Fish versus Power: An Environmental History of the Fraser River (Studies in Environment and History)

Fish versus Power is an environmental history of the Fraser River (British Columbia) and the attempts to dam it for power and to defend it for salmon. Amid contemporary debates over large dam development and declines in fisheries, this book offers a case study of a river basin where development decisions did not ultimately dam the river, but rather conserved its salmon. Although the case is local, its implications are global as Evenden explores the transnational forces that shaped the river, the changing knowledge and practices of science, and the role of environmental change in shaping environmental debate. The Fraser is the world's most productive salmon river; it is also a large river with enormous waterpower potential. Very few rivers in the developed world have remained undammed. On the Fraser, however, fish - not dams - triumphed, and this book seeks to explain why. Cover......Page 1 Half-title......Page 3 Series-title......Page 5 Title......Page 7 Copyright......Page 8 Dedication......Page 9 Contents......Page 11 Tables, Figures, Photographs, and Maps......Page 13 Abbreviations......Page 15 Acknowledgments......Page 17 Introduction......Page 21 1 “A Rock of Disappointment”......Page 39 Hells Gate: Natural and Cultural History......Page 40 “A Milling Mass of Sockeye”......Page 47 The Native Fishery......Page 56 The Commercial Fishery......Page 63 Science and Conservation......Page 68 Conclusion......Page 71 2 Damming the Tributaries......Page 73 Hydroelectricity: The First Stage......Page 76 The Fisheries Question......Page 89 Water and the State......Page 98 Conclusion......Page 102 3 Remaking Hells Gate......Page 104 Establishing a Research Program......Page 106 Fishing for Tags......Page 111 Answers......Page 117 Fishways......Page 120 A Justification and a Treatise......Page 122 Conflict......Page 125 Conclusion......Page 135 4 Pent-Up Energy......Page 139 Imagining Postwar Power......Page 141 Universal Electrification?......Page 144 Private Power and the War......Page 149 Public or Private Power?......Page 154 Public and Private Expansion......Page 159 The River as “Destroyer”......Page 162 Conclusion......Page 166 5 The Power of Aluminum......Page 169 Prospecting for Waterpower......Page 170 The Rise of a Fisheries Defense......Page 177 The Politics and Limits of Regulation......Page 190 Conclusion......Page 196 6 Fish versus Power......Page 199 Promoting Power......Page 204 The Columbia River Question......Page 215 Boundaries of Debate......Page 223 Debating Meanings......Page 225 Regional Questions......Page 231 Compromises?......Page 236 Taking the Heat Off the Fraser......Page 241 Conclusion......Page 248 7 The Politics of Science......Page 251 “Let the Experts Decide”......Page 253 Institutional Expansion......Page 257 Research Agendas and Cooperation......Page 261 Answers and Expertise......Page 270 Conclusion......Page 282 Conclusion......Page 287 Driving Development......Page 288 Constraining Development......Page 291 Retrospect and Prospect......Page 295 ii. City of Vancouver Archives......Page 297 viii. University of British Columbia Special Collections and Archives (UBC)......Page 298 3. Printed Documents......Page 299 II. Secondary Sources......Page 303 3. Books......Page 310 Index......Page 319 "Fish versus Power is an environmental history of the Fraser River (British Columbia) and the attempts to dam it for power and to defend it for salmon. Amid contemporary debates over large dam development and declines in fisheries, this book offers a case study of a river basin where development decisions did not ultimately dam the river, but rather conserved its salmon. Although the case is local, its implications are global as Evenden explores the transnational forces that shaped the river, the changing knowledge and practices of science, and the role of environmental change in shaping environmental debate. The Fraser is the world's most productive salmon river; it is also a large river with enormous waterpower potential. Very few rivers in the developed world have remained undammed. On the Fraser, however, fish--not dams--triumphed, and this book seeks to explain why."--Publisher's description "Fish versus Power is an environmental history of the Fraser River (British Columbia) and the attempts to dam it for power and to defend it for salmon. Amid contemporary debates over large dam development an declines in fisheries, this book offers a case study of a river basin where development decisions did not ultimately dam the river, but rather conserved its salmon. Although the case is local, its implications are global as Evenden explores the transnational forces that shaped the river, the changing knowledge and practices of science, and the role of environmental change in shaping environmental debate. The Fraser is the world's most productive salmon river; it is also a large river with enormous waterpower potential. Very few rivers in the developed world have remained undammed. On the Fraser, however, fish - not dams - triumphed, and this book seeks to explain why."--Résumé de l'éditeur "Fish versus Power is an environmental history of the Fraser River (British Columbia) and the attempts to dam it for power and to defend it for salmon. Amid contemporary debates over large dam development an declines in fisheries, this book offers a case study of a river basin where development decisions did not ultimately dam the river, but rather conserved its salmon. Although the case is local, its implications are global as Evenden explores the transnational forces that shaped the river, the changing knowledge and practices of science, and the role of environmental change in shaping environmental debate. The Fraser is the world's most productive salmon river; it is also a large river with enormous waterpower potential. Very few rivers in the developed world have remained undammed. On the Fraser, however, fish - not dams - triumphed, and this book seeks to explain why."--Jacket Amid Contemporary Debates Over Large Dam Development And Declines In Fisheries, This Book Offers A Case Study Of A River Basin Where Development Decisions Did Not Ultimately Dam The River, But Rather Conserved Its Salmon. Although The Case Is Local, The Implications Of This Environmental History Of The Fraser River (british Columbia), And The Attempts To Dam It For Power And Defend It For Salmon, Are Global. Matthew Evenden Explores The Transnational Forces That Affected The River, The Changing Knowledge And Practices Of Science, And The Role Of Environmental Change In Influencing Environmental Debate.-- Matthew D. Evenden. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 277-297) And Index. Amid contemporary debates over large dam development and declines in fisheries, this book offers a case study of a river basin (Fraser River, in British Columbia) where development decisions did not ultimately dam the river, but rather conserved its salmon. Stories of the disaster always went back to the fish: pools of them, red, mature sockeye, writhing in the river, penned in and constrained.