Encounters With the Archdruid: Narratives About a Conservationist and Three of His Natural Enemies

The third of Brower’s opponents is the rugged Floyd Elgin Dominy, a cattle rancher in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. 35 years prior, Dominy worked as a county agent in Wyoming during the Great Depression and Drought, helping destitute ranchers by paying them to shoot their dying cattle. Dominy, originally from Nebraska, grew up in a farming family constantly challenged by the region’s unpredictable weather and lack of water.

In Campbell County, Wyoming, Dominy witnessed the struggles of farmers and ranchers due to scarce water. Without waiting for federal approval, he began building dams to store water using a Fresno scraper drawn by horses. He created ponds and reservoirs, transforming the dry landscape. Dominy lived modestly and worked incessantly, inspiring the community to help build dams and drastically improving the water situation, which earned him national recognition.

For conservationists, dams are the ultimate environmental evil, surpassing even oil spills and urban sprawl in their destructiveness. Dams are perceived as symbols of nature’s degradation, particularly because they destroy rivers, which are seen as vital metaphors of existence. David Brower argues that opposing a dam equates to supporting a river.

Brower’s aversion to dams stems from childhood experiences and historical events, notably the construction of the Hetch Hetchy Dam, which flooded a valley comparable to Yosemite.