DamNation

Gr 9–12—The United States built more than 75,000 dams over a 90-year period in the last century. They filled a need for the ever-increasing use of electricity and were a symbol of modern man's power over nature. This superbly photographed documentary aims to clarify the negative consequences of the rush to harness the nation's rivers. Some of the ecological impacts of dam construction include loss of magnificent and important archeology sites, destruction of wild salmon and other fish and wildlife habitats, the impact on native peoples, vast accumulations of silt and debris, and the general decline in the health of rivers. Since the 1990s, there has been a gradual and consistent change in national attitudes toward these massive structures, and many have been removed. Archival footage captures the building of various dams and the lands before they were flooded. In dramatic contemporary sequences, the destruction of older dams and the rebirth of the rivers they once obstructed are documented. Featured are interviews with environmentalists, who support the elimination of unnecessary dams, and some very heated arguments against their eradication by politicians. Since the film's focus is on their elimination, the past and current benefits of dams are not given much attention. The narration tends towards the upbeat, especially when showing activists painting cracks on dam walls and participating in other antidam protests. Teachers and librarians should be aware that the classroom version has a very brief sequence of artfully posed nude female photographs taken in Arizona's Glen Canyon before it was flooded to make way for Lake Powell.