Fire, fish, and flows: Karuk-led revitalization on the Klamath River
Date
2025-10-23
Authors
Wolfle-Hazard, Cleo
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Abstract
Along the Klamath river in Northern CA, USA, tribal-led river restoration efforts are improving habitat conditions and offering new models for river restoration. Karuk Tribe managers and their partners are working to remove dams, reconnect floodplains post-mining, and reintegrate intentional fire regimes to create landscapes resilient to flooding, drought, and catastrophic wildfire. These efforts not only show promise for buffering against extreme events but also are having profound impacts on the river hydrology, for example by increasing dry-season streamflow and benefitting salmonids by sustaining summer cold water refugia.
In this talk, Cleo Woelfle-Hazard will present two Karuk-led river restoration processes: developing for the Karuk Ancestral Territory, along the Klamath River a fire-vegetation-water-fish model; and, a post-mining floodplain reconnection planning project. The talk will explore what shared questions and understandings emerged, where water and fire worlds fundamentally diverge, and present principles to guide future collaborations between modelers, river managers, and place-based communities.