Nevada City, Calif. July 27, 2018 – The South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) and Wild & Scenic Film Festival present Impacts and Alternatives: The Dam Story – a film event taking place August 1st at the Nevada Theatre to raise awareness about the impacts of dams and water storage alternatives. The screening of two brand new films – Blue Heart and Renewal: Think Like a Scientist – will be followed by a discussion about a positive water future for the local community. SYRCL is hosting the event to spark a meaningful conversation surrounding the proposed Centennial Dam on the Bear River. How might a 275-foot dam impact the ecosystem? What alternatives are available to the community to assure a secure and sustainable water future that reflects local values? How can concerned citizens get involved? These questions and more will be explored at the event. Funds raised benefit SYRCL.
The films to be featured at this special one-night only screening will explore the impacts of dams, what a post-removal restoration looks like, how communities connect to their rivers, and the lengths to which they will go to protect beloved waterways. Blue Heart (Britton Caillouette, 2018, 44 min.) takes viewers on a journey to the Balkan Peninsula, home to the last wild rivers in Europe. A deluge of hydropower development threatens to destroy the culture and ecology of this forgotten region. If fierce local opposition fails, the sparkling creeks, raging tributaries and swift, braided currents of the last undammed watersheds on the continent will be corralled by more than 3,000 proposed hydropower dams and diversions— at a time when dams are being decommissioned throughout much of the developed world. Activists, who span the shores of these rivers and European NGOs are fighting against local government corruption and foreign investment, exposing for the first time the gravest potential environmental disaster in Europe. Featuring an emerging young scientist from the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, Renewal: Think Like a Scientist (Jessica Plumb, 2018, 8 min.) is a heart-warming story of transformation and restoration following the post-dam removal process on the Elwha River.
Following the film screening will be a panel discussion featuring Konrad Fisher, former Director of Klamath Riverkeeper who has worked for more than 15 years advancing public-interest water and climate policies, Isaac Silverman, an environmental attorney and organizer with deep roots in the Sierra Nevada, and more. There will be time for audience members to ask questions and engage in a meaningful discussion with the panelists as well.
“This event is an opportunity for fans of the Wild & Scenic Film Festival and river lovers to gather and support river issues in our own backyard, as it’s a benefit for SYRCL and it raises awareness about our Stop Centennial Dam campaign,” said Melinda Booth, SYRCL Executive Director. “The need to create a sustainable water future is not unique to our community; this is a global issue—and one of the more pressing ones at hand.”
Details:
August 1, 2018, 7pm
Nevada Theatre, 401 Broad Street Nevada City, CA.
Advance Tickets: $10 (SYRCL Members)/ $12 (Non-Members)
At the Door: $12 (SYRCL Members)/ $14 (Non-Members)
Tickets available at www.wildandscenicfilmfestival.org. Call or email Ashley Overhouse for more information: ashley@yubariver.org; (530) 265-5961 x 215.
ABOUT 2019 WILD & SCENIC FILM FESTIVAL
Considered one of the nation’s premier environmental and adventure film festivals, this festival combines stellar filmmaking, beautiful cinematography and first-rate storytelling to inform, inspire and ignite solutions and possibilities to restore the earth and human communities while creating a positive future for the next generation. Festival-goers can expect to see Award winning films about nature, community activism, adventure, conservation, water, energy and climate change, wildlife, environmental justice, agriculture, Native American and indigenous cultures. The Wild & Scenic Film Festival will be hosted in Nevada City and Grass Valley, California from January 17 – January 21, 2019. For more information, visit WildandScenicFilmFestival.org
ABOUT SYRCL and Stop Centennial Dam Campaign
The South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL – pronounced circle) was founded in 1983 by grassroots activists determined to protect the South Yuba River from dams. Ultimately, SYRCL won permanent protections for 39 miles of the South Yuba River under California’s Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. Today, SYRCL is the central hub of community activism to protect, restore, and celebrate the Yuba River watershed. A controversial plan to build a 275-foot dam that would flood the last six miles of publicly-accessible, free-flowing river on the Bear River is SYRCL’s current campaign focus. Centennial Dam would destroy fish and wildlife habitat, beloved swimming holes, and Native American sites. Its construction would decimate 2,200 acres of forested river canyon – including riparian and wetland areas. In the 21st century, dams are a last resort because they harm the environment and have skyrocketing costs. Today, smart water managers are using sustainable and innovative solutions to meet future water needs. We don’t need a new dam generating more polluting sprawl and traffic. Let’s work together to increase our water supply by restoring our forests and meadows, and use the water we do have more wisely. Learn more at stopcentennial.org.