As the mayor, you understand the concerns of your citizens on both sides of the issue. The dam would probably bring in more $$ to your city, but may create environmental problems which cost $$. It is your job to arbitrate the town hall meeting to discuss the proposed dam, and have the citizens vote. You may decide to follow the voters preference, or you may overrule them after hearing all the pros and cons because you disagree with the voters.

You are an extremely wealthy citizen whose family estate (mansion, gardens, fruit trees, etc.) of 150+ years is located on the banks of the river. Your home would be flooded by the creation of the dam. The city would pay you the value of your property, but not the value of you mansion. You don't really want to lose your family home and are prepared to bribe city officials or others to keep it!

You own a successful hotel in town, and happen to have recently purchased property on what would be the shore of the lake if the dam is built. You expect the lake to attract a lot of tourists and nature enthusiasts, who would stay in the new hotel you plan to build.

You currently own a canoe rental store, which brings in a moderate amount of money. It would be fairly easy to change your business over to fishing boats and jet skis and related equipment, and easily double your yearly income.

You really enjoy fishing for migrating fish in the river, and own a moderately successful supply store which sells fly fishing equipment. If the lake is created, the type of fishing you enjoy won’t be possible anymore, and no one will need to buy equipment from you. You could change your business over for lake fishing equipment, but you’ve heard that environmentalists are concerned that it may take many years to stock the lake with fish and establish a stable fish population.

You own many acres of farmland along the river, which would be under the new lake. This land has always been problematic for you to farm because it is subject to flooding every few years, destroying your crops. The city has offered to pay a decent price for your land, but then you would loose the income from this property. You do own some other farmland elsewhere, but it will be difficult for you and your family to live off the income from this land alone.

You have lived in the area for years and really enjoy canoeing on the river and observing the local wildlife and scenery. The proposed dam and lake would mean the end of your hobby. You can boat on the lake, but it just wouldn’t be same

You are very concerned that the proposed dam and lake will end up costing more money than it brings in to the community. Specifically, you’ve read studies that say that the lake will fill up with sediments within about ten years, which will cost lots of $$ to remove, otherwise the lake will be too shallow for recreation.

You love outdoor sports such as boating, water skiing, jet skiing, and camping. The proposed dam and lake sound like fun to you!

You think the proposed dam and lake would ruin the local environment, cause the extinction of some endangered species (make some up, such as the rare migrating muppet fish), and cause the endangerment of other species (such as the great google bird which eats the muppet fish). You’re also worried about the pollution of the lake from boating activities and tourists dumping litter in the lake.

You currently own a successful restaurant located next to the river, which would be flooded by the creation of a lake. The city would pay you for your property, but not the cost of the restaurant. It would be expensive for you to start a new restaurant, but it would probably be even more successful over time.

The proposed dam and lake would provide you with work for years to come, first building the dam itself, then building new houses and business along the lake shore.