For a period of time part of the renewal process included the purposeful dumping of sediment into the river. Resource managers below the dams argued this was ultimately good for the watershed system despite the temporary disruption. Natural processes are working through it. It does take time but I am of the thinking that the flora and fauna will rebound faster and better than the skeptics suggest. Regardless, it is a rough time for the river and there's plenty of room for good and bad surprises. Time will tell. One thing for sure is it won't always be pretty. Anyway, post drawdown sediment evacuation was contingent on water supply from spring run off as well as banked water from the upper Klamath Lakes. With the banked water used up and the spring freshet over sediment dumping ceased several weeks ago and the river has been clearing. I suspect the brownish color of the water will become more green as the process continues. This summer will be very interesting. All the numbers I've seen regarding water quality suggest things are within expectations and that most of the negative impacts are manageable via mitigation. Lots of people disagree - by and large those local to the renewal project have no trust or confidence in the Klamath River Renewal Corporation. Unfortunately, KRRC behaves in a similar way as the colonizers who dammed the river in the first place. This part of things is one of the messiest parts of they process.

@@meridianphoto Your word choice is a bit odd. You make it sound like they intentionally were dumping sediment into the river. You may want to explain, that the only way to begin the restoration was to draw the lakes down. In result would send sediment downstream to the ocean. Making comments about how the KRRC is similar to what colonizers did is a lot dramatic. How much science did the colonizers have or use? I am thrilled to see this project move forward.

@@johnkilty5091 I agree about odd word choice. Sorry about that. I’m working on it, however, sediment was literally pushed into the river as a mechanical means to assist evacuation. It was a regulated and permitted part of the renewal process. A lot of people didn’t like that despite the science suggesting the river below needs it. Jenny Creek, Scotch and Camp Creeks, as well as all three dams had excavators at water’s edge. The idea of using barges with firehoses proved impractical. The bull dozers and excavators had little trouble. Mechanically assisted sediment evacuation is no longer part of the renewal process and most efforts have now shifted to keeping soil in place. The river water is quickly clearing up as a result. As for the reference to colonial attitude. That’s how many of the local folks see it. KRRC owns the land they once freely enjoyed and have been locked out. I understand that people need to stay out of the former reservoirs (including myself) but the diplomacy around the shoreline has been terrible and sometimes similar to Boyle’s justifications from a century ago by saying the dispossessed understood their loss was for the greater good. No they didn’t. By the accounts I’m aware of the original homesteaders and their descendents were no more in favor of dam building than the current residents are of their removal. The science and social conscience for the greater good is certainly very different now but it will take time to heal some attitudes. Unfortunately, leadership tends to be staunchly for or against the project. There are very few independent folks working the middle but from this perspective, it does appear, that despite dam removal being an opportunity to "decolonize" we’re just repeating some of the same old patterns. Perhaps it can’t be helped. Managing people and their opinions is a hard job and any attempt to put the current dynamics into words is going to be fraught with peril. Frankly, it scares me but trying is the only way I can learn how to do better. As part of a much larger documentary project, these short KZfaq presentations are just a means to learn more from viewers like you. Thank you.

This is an example of humans attempting to harness a natural process to undo the damage caused by trying to harness a natural process. The difference is that damming was an attempt to subdue nature while undamming is an attempt to work with nature. In any case, nature will most certainly handle it but humans are needed to help make the process acceptable within our lifetimes. This is human nature.

Thanks for the compliment. I agree, water is life.

This is a good point. I do know that some media outlets have reached out and have done so. But there's also difficulty navigating all the conspiracy theories. Important voices do get lost in the noise. I'm not a journalist but I am interested in those voices. Literally, I'll meet with anyone who is willing to be recorded talking about how they feel regarding what they see. No camera, just audio with right to review and redact. Upon approval the content becomes part of the Klamath Retrospective in which these videos are part of. Personally, I'd rather not describe a person's expression of personal loss as complaining. What I'm seeing is a community going through stages of grief. It's not just the land and wildlife that needs time to recover, it's people too.

Thank you for enjoying the birds. They are part of this incredible landscape. I don't always have time to add their sounds to these KZfaq videos but when I do they're from what I hear and record while filming.

Life found a way with years of planning, gathering millions of native seeds, cultivating them, waiting for the dam to be removed and being prepared to replace the missing flora as soon as possible. The restoration of the Kalamath River Basin is the largest project of its kind ever undertaken in the world.

Yes, dam removal is a big part of this story. It's visually very interesting too. I'm working on it. Copco 1 is nearly a pile of ruble. It's epic. Unfortunately, to access views of dam removal requires a lot of work and great care. Physical access is nearly impossible and keeping flights legal is a challenge. It's doable just slow moving.

@@meridianphoto Well if anybody can do it you can !! Is this planted or natural ? Or do you know ?

@@meridianphoto Thank you! I do appreciate your efforts!

Most all of the green seen in the former reservoirs are from seeds spread shortly after drawdown. Here at the narrows as well as elsewhere there are undesirable invasive species that are also taking root as well as native volunteers from the local landscape. This is the classic challenge, to encourage what's wanted and discourage what's not. RES tells me there are plans to address the unwanted invaders but the details on how are not yet clear.

​@@meridianphotoI am really anxious to see more Copco videos!

Bass heaven!

I believe so. Yes

You mean the columnar basalt rock?

I hear you. Thank you for noticing. I'm sensitive to this problem. It's currently the best I can do with the time I have. I'm learning. The ambient sounds I do add are being collected on location for better mixing later. Until then, there is the mute button for those who just want to enjoy the visual details without sound bias.

I thought the music was tasteful! Far better than most on youtube.

Yes, chick lupine. Lupinus microcarpus var densiflorus. Unlike the invasive shrub Lupinus arboreis often seen in sand dunes along the coast these are annuals native to California and Oregon.

@@meridianphoto Lovely, practical and good for the soil. Where can I purchase 500+ chick lupine seeds for my yard? Looking for a source I can trust.

Could be. I don't see fireweed on the list of intentional re-seeding but it's the kind of native plant that excels on it's own. The local seeds will blow in and sprout in fall. It will be neat to see what moves in.