Approximately 70 people, including tribal members and representatives of Earthjustice, the Environmental Justice Coalition for Water and Environmental Water Caucus, attended the dedication of the mural, entitled ≥We Sing to Water.≈ Created by Evan Bissell and Claude Moller, the mural depicts Winnemem Wintu tribal members at their ceremonial war dance at Shasta Dam in September 2004. ≥When we first entered this fight, we only saw a small piece of the threat to our people, the water, and the salmon with the proposed raising of Shasta Dam,≈ said Mark Franco, Headman of Kerekmet Village. ≥But as we learned more of CALFED and the water projects related to it, we learned that the water and salmon throughout Northern California and the life of the Delta itself are threatened.≈ Franco and Gary Hayward Slaughter Mulcahy, liaison for the Winnemem Wintu tribe, became very alarmed about the disclosure this year by state and federal scientists that Delta smelt, longfin smelt, threadfin shad and other forage species have reached their lowest levels ever in an apparent food chain collapse. The scientists are currently studying the decline and its possible solutions. Scientists attribute the decline to three possible factors: (1) increases of water exports, (2) the impacts of pesticides and other chemicals and (3) invasive species. However, the tribe, recreational anglers and environmentalists point out that three out of the past four years were record years for Delta water exports pointing to water exports are the primary cause for the collapse. ≥We are deeply concerned about the recent discovery that the Delta Smelt are at their lowest ever recorded levels,≈ said Mulcahy. ≥We have always wanted to bring the salmon home to the McCloud, but the news of the smelt population does not bode well for the Delta Estuary. The Delta Estuary is key in the survival of the salmon as they leave the spawning grounds to go out to sea, and return to spawn in adulthood. A dying estuary could mean extinction.≈

The Winnemem Wintu are currently plaintiffs in a lawsuit with Earthjustice and a host of fishery conservation and environmental groups challenging the U.S. Department of Interior and National Marine Fisheries Service over an October 2004 biological opinion that claimed that the expansion of state and federal pumping facilities would create ≥no jeopardy≈ to Delta smelt, endangered winter run chinook and steelhead, even though a previous draft opinion said the plan would jeopardize listed species. The lawsuit also challenges the Bureau's long term operating plan (OCAP) for the federal Central Valley Project and State Water Project, due to the Bureau's failure to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) on the plan. A hearing on the lawsuit is set for January 16.

≥OCAP changes how the water is managed,≈ said Mulcahy. ≥It depletes the cold water pool in Lake Shasta. The OCAP also shortens the spawning area available for spring and winter chinook salmon by bringing the cold water temperature requirement down 21 miles on the Sacramento River, according to Mulcahy. The Sacramento River winter-run chinook, the only winter run salmon on the Pacific coast, historically spawned in the cold, glacial runoff of the McCloud River before the construction of Shasta Dam. The winter run, along with the fall and spring runs, are integral to the tribe≠s culture and history.

≥We eventually want to bring the salmon back to the McCloud,≈ said Mulcahy. ≥But to do that, the salmon fishery has to be alive.≈ Due a series of cooperative measures by the state and federal governments spurred by years of political pressure by fishery conservation organizations, the number of endangered winter-run Chinook salmon returning to spawn in the Sacramento River continues to increase, according to Ryan Broddrick, DFG Director. The run now exceeds 15,000 fish, based on surveys conducted this summer by the DFG and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This preliminary estimate is the highest since 1981 and continues the trend seen since the mid-1990s. However, the continued recovery of this run is greatly threatened by state and federal plans to raise Shasta Dam and export up to 27 percent more water from the Delta. The tribe and fish groups believed this proposal should be shelved, especially in light of the unprecedented Delta food chain collapse.

The Winnemem Wintu Tribe≠s villages traditionally were concentrated on the McCloud River, but the tribe also had villages on the Pit River, Sacramento River and Squaw Creek. Built in 1945 by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Shasta Dam flooded over 90% of the Winnemem homeland. The tribe has approximately 125 to 127 members, with the majority now residing in the Redding area. The new proposal, part of the joint federal-state CALFED storage project, would raise the dam an additional 6 to 200 feet in order to guarantee increased water exports to agribusiness on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley. ≥Raising Shasta Dam even 6 feet will flood most of our remaining sacred sites on the McCloud River that we still use today,≈ said Caleen Sisk-Franco, Spiritual and Tribal Leader for the Winnemem. The mural was a cooperative project between San Francisco artists fighting gentrification and the Winnemem Wintu tribe, who are fighting displacement from their homeland, according to lead muralist Claude Moller. The mural will be on display through March 2006. Sponsored by Hypersea and Intersection for the Arts, this project is the fourth in a series of community based murals known as the ≥Living Walls Mural Project.≈ During the War Dance in September 2004, the Winnemem Wintu fasted and danced for 4 days and nights at Shasta Dam ? and drew hundreds of supporters from other Indian tribes and environmental groups. It was the tribe≠s first war dance in over 100 years, called because of the threat to cultural, historical and sacred sites by the Bureau≠s proposed enlargement of the dam. We thank Evan and Claude for this great gift they have given us with this mural," emphasized Sisk-Franco, Great Niece of Florence Jones, the Winnemem Wintu≠s Spiritual and Tribal Leader who passed away on November 22, 2003. ≥It not only depicts our struggles, but also represents the principles taught to us by our Florence Jones and what we stand for as a people. On this day, as we sing, dance and pray for the water, we give thanks in memory of Grams.≈ (In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. Klamath Restoration Council has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of this article nor is PelicanNetwork endorsed or sponsored by the originator.) Klamath Restoration Council Our mission is to restore and protect the uniquely diverse ecosystem and promote the sustainable management of natural resources in the entire Klamath River watershed. We believe this will be accomplished with actions and legislation that integrate sound and proven techniques based on tribal knowledge, local experience and the best of Western Science. http://www.pelicannetwork.net/krc.htm Mail: Box 214 Salmon River Outpost Somes Bar, CA 95568 Phone: 530 627 3054 Contact: Jack Ellwanger, Klamath Restoration Council Networker Created by: http://www.pelicannetwork.net/ ;