Free the Snake Flotilla & Rise for Climate

Start: Friday, September 07, 2018• 4:00 PM

End: Saturday, September 08, 2018•11:00 PM

On September 8, thousands of rallies will be held in cities and towns around the world to demand our local leaders commit to building a fossil free world that works for all of us. This event is a lead up to the Global Climate Action Summit happening in San Francisco, CA the following week.

This September 8th is also a very special day for our local community in the greater Lewis-Clark Valley because the Free the Snake Flotilla is happening in Lewiston/Clarkston. The Free the Snake Flotilla is a day of action to push for the removal of the lower four Snake River Dams. Wild salmon, steelhead and pacific lamprey populations are trending toward extinction in large part due to dams that heat up water, turn rivers into lakes, and cut off or impede passage to habitat, including to some of the coldest riverine habitat in the Columbia Basin.

Instead of planning a separate event, we are including Rise for Climate in the Free the Snake Flotilla. This Flotilla is also extremely special because it highlights tribal lands and traditions. Please see the website for details. It is recommendable to camp at Chief Timothy Friday night, and join the Flotilla early Saturday.

More information here and on the freethesnake website.

https://www.freethesnake.com/

Please join us as we hold our local leaders to account and demand that they walk the talk on climate action, and on protecting our salmon and rivers.


Note: The Flotilla event was organized by a coalition of local groups. If you have questions about the Flotilla, please direct it to the organizers. Stefanie Krantz just posted it on the 350 website. I am happy to answer questions that are specific to climate change, but would mostly defer you to the Free the Snake Flotilla website and organizers.

Note: Paddle route will differ from 2017

Friday afternoon, Sept. 7 and Saturday, Sept. 8 2018

Last year more than 400 people from throughout the Pacific Northwest came together and paddled 6 miles in support of the return of a free-flowing lower Snake River. This year, in recognition of the first Nimiipuu Tribal canoe in nearly a century, the Flotilla will focus on tribal land and tradition. Canoe families from sovereign tribes across the Northwest will gather on the Clearwater River, and paddle downstream through the heart of Lewiston and Clarkston toward Chief Timothy Park on the Snake River. There, hundreds of non-tribal salmon advocates will join them on the water for a display of solidarity and a resounding call to FREE THE SNAKE!

We are excited to announce that legendary environmental activist Winona LaDuke will be joining this year's flotilla as a guest ofNimiipuu Protecting the Environment and a keynote speaker. Winona's efforts rebuilding indigenous communities and fighting dirty energy projects have earned her international acclaim. Partnering with Winona LaDuke and Honor the Earth will help to bring Lower Snake River Dam removal into focus as a tribal treaty rights issue of great significance to indigenous communities the world over.

Join us on Friday for outdoor activities, educational opportunities, and music from artists to be announced. Stay tuned for details on Friday activities. Stick around after the flotilla on Saturday to hear from Winona LaDuke and camp out with fellow river soldiers and salmon advocates.

Wild salmon, steelhead and pacific lamprey populations are trending toward extinction mainly due to the four lower Snake river dams: Ice Harbor, Lower Monumental, Little Goose and Lower Granite. Meanwhile, the minuscule amount of energy produced by these dams is being replaced by clean energy alternatives. Read the recently published study on energy replacement here

The dams' primary purpose, barge transportation, has also declined dramatically. And yet taxpayers are being forced to invest hundreds of millions of dollars to maintain and repair the dams. Removing the four lower Snake River dams would equate to the largest wild salmon recovery effort in the world, while revitalizing communities, economies and cultures throughout the Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies.

Join us September 7 and 8, 2018 when we'll say with one clear voice: it's time to remove four outdated, low-value, deadbeat dams on the lower Snake River. It's time to free the Snake!