Bold beavers help combat climate change

Author Ben Goldfarb calls beavers “ecological and hydrological swiss army knives” in his recent book titled Eager: the Surprising Secret Life of Beavers and Why they Matter. Known for hard work and industry and insulating pelts that caused them to nearly be hunted to extinction, scientists are beginning to realize that beavers can help combat climate change. 

Also, the tremendous contributions that wetlands created by beavers make to the continuation of other species should not go unnoticed. As was discussed in a recent National Geographic article, their drive to build dams contributes to essential biodiversity habitat. The American West was offered as an example: wetlands cover a mere 2% of total land area, but support 80% of the biodiversity: i.e. frogs, salmon, ducks, etc. 

“The number of species that depend on these beaver habitats is virtually limitless,” according to the article. 

Beavers benefit humans, as well. And according to Nat Geo reporting, one study in Utah discovered that beaver restoration to a single river basin “produced tens of millions of dollars in economic benefits each year.” Specifically, beaver ponds store water for use by farmers and ranchers, slow down floods, function as firebreaks, reduce erosion, and even filter out pollution. 

A notable restoration project is taking place in the Methow Valley in central Washington, on the east side of the Cascades Range. Parched and prone to wildfires, snowpack and glacial melt is declining, so water is becoming scarce in the major agricultural area. 

As an alternative to knee jerk reactions, the Methow Project traps beavers and relocates them to “headwater streams on public lands high up in the mountains, thus getting them off private land.” 

Through their normal functioning, the relocated beavers build dams and create ponds and are able to keep streams and rivers flowing the entire year. 

“So beavers function as a climate adaptation strategy, compensating for the loss of snowpack and glacial melt,” according to National Geographic reporting.