so what are some of the solutions I’m
not saying don’t build any dams I’m not
saying we can’t meet our needs as well
but let’s do it in a smart way that’s
informed by good science you think about
the Mekong and what’s sad about what’s
happening in the Mekong is that there
are there’s very good information about
where it might be a good place to build
a dam or a bad place to build a dam and
unfortunately sometimes politics gets
involved and we’re not seeing some of
those recommendations carry forward so
that’s something I feel pretty strongly
about next we have to remember that
we’re all connected to these fish I mean
like people in the Mekong sixty million
people depend on fish to get most of
their protein and you might think a
people in the Mekong that’s far away who
cares about cute kids but if you fit if
you shop at Trader Joe’s or Walmart
you’re eating the same fish that those
kids are eating you thought you were
your white Ruffy it sounds really nice
right but it’s actually it is nice but
it’s a Mekong Catfish it’s catfish
that’s raised in the Mekong Delta and
that’s a huge amounts of it or exported
into the u.s. third I think these fish
have an image problem it’s not the most
beautiful fish so we need to get people
excited about these fish maybe in a
little bit different way and I just I
put this picture up you know don’t laugh
this is how I view the animal world we
just need to start thinking about these
fish for the iconic charismatic
long-lived fish that they are there’s
some of the largest animals on earth and
they’re culturally important they’re
indicators of the rivers the health of
the rivers where they occur so when
these fish disappear a lot of times
that’s the signal to us that something’s
wrong I also hear people and this is
something I’d like to bring up I hear
people say let’s just leave the fish
alone don’t catch them leave them alone
but the problem with that mentality
understand it but the problem with that
mentality is that there are so many
threats to fresh water now pollution
invasive species dams habitat
degradation climate change that if we
just leave the fish alone the only the
only difference that’s going to make is
that they’re going to disappear in
silence they’re gonna disappear and we
won’t even realize they’re gone because
we need to be proactive personally this
is what my project is all about working
with with local partners to find study
and protect the world’s largest
freshwater fish and right here fresh
water saw fish one of the most
critically endangered fish in the world
and really only found in healthy
populations here at the Fitzroy River
I’m hoping that the data we collect can
help us put together a plan to protect
them here and in other rivers okay I’m
just gonna push it forward gently off
the tarp there goes
we need to take action and that action
can be as simple as practicing catch and
release or being smart about what fish
you eat for someone who studies
migratory fish I’ve seen in the Colorado
in the Mekong I’ve seen the problems
that dams can cause if they’re not
constructed properly maybe not put in
the right place and so one of the
actions that has become an option over
the last few years is dam removal it’s
coming full cycle from areas where we’re
building dams and causing problems for
these fish to areas where we’ve realized
that maybe the dam shouldn’t be there
any longer and were removing them so
this video was taken by a friend of mine
Andy Mazur and it’s on the White Salmon
River
it’s a Condit dam and you can see what
it looks like to remove a dam
scientists say they were expecting it to
take perhaps three to four years for the
salmon to come back into that area where
the dam was and they saw spawning salmon
moving up past the dam site in the very
first year so with that I would like to
thank you and thank everyone who has
helped with the project over the last 10
years good night
you
not saying don’t build any dams I’m not
saying we can’t meet our needs as well
but let’s do it in a smart way that’s
informed by good science you think about
the Mekong and what’s sad about what’s
happening in the Mekong is that there
are there’s very good information about
where it might be a good place to build
a dam or a bad place to build a dam and
unfortunately sometimes politics gets
involved and we’re not seeing some of
those recommendations carry forward so
that’s something I feel pretty strongly
about next we have to remember that
we’re all connected to these fish I mean
like people in the Mekong sixty million
people depend on fish to get most of
their protein and you might think a
people in the Mekong that’s far away who
cares about cute kids but if you fit if
you shop at Trader Joe’s or Walmart
you’re eating the same fish that those
kids are eating you thought you were
your white Ruffy it sounds really nice
right but it’s actually it is nice but
it’s a Mekong Catfish it’s catfish
that’s raised in the Mekong Delta and
that’s a huge amounts of it or exported
into the u.s. third I think these fish
have an image problem it’s not the most
beautiful fish so we need to get people
excited about these fish maybe in a
little bit different way and I just I
put this picture up you know don’t laugh
this is how I view the animal world we
just need to start thinking about these
fish for the iconic charismatic
long-lived fish that they are there’s
some of the largest animals on earth and
they’re culturally important they’re
indicators of the rivers the health of
the rivers where they occur so when
these fish disappear a lot of times
that’s the signal to us that something’s
wrong I also hear people and this is
something I’d like to bring up I hear
people say let’s just leave the fish
alone don’t catch them leave them alone
but the problem with that mentality
understand it but the problem with that
mentality is that there are so many
threats to fresh water now pollution
invasive species dams habitat
degradation climate change that if we
just leave the fish alone the only the
only difference that’s going to make is
that they’re going to disappear in
silence they’re gonna disappear and we
won’t even realize they’re gone because
we need to be proactive personally this
is what my project is all about working
with with local partners to find study
and protect the world’s largest
freshwater fish and right here fresh
water saw fish one of the most
critically endangered fish in the world
and really only found in healthy
populations here at the Fitzroy River
I’m hoping that the data we collect can
help us put together a plan to protect
them here and in other rivers okay I’m
just gonna push it forward gently off
the tarp there goes
we need to take action and that action
can be as simple as practicing catch and
release or being smart about what fish
you eat for someone who studies
migratory fish I’ve seen in the Colorado
in the Mekong I’ve seen the problems
that dams can cause if they’re not
constructed properly maybe not put in
the right place and so one of the
actions that has become an option over
the last few years is dam removal it’s
coming full cycle from areas where we’re
building dams and causing problems for
these fish to areas where we’ve realized
that maybe the dam shouldn’t be there
any longer and were removing them so
this video was taken by a friend of mine
Andy Mazur and it’s on the White Salmon
River
it’s a Condit dam and you can see what
it looks like to remove a dam
scientists say they were expecting it to
take perhaps three to four years for the
salmon to come back into that area where
the dam was and they saw spawning salmon
moving up past the dam site in the very
first year so with that I would like to
thank you and thank everyone who has
helped with the project over the last 10
years good night
you
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