Portland District News

Mother Nature can be comforting but has scolded (scalded) us this year

Tom Conning, Public Affairs Office — Wed, 01 Sep 2021 20:35:04 GMT

Mother Nature can be comforting and calm but this year it seems like she used our first, middle and last name as she scolded (or scalded) us … “Pacific North [emphasis added] West, what in the world were you thinking?!” … for punching our hypothetical little sister (California). Our punishment has been drought, record-breaking temperatures, wildfires and extremely dry conditions throughout the region. Even though the early part of this summer was a scorching hot nightmare, north western Oregon is fortunate to have a consistent flow of water – thanks to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ system of dams and reservoirs in the Willamette Valley.

That sounds fishy: fish ladders at high-head dams impractical, largely unneeded

Tom Conning, Public Affairs Office — Mon, 19 Jul 2021 15:55:32 GMT

Humans. What other sentient being designs a tool requiring hands and feet and expects animals without limbs to use it? Alas, the answer is humans. Humans created a ladder for fish, which is quite effective in certain situations – but isn’t a blanket solution to every fish passage problem. And while most humans would agree that ladders can be useful for climbing short distances, perhaps 20-50 feet– another tool – like an elevator or truck – may be a better option to climb hundreds of feet. Otherwise, there would need to be more infrastructure to support that ladder, or perhaps it would need to be a staircase at that point. This is similar for fish when moving them up and downstream.

Willamette River Basin 2013 refill season

Pentagon News — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:41:00 GMT

This Corps Message addresses the Willamette River Basin's 2013 refill season.

Corps sends Fall Creek Reservoir to the bottom to make fish passage the tops

Doug Garletts — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 15:28:00 GMT

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has usually held Fall Creek Reservoir at a minimum elevation of 728 feet above sea level for flood damage reduction during the rainy winter season. Unfortunately, juvenile fish prefer to swim near the surface, and at that elevation they have a hard time finding a route through the dam due to the depth they must dive.

Precious cargo at The Dalles Dam

Park Ranger Amber Tilton — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:22:00 GMT

This article explains the process of dewatering the east fish ladder at The Dalles Lock and Dam on Dec. 3, 2013.