely on the health of the watershed.

The abundance found in the upper reaches of the watershed allowed us to survive here. We walked the high country to travel and trade with others, we prayed in the mountains, we ate the foods collected on the slopes of the hills, and we made the items of household use from materials gathered along the banks of the extensive creek systems and in the drainages of our homeland.