“Nature, Undammed” – The Removal of the Dams on the Klamath River in California and Oregon

After decades of litigation and negotiation, the largest dam removal project in U.S. history is set to restore the Klamath River by dismantling four dams, funded by a half-billion dollar public and private effort. This presentation will explore the complex interplay of environmental, cultural, economic, political, legal, and engineering factors that led to this historic agreement, highlighting the collaborative efforts of diverse communities to reconcile and restore a natural river ecosystem.

Credit(s)

1

CO Approval ID

849637

Original Program Date

July 18, 2024

Duration

54 minutes

After decades of litigation, political maneuvering, and negotiation, the largest dam removal project in U.S. history is underway. With delicate choreography, the project will remove four dams and restore the dam sites on the Klamath River. A public and private effort secured the one-half billion dollar costs of removal. The project is unprecedented, but it is also part of a larger reanalysis of hydropower and other dams’ interference with natural river flow. This presentation will provide background on the events leading to the removal. This is largely a story of people, both Indians and non-Indians, and how they found common ground despite lengthy and fierce disagreement. Environmental, cultural, economic, political, legal, and engineering factors are all entangled in this complex project. The presentation will also address the states’ and federal regulatory pathways required to achieve restoration of a healthy and free-flowing Klamath River.

Video presentation from the 70th Annual Natural Resources and Energy Law Institute.

Speakers

Credits

Materials

1 CLE Credit – Approval ID: CO ID - 849637

This course has been accredited for CLE credit in Colorado. CLE credit hours shown are for Colorado only. A CLE course number for Colorado will be provided to attendees on their certificates of attendance once a course has been completed. New Mexico attorneys who complete a course must notify us (cle@rmmlf.org) because we are required to report credits for you. If this course has been approved for RPL/CPL credit with the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL), the credits will be listed below in a separate section for AAPL. If applicable, Component Codes for AAPL recertification will also be provided. Please contact RMMLF if you need independent verification by the provider of your attendance or participation for CLE purposes. Except as provided above, RMMLF generally does not apply for accreditation from any other MCLE/CPD organizations for its online legal education program. Upon completion of a program a certificate of attendance will be issued to all attendees. Except as provided above, attendees must verify with their respective state bars and CPD organizations and their specific rules as to whether or not the certificate of attendance will be recognized by that body for MCLE/CPD purposes, and the number of CLE/CPD credits that may be available. The live presentation of the on-demand program has been accredited in most mandatory states as part of a larger course, but such accreditation does not assure recognition of the on-demand program.

SCOTT WILLIAMS is a Partner at Berkey Williams LLP in Davis, California. He has spent the last several decades working for Indian Tribes primarily on matters related to water, water rights, fishing rights, environmental restoration, and Indian lands. Scott and his partner, Curtis Berkey, taught for nearly a decade the course entitled “Advanced Topics in Indian Law” at Berkeley Law School at UC Berkeley (formerly Boalt Hall). Since 1993, Scott and his colleagues in the firm have represented the Yurok Tribe in its efforts to reestablish a healthy and free-flowing Klamath River. Scott is a graduate of Stanford University and Boston College Law School. He received a Fellowship from Howard University to work in poor communities in rural Virginia. Scott then brought that civil rights litigation background to the Central Valley of California.