why are they removing glen canyon dam

Please be respectful of copyright. How much money is spent studying protection options for the Grand Canyon? Martin Litton was an LA Times photojournalist and reporter who helped turn the tide away from massive dam proposals for the Grand Canyon. According to Rothert, it was the third most important fishery on the West Coast behind the Columbia and Sacramento Rivers. All rights reserved. We rely heavily upon data produced by the Bureau of Reclamation, United States Geological Survey, and the Department of Energy. Because of regulated flows, the Grand Canyon has not experienced a flood in over 50 years, which has also been a detractor from the overall health of the ecosystem. More than 1 MAF of storage capacity has been lost to date due to sediment deposits. Arsenic, lead, selenium, boron, and mercury from upstream sources are currently trapped in the sediments of the reservoir, rather than flowing harmlessly to the sea, as they did prior to the dam. Before Glen Canyon Dam was built, river runners successfully ran trips throughout the year. We dont need a dam to run a river; people run free flowing rivers all over the world. Dam removal is the process of demolishing a dam, returning water flow to the river [1]. The Bureau built 134 dams and canals to fulfill the vision of Manifest Destiny. The treasure is the ecology a habitat for fish, birds and wild game. Its terrifying energy will be harnessed completely to do an even bigger job in building bulwarks for peace. There are hundreds of acres and hundreds of newly flowing creeks and streams and rivers.. Naturally occurring heavy metals such as selenium, mercury, boron, lead, and arsenic from upstream sources are all found in the sediment trapped behind Glen Canyon Dam. We have also funded a number of studies aimed at better understanding water loss, bank seepage, and hydropower effects of Glen Canyon Dam as it relates to the Fill Mead First project. Several rare and endangered species have been extirpated from the canyon since the completion of the dam in 1963 and many more are now on the endangered species list. Because the dam and reservoir are temporary, the current Lake Powell motorized recreation-based economy is also. We urged the government to do a complete environmental analysis of the impacts of Lake Powell and to provide objective information. Glen Canyon Dam currently traps over 95% of sediment found in the Colorado River. It drained the water from the mountains and plains, rushed it through sun-baked thirsty lands and dumped it into the Pacific Ocean, They knew in the taming process and making the desert blossom, indeed they were losing a treasure. The Last Days of Glen Canyon Dam. Why Is it Taking So long for A Sanctioned Campground in Salt Lake City. Based upon the Bureau of Reclamations own flow data, more than 40 MAF of water has been lost to evaporation since the completion of Glen Canyon Dam. They are also storing water in off-stream storage facilities such as Diamond Valley, which are much less environmentally destructive and much closer to users in the lower basin. The release of cold, clear water into the Grand Canyon has caused significant harm to the ecosystem and the wildlife that depends on it, as most of the organisms have evolved over millennia to a warm, sediment-laden river. This often leads to only temporary solutions to the ever-growing problem of ecosystem decline in the Grand Canyon. Activists claim that decommissioning the dam will save water and restore a wild canyon. Cataract Canyon is largely unregulated, and yes, it gets exciting when spring run-off is high. It is for this reason, the plausible nature of decommissioning Glen Canyon Dam, that the ensuing debate must be carefully considered, for we are presented with a rare instance in which past mistakes or ill-informed decisions of such The public is becoming aware of the problems and recognizing the need for positive change. Inoperable to motorized vessel: Hite, Halls Crossing, Antelope Point Public, Wahweap Main. The famous natural amphitheater dried out in 2005, only to be drowned again, before reemerging again in 2019. In reality we may be reentering a low water period that has not been seen for the last 500 years. These are heady days for dam-busters | by adamwerbach | Medium 500 Apologies, but something went wrong on our end. New evidence of decapitations point to this predators fatal flaw. There, at Glen Canyon Dam, the river is turned back on itself, drowning more than 200 miles of plasma-red gorges and replacing the Colorado's free-spirited rapids with an immense lake of flat . If the water level drops low enough in the coming decades, the electricity generated by the 1,320-megawatt dam will slump, reducing the structures economic benefits, Hawley argues. Located in northern Arizona, just south of the Utah state line, the dam has long faced opposition from environmentalists, but others note the dam's positive influence in the near town of Page. But what were the roots of this previous dam-building era? And of course, Las Vegas would never exist if it werent for the Hoover Dam. (function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';fnames[1]='FNAME';ftypes[1]='text';fnames[2]='LNAME';ftypes[2]='text';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true); I am a story teller and journalist. But it didnt take long for politicians to realize that overcommitments to each lower basin state had been made. Balken and Arens visited it on their recent trip. megawatts, Hunter, UT-1,048 avg. As the most destructive and least useful water project ever constructed, History of the River Restoration Movement, 3090 East 3300 South STE 400, Salt Lake City, UT 84109. 10 min read The Colorado River's decline threatens hydropower at Glen Canyon Dam. is a fictional novel about a group of friends blowing Glen Canyon Dam to pieces, obliterating Lake Powell, and destroying the dreams of those vile bureaucrats who built the dam in the first place. As good as the film is, like most adaptations, the book is even better. The Hoover Dams Art Deco appearance is unlike anything in the world: white concrete against black rock: even the most sensitive environmentalist would find it difficult to not marvel at both its sheer magnificence and the feeling that emanates from its core.

