ADDRESSING the DAM PROBLEM: BALANCING HISTORIC PRESERVATION, ENVIRONMENTALISM, and COMMUNITY PLACE ATTACHMENT by ALTHEA R
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ADDRESSING THE DAM PROBLEM: BALANCING HISTORIC PRESERVATION, ENVIRONMENTALISM, AND COMMUNITY PLACE ATTACHMENT by ALTHEA R. WUNDERLER-SELBY A THESIS Presented to the Historic Preservation Program and the Graduate School of the University of Oregon in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science June 2019 THESIS APPROVAL PAGE Student: Althea R. Wunderler-Selby Title: Addressing the Dam Problem: Balancing Historic Preservation, Environmentalism, and Community Place Attachment This thesis has been accepted and approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science degree in the Historic Preservation Program by: Dr. James Buckley Chair Eric Eisemann Member Laurie Mathews Member and Janet Woodruff-Borden Dean of the Graduate School Original approval signatures are on file with the University of Oregon Graduate School. Degree awarded June 2019 ii © 2019 Althea R. Wunderler-Selby This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDervis (United States) License iii THESIS ABSTRACT Althea R. Wunderler-Selby Master of Science Historic Preservation Program June 2019 Title: Addressing the Dam Problem: Balancing Preservation, Environmentalism, and Community Place Attachment This thesis addresses the growing occurrence of historic dam removals across the United States and the complex balance of interests they entail. Historic dams are often environmentally harmful, but they may also represent significant cultural resources and places of community attachment. In the Pacific Northwest, hydroelectric dams powered the region’s growth and development, but today many of these dams are being removed for their negative environmental impacts. This thesis explores hydroelectricity’s significance in the Pacific Northwest region, the parallel growth of the modern river restoration movement, the intricate process of dam removal, and the primary regulatory method used to address the loss of historic resources. Through four case study hydroelectric dam removal projects in Oregon and Washington, the effectiveness of balancing interests during the dam removal process and the consequences of removal for community history are assessed. The outcomes of these assessments are several key elements necessary to planning and implementing dam removals that equally address the concerns of preservationists, environmentalists, and the community. This topic is explored at a relevant time and is applicable on a larger scale to other historic resources that carry significance but also have detrimental environmental consequences. iv CURRICULUM VITAE NAME OF AUTHOR: Althea R. Wunderler-Selby GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOLS ATTENDED: University of Oregon, Portland, Oregon University of Rhode Island, South Kingstown, Rhode Island Green Mountain College, Poultney, Vermont DEGREES AWARDED: Masters of Science in Historic Preservation, 2019, University of Oregon Bachelor of Arts in History, 2016, University of Rhode Island AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST: Culture – nature Sites of Conscience Environmental & social history PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: American Conservation Experience Traditional Trades Apprenticeship Program intern, Fort Vancouver National Historic Site, Washington, 2019 - current City of Hillsboro Planning Department Historic Preservation Intern, Oregon, 2019 - current Greg Hartell Historic Preservation Intern, Crater Lake National Park, Oregon, 2018 Sitka Fine Arts Camp Historic Restoration Team Intern, Sitka, AK, 2018 Vice President & President, Associated Students for Historic Preservation, University of Oregon, Portland, OR, 2018-2019 Academic Coach, Green Mountain College, Poultney, VT, 2014 v Peer Tutor in history, anthropology, and writing, Green Mountain College Jose M. Calhoun Learning Center, Poultney, VT, 2013-2014 Assistant to the History Department, Green Mountain College, Poultney, VT, 2012 GRANTS, AWARDS, AND HONORS: University of Oregon Student Services Internship Travel Scholarship, 2018 Pilgrim’s Progress Preservation Services Graduate Student Scholarship, University of Oregon Pacific Northwest Field School, 2017 Green Mountain College Make a Difference Scholarship, 2012 Green Mountain College Creative Arts Scholarship, 2012 Green Mountain College Academic Scholarship, 2012 South Kingstown NEA Senior Award, 2012 PUBLICATIONS: Wunderler-Selby, Althea. “Difficult Memories: History, Oppression, and the Potential of Preservation.” Associated Students for Historic Preservation Journal, (2018): vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The list of those to acknowledge for their assistance in completing this research and accomplishing this milestone in my academic career is unwieldy. First and foremost, I must thank my committee for their support, feedback, and willingness to listen. My committee chair, James Buckley, has been an unwavering ally over the last two years. He has provided me with sound advice and direction and has helped me to grow academically and personally. I must also thank my committees’ members Eric Eisemann and Laurie Mathews for their contributions in helping to shape the initial idea of this thesis. I would not have discovered my interest in historic dams if it were not for Eric’s course and Laurie’s expertise on cultural landscapes was integral in reinvigorating my interest in environmental history. Thanks are also due to the numerous professionals who graciously provided me with their time to assist with research and answer questions. An immense amount of thanks must be given to my parents, Barbara and Chuck, for supporting all my endeavors. Mom, thank you for instilling in me a love of nature that has guided both my personal life and academic pursuits. Thank you for taking me to the pond as a newborn, letting me play in the swamp, and spending all those hours in the car driving up North. Dad, thank you for encouraging my love of history at every step of my education. Thank you for all the Lewis and Clark books you bought me after the fourth-grade play, for the coins you gift me every Christmas, and for reading cowboy books out loud to a little girl. To my sister, Tala, thank you for providing me with an exceptional role model. To my partner, Yannai, thank you for always acting as peer- editor, for sticking with me through all of this, and for letting me get two cats at the beginning of grad school. Lastly, thank you to my fellow classmates of 2019, the cohort of women. The strength, intelligence, and independence you all have shown over the last two years has been truly inspiring. vii To my family, partner, and cats, with immense love. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................1 Defining The “Dam Problem” ..........................................................................................2 Dams In The Pacific Northwest ........................................................................................3 Dam Removal: A Balancing Act ........................................................................................5 Organization .....................................................................................................................5 CHAPTER II. METHODOLOGY AND LITERATURE REVIEW.....................................................7 Methods and Limitations .................................................................................................7 Literature Review .............................................................................................................9 Historic Significance of Dams in the West ...................................................................9 Societies, Nature, and Place Attachment.................................................................. 11 Preserving Historic Engineering Resources ............................................................... 13 Historic Preservation and Dam Removal .................................................................. 14 Audience and Intended Outcome ................................................................................. 15 CHAPTER III. HISTORICAL CONTEXT: HYDRELECTRICITY IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST .... 19 Early Iterations Of Hydropower and Dams, Pre 1900 .................................................. 19 The Age Of Technology: Hydroelectricity In the Early 20th Century, 1900 – 1930 ...... 21 The New Deal, World War II and Hydroelectricity, 1930 – 1950.................................. 23 Big Dam Heyday: 1950 – 1975 ...................................................................................... 28 The Demise Of The Dam, 1975 - 2000 .......................................................................... 31 CHAPTER IV. HISTORICAL CONTEXT: KEY MOMENTS OF THE RIVER RESTORATION MOVEMENT ...................................................................................................................... 34 Hetch Hetchy And America's First Environmentalists .................................................. 34 Echo Park and Glen Canyon .......................................................................................... 36 Federal Environmental Regulations .............................................................................. 39 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 40 CHAPTER V. DAM REMOVAL: PROCESS & REGULATIONS ................................................ 41 The Reasons For Removal ............................................................................................