Water Log

Friday, May 22, 2015

Lake Okeechobee Part 3

Dams and Fish Ladders, Columbia and Snake Rivers

The Columbia River is the largest dam in the Northwest United States. The Snake River is its largest tributary. At one time the Columbia River was the most productive salmon river in the country. It now has 14 hydroelectric dams, which impede migration in both direction. The Snake River has another 15 dams. Salmon are anadromous; they are born and breed in fresh water but live most of the time in salt water. Many of the dams on these two rivers have fish ladders to allow adult salmon to return to their breeding grounds. And some of the dams have facilities to help young salmon swim to the ocean. Young salmon are also put in barges and carried towards the ocean. But these facilities and operations do not work that well. And other types of fish are hurt by the dams. Fish ladders must be designed for particular species, and one type of fish ladder may work well for only one species. Recent studies have shown that fish ladders may not work well at all: http://e360.yale.edu/feature/blocked_migration_fish_ladders_on_us_dams_are_not_effective/2636/

The Bonneville Dam is the last (or first) impediment to migration. The dams on the Snake River and much further inland. Many organizations have advocated for the removal of the Lower Snake River dams (some seen below), since they produce relatively small amounts of electricity.

Fish Ladder, Bonneville Dam, Oregon

Upstream, Ice Harbor Dam, Washington

Lock, Little Goose Dam, Washington

Little Goose Dam, Washington

Fish Ladder, Little Goose Dam, Washington

Fish Return Facility, Little Goose Dam, Washington

Thursday, April 23, 2015

Lake Okeechobee Part 2

There are a few small towns around Lake Okeechobee, all appear to be economically depressed.

Belle Glade Water Supply

Pahokee Theater

Canal Point

Clewiston

Sugar Burn

South Bay Water Supply

Hotel, Clewiston

Alligators

Collapsible Ride, Pahokee

Belle Glade

Canal Point

Clewiston

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Lake Okeechobee, Part 1

Lake Okeechobee in Florida drains (or used to drain) to the Everglades. After a series of devastating storms in the 1920s, the lake was surrounded by a dike, and canals were built to the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. The result is a largely dead lake, and a severely endangered Everglades. Because of the rules in place to prevent the lake from overflowing (as it used to do naturally), the canals bring water to the coasts, along with too many nutrients (from agricultural fertilizers) and at a volume too high for the outlets to handle. The results are poisonous red tides and severe erosion.

Elwha River, 2010-2014

The Elwha and Glines Canyon dams, on the Elwha River in Washington, were built at the beginning of the 20th century, without permit, by a paper company. After many years of activism on the part of local environmentalists and the Elwha Klallam Indians, the federal government agreed to remove the dams. The dams have now been removed, and the salmon have returned to spawn. Thousands of seedlings have been planted to help speed the restoration of the local ecosystem. It will be many decades before the area returns to something resembling its previous state.