Independent Film Festival Boston 2009

Director Ben Kempas in attendance.

For decades, tensions have been brewing over the control and purpose of the Klamath River in Northern California. Electric company Pacificorp maintains that dams built on the river provide environmentally responsible, affordable power to its customers. The Native American tribes of the area contend that the dams have resulted in severe water-quality problems and a devastating decrease in the salmon population. Commercial fishermen claim that Native Americans should be fishing adult salmon from the ocean rather than from the river, where salmon spawn. And farmers and ranchers argue that the reduced amount of water left from the dams should go toward irrigating their crops. When governmental regulators intervene to try to address the salmon problems and the farmers’ concerns, things get even more complicated.

When Pacificorp begins the lengthy process of renewing its license to operate the dams, the Hoopa tribe seizes the opportunity to demand the dams’ closure. In their battle, they forge unexpected alliances and reach new understandings, but the situation continues to morph with each victory. The tribal leaders, however, are determined: if they have to, they are prepared to take their case all the way to Warren Buffet, the second-richest man in the United States. Approaching the story from every available angle, UPSTREAM BATTLE documents this environmental and cultural struggle in all its complexity.

- Kristina Aikens