Grand Coulee Dam
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| Image:Grand Coulee Dam.jpg | |
| Creates | Franklin Delano Roosevelt Lake |
|---|---|
| Locale | Grand Coulee, Washington |
| Maintained by | U.S. Bureau of Reclamation |
| Length | 5,223 ft (1592 m)<ref name="BLM">Grand Coulee Dam. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Retrieved on 2006-11-18.</ref> |
| Height | 550 ft (168 m) |
| Opening date | June 1, 1942 |
| Geographical Data | |
| Coordinates | |
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- For the town, see Coulee Dam, Washington.
Grand Coulee Dam is a hydroelectric gravity dam on the Columbia River in Washington. It is the largest electric power producing facility in the United States,<ref>Renewable Energy Sources: A Consumer's Guide. U.S. Department of Energy: Energy Information Administration. Retrieved on 2006-11-18.</ref> and the largest concrete structure in the U.S.<ref>Larsen, Jeff (2002-10-03). Short Trips: Take a step back to take in a concrete wonder. Seattle Post Intelligencer. Retrieved on 2006-11-19.</ref> When completed in 1941, it was the largest manmade structure ever built.<ref>Simonds, William Joe. Columbia Basin Project. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Retrieved on 2006-11-18.</ref>
The reservoir it backs up is called Franklin Delano Roosevelt Lake, named after the United States president who presided over the conception and completion of the dam. Built by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser, the dam is almost a mile long and is taller than the Great Pyramid of Giza. In fact, all the pyramids at Giza could fit within the base of the Grand Coulee Dam. It is more than twice as tall as Niagara Falls.[citation needed]
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[edit] History
The dam was built as part of the Columbia Basin Project for irrigation of desert areas of the Pacific Northwest and for the production of electricity.<ref>Grand Coulee Dam and the Columbia Basin Project (PDF). The World Commission on Dams. Retrieved on 2006-11-19.</ref> Excavation of the site began in December of 1933 as a public works project and finished toward the beginning of WWII. The initial construction plan was for a shorter dam with an option for later raising. During construction, the design was changed to the higher specification. Its height was determined by the point at which the reservoir started backing up into Canada.<ref name="USNPS">Lake Roosevelt, Administrative History. U.S. National Park Service: Department of the Interior. Retrieved on 2006-11-20.</ref>
[edit] Original construction
The primary goal of irrigation was forgotten as the war time need for electricity increased. Aluminum smelting was vital to the war effort. The electricity was also used to power plutonium production reactors and reprocessing facilities at the Hanford Site as part of the top secret Manhattan Project. The dam was instrumental in the industrial development of the Pacific Northwest.
The original goal of irrigation resumed after the war. A distribution network for water was built using the Grand Coulee, an ancient river bed about 600 feet (200 m) above the height of the Columbia river. Additional dams, siphons and canals were constructed that turned the coulee into a vast supply network.
Irrigation began in 1951.<ref name="USNPS" />
[edit] Expansion
Between 1966 and 1974 the dam was expanded to add Powerhouse #3. This involved blowing up the Northeast side of the dam and building a new forebay section. The addition made the dam more than a mile long and accommodated six new generators. The new turbines and generators, three 600 MW and three 805 MW units, are some of the largest ever produced. The expansion was completed in the early eighties and made the Grand Coulee Dam one of the largest hydroelectric producers in the world.
[edit] Environmental consequences
The dam did much good but had negative consequences for the local Native American tribes whose traditional way of life revolved around salmon. The Grand Coulee and Chief Joseph Dams permanently block anadromous fish, removing over a thousand miles of their traditional spawning grounds. The Colville tribe lived along the Columbia River, and after the dam was built their lands were flooded and they were forced to move.[citation needed] The environmental impact of the dam effectively ended the traditional way of life of the native inhabitants, who sued the government. The government eventually compensated the Colville Indians in the 1990s with a lump settlement of approximately $52 million dollars.
| The architects of the new [Columbia] river have been nearly constant in their protestations of concern for salmon, but they have quite consciously made a choice against the conditions that produce salmon. They have wanted the river and its watershed to say electricity, lumber, cattle, and fruit and together these have translated into carp, shad, and squawfish instead of salmon. If ever a death could be unintended and overdetermined, it is the death of the wild runs of the Columbia River salmon. - Richard White<ref>Lake Roosevelt NRA: Administrative History. U.S. National Park Service. Retrieved on 2006-11-19.</ref> |
[edit] Touring the dam
The visitor center contains many historical photos, geological samples, turbine and dam models, and a well used theater. Since 1989, on summer evenings, The laser light show at Grand Coulee Dam is projected onto the dam's wall. The show includes full-size images of battleships and the Statue of Liberty, as well as some environmental comments. Tours of the new Powerhouse #3 are available to the public but have been scaled back for security reasons. Visitors are able to ride a glass elevator, on top of the forebay penstocks, 400 feet down to view the generators.
[edit] Facts
- Largest concrete dam in North America, largest concrete structure in the United States with 11,975,521 yd³ (9,155,94 2 m³) used [citation needed]
- Hydraulic Height: 380 ft (116 m)
- Average release: 110,000 ft³/s (3,100 m³/s)
- 4 power plants, 33 generators
[edit] References
<references />
[edit] External links
- Official web site
- Information web site
- Historical site
- University of Washington Libraries Digital Collections – Grand Coulee Dam Photographs and pamphlets of the construction of the Grand Coulee Dam. Includes a look at the recommendations for and against building the dam, images of land clearing activities by the Public Works Administration, and the dam construction itself.
| Columbia River Dams |
|---|
| Bonneville • The Dalles • John Day • McNary • Priest Rapids • Wanapum • Rock Island • Rocky Reach • Wells • Chief Joseph • Grand Coulee • Keenleyside • Revelstoke • Mica |
he:סכר גרנד קולי nl:Grand Coulee Dam ja:グランドクーリーダム pt:Represa Grand Coulee