Streams mix at the confluence of the Klamath and Salmon (at left) Rivers. 

, Rare octopus nursery found, teeming with surprises, Animals trapped in war zones find a second chance here, How extreme heat affects our petsand how to help them, This place may have the highest density of great white sharks, Controversial oil drilling paused in Namibian wilderness, Dolphin moms use 'baby talk' with their calves, Earth's shifting magnetic poles don't cause climate change, This ancient society tried to stop El Niowith child sacrifice. More than eighty years since the Compact was signed, the average annual flow has proven to be closer to 13.5 MAF. It would put the federal government into the electricity generation business. If water were stored in Lake Mead, a much thinner and deeper reservoir, a huge amount of water would be saved each year. John Wesley Powell, who named Glen Canyon during his 1869 survey, described it as a land of beauty and glory. Edward Abbey wrote that Glen Canyon was a portion of earths original paradise. Wallace Stegner judged the Glen to be potentially a superb national park.. Any remaining sediment would flow to the Colorado River Delta, creating more habitats for wildlife there. Arizona won a huge battle when California attempted to sue them in the early 1960s. The Act required that states repay the initial construction costs from their received benefits. How did the building spree to clog all our rivers in the name of progress all come about? By the early 1980s, the reservoir had backed up 186 miles of the mighty Colorado River, creating an inland sea with a shoreline greater than the Pacific coast of the U.S. Its certainly the most significant dam removal and restoration project ever undertaken, says Steve Rothert, California regional director of American Rivers, an environmental advocacy group. In San Diego water prices based upon the price used in the ongoing negotiations for the sale of Colorado River water by the Imperial Irrigation District to San Diego the water lost at Lake Powell each year is worth $225 million dollars. There is immense pressure for river running opportunities on the Colorado River through Grand Canyon. While we are correct to say there is no air pollution from the dam, the 186-mile long reservoir (which serves as fuel for power generation) has destroyed one of the most incredible regions in the world. The lake is filling up with 100,000 cubic yards of silt every year, and the silt that should be transported to the Gulf of California is instead burying the treasure below the lake. Rather it had become a series of plumbing works that, in the lower basin states especially, removed all means by which the water could escape. It is no longer viable to maintain two half-empty reservoirs Lake Powell and Lake Mead. (See evidence of the restoration of Glen Canyon). 2:09. Dams on high volume, high sediment rivers such as the Colorado trap huge amounts of sediment annually. We now know that annual delivery requirements were based on flawed projections suggesting that annual river flow was equal to 16.5 MAF annually. This is the purpose of GCIs Glen Canyon Restoration Campaign. The generating station would only need to extend its intakes down to the river level a few hundred feet below where they are now. When Glen Canyon Dam was first completed and they were filling it, dam managers didn't release enough water prior to the 1982 winter season and Lake . Ultimately all dams fill with sediment or are destroyed by natural floods. Would draining the reservoir make the Navajo Generating Station close? a behemoth harnessed and tamed within its millions of yards of concrete and steel rebar with massive turbines humming as millions of gallons of water pass through each second. Upon the restoration of Glen Canyon, Page will adapt once again to a sustainable non-motorized recreation based economy and function as the access point to a major attraction in the West, the Glen Canyon Dam site. People might be right next to them and dont even see them, one expert says. Additionally, power generation from Glen Canyon Dam has been cut by about 1/3. If we act soon, we can ensure a sustainable water supply and heal much of the damage to Colorado River ecosystems. There is also evidence that damage to the Grand Canyons ecosystems can be substantially reversed. But there are far more people who are outdoor enthusiasts who comprise the silent majority here in Utah. We have a chance to address both the water supply and environmental crises at the same time. To do that, they lobbied for the removal of the dam. Since this project was refused for a number of years, Glen Canyon Institute secured private funding in order to hire various unbiased scientists to conduct such a review. Another option is to shift the majority of water stored at Lake Powell downstream to Lake Mead, which is the main water source for over 22 million people living in the Lower Basin. Today, as the pressure on the Colorado River system grows, policy makers and water managers are open to new ideas that they never would have considered before. Refresh the page, check Medium 's site. However, we emphasize the importance of considering our proposals now before the situation becomes too dire to manage. They believe a drying climate won't keep both reservoirs full and draining Powell would restore a free-flowing river past Glen Canyon and into the Grand Canyon. He said while the ecosystems arent exactly the same as they once were, because of the sediment left behind by the lake, life is returning to the canyon at a rapid pace. Also, because of the scientific importance and magnitude of restoring the vast Glen Canyon ecosystem, Page would become the headquarters for dozens of long-term scientific programs from around the world, and an example of positive change. They knew in the taming process and making the desert blossom, indeed they were losing a treasure. What would the impacts on river running be without Glen Canyon Dam? Overall efficiency of Colorado River water storage would also be greatly increased by altering the management of reservoirs at the headwaters and decreasing the amount of water stored in wasteful facilities such as Lake Powell reservoir. While there may be too much concrete to fully remove the dam, it will eventually need to be re-engineered in order to preserve the remaining biological integrity of Grand Canyon and the Colorado River. Additionally, economic benefits would be distributed more evenly among the communities surrounding Glen Canyon, including Escalante, Bluff, Blanding, Boulder, Kanab, Mexican Hat, Hanskville, Kayenta, and the Navajo Nation. This analysis used the Bureau of Reclamations river modeling program and assumptions. It wasnt until 1928 Congress approved and appropriated funding for the most massive project on the Colorado River which promised to deliver more water and more electricity than any prior project: The Hoover Dam. However, this fact does not constitute the continued operation of Glen Canyon Dam, but rather speaks to the negative impacts of dams in general. The reservoir is essentially a measuring point used to regulate how much water is released into the lower basin annually. Arens said he predicts Lake Powell will reach its lowest point ever this year, due to the prolonged drought in southern Utah. Designers of the1922 Colorado River Compact, which determines allocation of the rivers water, seriously overestimated actual future river flow, seriously underestimated future water demand, and did not foresee the impacts of climate change. And overall, economics are a big driver behind the dam-removal trend, if it can be called that: Some dams just arent worth the cost anymore. As sediment builds up in Lake Powell reservoir, water storage capacity steadily decreases, and will ultimately fill the reservoir completely. As the sediment trapped behind the dams spilled out and settled near the end of the river, almost overnight it converted from a steep, cobbly, high-energy environment to a sloped, sandy, lower-energy environment, forming a critical haven for salmon transitioning between freshwater and saltwater and helping set the stage for further recovery. This is equivalent to the annual water usage of Los Angeles! Environmentalists have talked about restoring Glen Canyon ever since it was filled with water in the 1960s, according to Eric Balken, director of the Glen Canyon Institute. Its really clear that, given enough time, these canyons have the ability to return to what they were.. In a desert environment, where we think of things being slow to grow, the speed at which ecosystems are reestablishing in these areas is pretty remarkable, Arens said. Would the river running season in Grand Canyon be shortened without regulation by Glen Canyon Dam? Well-connected political leaders from Arizona such as Wayne Aspinall paved the way to ensure Arizona would become a wealthy state due to the water rights he preserved from the Colorado River for Arizona. Scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey lead the program's experiments, some of which have already proved fruitful. However, existing environmental restrictions would minimize this impact and many recent improvements in the scrubbing technology for coal power plants have drastically reduced pollution from these sources. These days, when dams in the U.S. make news, its often concrete getting blasted, not bedrock. megawatts, Four Corners, NM-2,270 avg. During the past decade of drought, many scientists studying tree ring evidence suggest that the West is actually experiencing a return to normal drier climate conditions. In fact, elimination of the annual spring floods and sediment flows has caused significant change to the canyon environment, including the loss of a number of native species. If the predictions of climate models are correct, the Colorado River water supply will continue to decrease. Rivers & Lakes Down with the Glen Canyon Dam? But the sentiment of Reclaiming the West has subsided. It wasnt until 1928 Congress approved and appropriated funding for the most massive project on the Colorado River which promised to deliver more water and more electricity than any prior project: The Hoover Dam. Scientific studies predict that without the reservoir, sediment deposits in the main channel upstream of the dam could be flushed out in as little as five years (. Would the water supply for Colorado River water users be threatened if Powell reservoir were to be drained? Support this work by making a donation today. Scientists predict that without the reservoir, sediment deposits in the main stem of the Colorado would be flushed out within 2-6 years. Won't Lake Powell fill again? All rights reserved, Drought has shrunken Lake Powell dramatically, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Bald eagles do live in the area, but a huge reservoir is not necessary for their survival; many live and thrive along existing southwestern rivers. Bill McKibben, Forward, Resurrection: Glen Canyon and a New Vision for the American West (2009). Not to mention caves, canyons and native relics. How long will it take for the reservoir to completely fill with sediment? Wouldn't Lake Mead silt in faster without Glen Canyon Dam? Glen Canyon AZ, UT Alerts In Effect Park Closures Multiple Lake Powell Launch Ramps Closed Due to Low Water Closed to all access: Wahweap Stateline, Wahweap Auxiliary, Bullfrog Main, and Bullfrog Spur. The Bureau of Reclamation was born in 1902 under Theodore Roosevelts vision, and passage of the Reclamation Act with the stated goal to improve water storage and transmission in the states where water scarcity was the limiting growth factor. Currently, many of these native species are in steady decline due to the changed environment brought about by the dam, and policy makers are searching for solutions to prevent extinction. So for the past sixty years, there have been highly expensive legal battles among states suing each other over water rights. The Glen Canyon Dam was finished by the Bureau of Reclamation in 1963, forever changing Glen Canyon. megawatts, Jim Bridger,WY-1,749 avg. But in the early sixties, it seems that momentum was growing to build more dams, and to build them in a grander scale to provide more power and water to the quickly-growing cities of Phoenix, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. The short answer: The sooner Lake Powell goes away, the faster Glen Canyon will be restored. The tide started changing in the minds of outdoors people when Robert Redford adapted the short story by Norman Maclean: A River Runs Through It into a film starring Brad Pitt. With the Klamath and several other dams, taking them down turned out to be cheaper than trying to retrofit them with fish passages and other upgrades. The Lake Powell reservoir is the second largest artificial lake in the country, extending upriver well into Utah. Nationwide, more than 1,300 dams have been removed as of 2015. This is coming from someone who isnt on the environmental left or the dam-loving right. How much water does Powell reservoir lose to evaporation and bank seepage? According to a report by the Environmental Defense Fund, Upper Basin water use would not be curtailed by draining Lake Powell, and Lower Basin use would be diminished only slightly an average of 1.2% annually. It drained the water from the mountains and plains, rushed it through sun-baked thirsty lands and dumped it into the Pacific Ocean a treasure lost forever.. Wouldn't the world class trout fishery below Glen Canyon Dam be lost? 2018 GLEN CANYON INSTITUTE | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED |, (See evidence of the restoration of Glen Canyon), 3090 East 3300 South STE 400, Salt Lake City, UT 84109. It took four years and thousands of pages of briefs to lead to a final victory for the Copper State to keep their 1.5 million acre-feet of water preserved even under drought conditions. Does restoring Glen Canyon mean completely removing Glen Canyon Dam? Restoring and protecting Glen Canyon would ensure a sustainable, long-term economic foundation for Page, as well as the other access communities throughout the region. Both of these water users could easily extend their intake pipes into a free-flowing river, should the mission of GCI succeed in the future. But did you know that buried beneath the water contained by Glen Canyon Dam is an even greater treasure? The book and the film were catalysts for the undercurrent of the environmental movement to move more mainstream. But for the Glen Canyon Institute, thats not enough. But this reclamation effort is designed to restore destroyed ecosystems (from dams) for fish and wildlife. Additionally, significant scientific evidence obtained by the Glen Canyon Environmental Studies Program and the Grand Canyon Adaptive Management Program reinforce our claims and demonstrate the huge destructive costs of Glen Canyon Dam on the downstream environment. It specifically reads, The Secretary shall operate Glen Canyon Dam in accordance with the additional criteria and operating plans specified in section 1804 and exercise other authorities under existing law in such a manner as to protect, mitigate adverse impacts to, and improve the values for which Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area were established, including, but not limited to natural and cultural resources and visitor use. In essence, Glen Canyon Dam is to be operated in such a way that the health of the Grand Canyon ecosystem would take priority over other initiatives, such as maximizing hydropower generation. The Colorado River is their heritage. Such projects allow backed-up rivers and the fisheries they once supported to be reborn. But this reclamation effort is designed to restore destroyed ecosystems (from dams) for fish and wildlife. Glen Canyon Dam, rising 710 feet above bedrock within the steep, rust-colored sand-stone walls of Glen Canyon, was constructed to harness the power of the Colorado River in order to provide for the water and power needs of millions of people in the West. The current drought and low water levels at Lake Powell reservoir have provided a definitive answer to one of the most common questions: Isnt Glen Canyon destroyed? NO! It neednt be. How much sediment is deposited in the reservoir by the Colorado River? Wouldn't a Citizens EA be biased since you've already taken a position against the reservoir? The water percolating through this toxic sediment may pose health risks to fish, wildlife, and humans who visit Lake Powell. There is currently a surplus of power. A similar number visit the Grand Canyon, which indicates that tourism is not dependent upon a reservoir. They are the. Macleans sentiment was highly contagious. 8,000) and the Navajo Generating Station. Bald eagle populations in the United States and Canada have grown steadily and their removal from the threatened list is imminent in the next few years. Balken and others have been informally documenting the changes occuring in the canyon as the water recedes, including the re-emergence of rapids in Cataract Canyon and the return of native ecosystems. No question that removing it would be a major engineering challenge, but it could be done. "Glen Canyon Dam was built in the 1950s, at the tail end of this building spree," Lustgarten explains. Glen Canyon Dam is a concrete arch dam on the Colorado River in northern Arizona in the United States, just north of Page.The dam was built to provide hydroelectricity and regulate the flow of the river from the upper Colorado River Basin into the lower. And many existing dams are significant sources of renewable electricity, which makes them valuable in the fight against climate change. If above average flows return to the Colorado River Basin, water levels at Lake Powell will begin rising again. Originally built for political purposes, Glen Canyon Dam was meant to be a water storage and delivery center for the Lower Colorado River Basin. I have a passion for farmers, local craftspeople, and folks who aspire to create, build and grow their business in the local marketplace. And last week, the biggest dam-removal project in history got a crucial endorsement. He tells us about the . Balken said that would keep parts of the canyon that have emerged, like Cathedral in the Desert, from being re-flooded. . About 2 MAF of Powells 26 MAF storage capacity is considered dead storage because the dam currently has no means to release it. 2017 GLEN CANYON INSTITUTE | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED |. However, water and power interests control the decision-making process within AMP. While decades of submersion have changed the canyons in a variety of ways, much of the original beauty still remains or is rapidly returning. Edward Abbeys TheMonkey Wrench Gang is a fictional novel about a group of friends blowing Glen Canyon Dam to pieces, obliterating Lake Powell, and destroying the dreams of those vile bureaucrats who built the dam in the first place. The 5-billion-kilowatt hours of power it produced each year was enough to. Page was first built as a service camp for the workers who built the dam. Wouldn't Glen Canyon be destroyed after years of water inundation? Eagles and Peregrine Falcons are opportunistic feeders, and can adapt as habitats change. Through its creation, Lake Powell and Glen Canyon Dam effectively destroyed the unique ecosystem of Glen and Grand Canyon, with negative consequences reaching all the way to the Colorado Delta downstream. The former ecology was similar to what we find in the Grand Canyon and Escalante but even more spectacular: more slot canyons; waterfalls; quiet areas perfect for respite. Essentially, the time table for Glen Canyons restoration is contingent upon Mother Nature and decisions made by water managers and the Colorado River Basin states. And the fish that survive in the system have had major die-offs due to toxic algae blooms, warm water, and disease. During construction of the dam, the river bypass tunnels were filled with reinforced concrete, thus prohibiting any releases from the dam once reservoir elevations dipped below the 237 foot River Outlet Works. The more dominant sentiment is now embodied in the modern environmental movement, which is attempting to restore the estuaries, alluvial basins, deltas and habitats for native fish and ecology. Unharnessed it tore through deserts, flooded fields, and ravaged villages. Read more about Glen Canyon history and issues by following : 1922 Colorado River Compact, Lake Powell Reservoir: A Failed Solution, Sedimentation, Dam Construction & Engineering, Environmental Movement History, History of the Bureau of Reclamation, and the History of the River Restoration Movement.

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why are they removing glen canyon dam