Camden International Film Festival: Red Gold
This weekend the Camden International Film Festival presented midcoast Maine with the world’s finest non-fiction documentaries.
Although I was not able to see as many films as I would have liked, I did have the opportunity to see The Way We Get By, Full Battle Rattle, and Red Gold. All of the films were visually and emotionally compelling, but Red Gold hit home particularly hard.
Taking place in Bristol Bay, Alaska, aka the home of the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery, Red Gold focuses on how plans to construct the world’s largest mine, the Pebble Mine, threatens to forever negatively impact the fragile, 300 million dollar salmon industry and more importantly, the livelihoods of Alaskans and the future of Pacific Salmon as we know it.
If and when the mine is created, toxic mineral waste, also known as tailings, will be generated as copper and gold are mined from the earth. When this toxic waste ever enters the salmon watershed, the fish will immediately begin to die.
I say “when” and not “if” because there is no question that no matter how many precautions are set in place and environmental regulations established, the toxic waste will at one time or another enter this watershed and have an enormous, forever-negative impact on not only Bristol Bay, but also the world.
What can you do to stop the world’s largest open pit mine from being created and in turn protect the world’s salmon industry? Head over to Save Bristol Bay now.
The trailer for Red Gold:
The NYT Feature: