Glen Canyon Dam Construction
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The Little Colorado River Project: Is New Hydropower Development the Key to a Renewable Energy Future, Or the Vestige of a Failed Past?
COLORADO NATURAL RESOURCES, ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL LAW REVIEW The Little Colorado River Project: Is New Hydropower Development the Key to a Renewable Energy Future, or the Vestige oF a Failed Past? Liam Patton* Table of Contents INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................ 42 I. THE EVOLUTION OF HYDROPOWER ON THE COLORADO PLATEAU ..... 45 A. Hydropower and the Development of Pumped Storage .......... 45 B. History of Dam ConstruCtion on the Plateau ........................... 48 C. Shipping ResourCes Off the Plateau: Phoenix as an Example 50 D. Modern PoliCies for Dam and Hydropower ConstruCtion ...... 52 E. The Result of Renewed Federal Support for Dams ................. 53 II. HYDROPOWER AS AN ALLY IN THE SHIFT TO CLEAN POWER ............ 54 A. Coal Generation and the Harms of the “Big Buildup” ............ 54 B. DeCommissioning Coal and the Shift to Renewable Energy ... 55 C. The LCR ProjeCt and “Clean” Pumped Hydropower .............. 56 * J.D. Candidate, 2021, University oF Colorado Law School. This Note is adapted From a final paper written for the Advanced Natural Resources Law Seminar. Thank you to the Colorado Natural Resources, Energy & Environmental Law Review staFF For all their advice and assistance in preparing this Note For publication. An additional thanks to ProFessor KrakoFF For her teachings on the economic, environmental, and Indigenous histories of the Colorado Plateau and For her invaluable guidance throughout the writing process. I am grateFul to share my Note with the community and owe it all to my professors and classmates at Colorado Law. COLORADO NATURAL RESOURCES, ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL LAW REVIEW 42 Colo. Nat. Resources, Energy & Envtl. L. Rev. [Vol. 32:1 III. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF PLATEAU HYDROPOWER ............... -
3.6 Riverflow Issues
AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT & ENVIRONMENTAL CONSEQUENCES CHAPTER 3 3.6 RIVERFLOW ISSUES 3.6.1 INTRODUCTION This section considers the potential effects of interim surplus criteria on three types of releases from Glen Canyon Dam and Hoover Dam. The Glen Canyon Dam releases analyzed are those needed for restoration of beaches and habitat along the Colorado River between the Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Mead, and for a yet to be defined program of low steady summer flows to be provided for the study and recovery of endangered Colorado River fish, in years when releases from the dam are near the minimum. The Hoover Dam releases analyzed are the frequency of flood releases from the dam and the effect of flood flows along the river downstream of Hoover Dam. 3.6.2 BEACH/HABITAT-BUILDING FLOWS The construction and operation of Glen Canyon Dam has caused two major changes related to sediment resources downstream in Glen Canyon and Grand Canyon. The first is reduced sediment supply. Because the dam traps virtually all of the incoming sediment from the Upper Basin in Lake Powell, the Colorado River is now released from the dam as clear water. The second major change is the reduction in the high water zone from the level of pre-dam annual floods to the level of powerplant releases. Thus, the height of annual sediment deposition and erosion has been reduced. During the investigations leading to the preparation of the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam Final EIS (Reclamation, 1995b), the relationships between releases from the dam and downstream sedimentation processes were brought sharply into focus, and flow patterns designed to conserve sediment for building beaches and habitat (i.e., beach/habitat-building flow, or BHBF releases) were identified. -
Effects of the Glen Canyon Dam on Colorado River Temperature Dynamics
Effects of the Glen Canyon Dam on Colorado River Temperature Dynamics GEL 230 – Ecogeomorphology University of California, Davis Derek Roberts March 2nd, 2016 Abstract: At the upstream end of the Grand Canyon, the Glen Canyon Dam has changed the Colorado River from a run-of-the-river flow to a deep, summer-stratified reservoir. This change in flow regime significantly alters the temperature regime of the Colorado River. Seasonal temperature variation, once ranging from near to almost , is now limited to 7 . The lack of warm summer temperatures has prevented spawning of endangered 0℃ 30℃ humpback chub in the Colorado River. Implementation of a temperature control device, to − 14℃ allow for warmer summer releases to mitigate negative temperature effects on endangered fish, was considered by the federal government. Ultimately, this proposal was put on indefinite hold by the Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service due to concerns of cost and unintended ecological consequences. The low-variability of the current dam-induced Colorado River temperature regime will continue into the foreseeable future. Agencies are reviewing humpback chub conservation efforts outside of temperature control. Keywords: Colorado River, Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon Dam, thermal dynamics 1.0 Introduction Temperature in natural water bodies is a primary driver of both ecological and physical processes. Freshwater plant and animal metabolisms are heavily affected by temperature (Coulter 2014). Furthermore, the thermal structure of a water body has significant impacts on the physical processes that drive ecosystem function (Hodges et al 2000); fluid dynamics drive transport of nutrients, oxygen, and heat. Human action, often the introduction of dams or industrial cooling systems, can alter the natural thermal regimes of rivers and lakes leading to reverberating impacts throughout associated ecosystems. -
Executive Summary U.S
Glen Canyon Dam Long-Term Experimental and Management Plan Environmental Impact Statement PUBLIC DRAFT Executive Summary U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation, Upper Colorado Region National Park Service, Intermountain Region December 2015 Cover photo credits: Title bar: Grand Canyon National Park Grand Canyon: Grand Canyon National Park Glen Canyon Dam: T.R. Reeve High-flow experimental release: T.R. Reeve Fisherman: T. Gunn Humpback chub: Arizona Game and Fish Department Rafters: Grand Canyon National Park Glen Canyon Dam Long-Term Experimental and Management Plan December 2015 Draft Environmental Impact Statement 1 CONTENTS 2 3 4 ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS .................................................................................. vii 5 6 ES.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 1 7 ES.2 Proposed Federal Action ........................................................................................ 2 8 ES.2.1 Purpose of and Need for Action .............................................................. 2 9 ES.2.2 Objectives and Resource Goals of the LTEMP ....................................... 3 10 ES.3 Scope of the DEIS .................................................................................................. 6 11 ES.3.1 Affected Region and Resources .............................................................. 6 12 ES.3.2 Impact Topics Selected for Detailed Analysis ........................................ 6 13 ES.4 -
Management of the Colorado River: Water Allocations, Drought, and the Federal Role
Management of the Colorado River: Water Allocations, Drought, and the Federal Role Updated March 21, 2019 Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov R45546 SUMMARY R45546 Management of the Colorado River: Water March 21, 2019 Allocation, Drought, and the Federal Role Charles V. Stern The Colorado River Basin covers more than 246,000 square miles in seven U.S. states Specialist in Natural (Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, and California) and Resources Policy Mexico. Pursuant to federal law, the Bureau of Reclamation (part of the Department of the Interior) manages much of the basin’s water supplies. Colorado River water is used Pervaze A. Sheikh primarily for agricultural irrigation and municipal and industrial (M&I) uses, but it also Specialist in Natural is important for power production, fish and wildlife, and recreational uses. Resources Policy In recent years, consumptive uses of Colorado River water have exceeded natural flows. This causes an imbalance in the basin’s available supplies and competing demands. A drought in the basin dating to 2000 has raised the prospect of water delivery curtailments and decreased hydropower production, among other things. In the future, observers expect that increasing demand for supplies, coupled with the effects of climate change, will further increase the strain on the basin’s limited water supplies. River Management The Law of the River is the commonly used shorthand for the multiple laws, court decisions, and other documents governing Colorado River operations. The foundational document of the Law of the River is the Colorado River Compact of 1922. Pursuant to the compact, the basin states established a framework to apportion the water supplies between the Upper and Lower Basins of the Colorado River, with the dividing line between the two basins at Lee Ferry, AZ (near the Utah border). -
ATTACHMENT B Dams and Reservoirs Along the Lower
ATTACHMENTS ATTACHMENT B Dams and Reservoirs Along the Lower Colorado River This attachment to the Colorado River Interim Surplus Criteria DEIS describes the dams and reservoirs on the main stream of the Colorado River from Glen Canyon Dam in Arizona to Morelos Dam along the international boundary with Mexico. The role that each plays in the operation of the Colorado River system is also explained. COLORADO RIVER INTERIM SURPLUS CRITERIA DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT COLORADO RIVER DAMS AND RESERVOIRS Lake Powell to Morelos Dam The following discussion summarizes the dams and reservoirs along the Colorado River from Lake Powell to the Southerly International Boundary (SIB) with Mexico and their specific roles in the operation of the Colorado River. Individual dams serve one or more specific purposes as designated in their federal construction authorizations. Such purposes are, water storage, flood control, river regulation, power generation, and water diversion to Arizona, Nevada, California, and Mexico. The All-American Canal is included in this summary because it conveys some of the water delivered to Mexico and thereby contributes to the river system operation. The dams and reservoirs are listed in the order of their location along the river proceeding downstream from Lake Powell. Their locations are shown on the map attached to the inside of the rear cover of this report. Glen Canyon Dam – Glen Canyon Dam, which formed Lake Powell, is a principal part of the Colorado River Storage Project. It is a concrete arch dam 710 feet high and 1,560 feet wide. The maximum generating discharge capacity is 33,200 cfs which may be augmented by an additional 15,000 cfs through the river outlet works. -
Projecting Temperature in Lake Powell and the Glen Canyon Dam Tailrace
Projecting Temperature in Lake Powell and the Glen Canyon Dam Tailrace By Nicholas T. Williams1 Abstract factors affecting the magnitude of warming in dam discharges (Bureau of Reclamation, 2007). During the period of warmest river temperatures, the Recent drought in the Colorado River Basin reduced dissolved oxygen content of discharges from the dam declined water levels in Lake Powell nearly 150 feet between 1999 to concentrations lower than any previously observed (fig. 1). and 2005. This resulted in warmer discharges from Glen Operations at Glen Canyon Dam were modified by running Canyon Dam than have been observed since initial filling of turbines at varying speeds, which artificially increased the dis- Lake Powell. Water quality of the discharge also varied from solved oxygen content of discharges; however, these changes historical observations as concentrations of dissolved oxygen also resulted in decreased power generation and possibly dropped to levels previously unobserved. These changes damaged the turbines (Bureau of Reclamation, 2005). The generated a need, from operational and biological resource processes in the reservoir creating the low dissolved oxygen standpoints, to provide projections of discharge temperature content in the reservoir had been observed in previous years, and water quality throughout the year for Lake Powell and but before 2005 the processes had never affected the river Glen Canyon Dam. Projections of temperature during the year below the dam to this magnitude (Vernieu and others, 2005). 2008 were done using a two-dimensional hydrodynamic and As with the warmer temperatures, the low dissolved oxygen water-quality model of Lake Powell. The projections were concentrations could not be explained solely by the reduced based on the hydrological forecast for the Colorado River reservoir elevations. -
The Effects of Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River
THE EFFECTS OF GLEN CANYON DAM ON THE COLORADO RIVER. by Margaret Gebren A SENIOR THESIS m GENERAL STUDIES Submitted to the General Studies Council in the College of Arts and Sciences at Texas Tech University in Partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of BACHELOR OF GENERAL STUDIES Approved Dr. JeffLee Depal'tmenr of Economics and Geography Co-Chair of Thesis Committee Dr. Rob Mitchell Department of R WFM Co-Chair of Thesis Committee ----~~------- Dr. Dale Davis Director of General Studies May 1999 /ILZ ''55< ' / 7 3 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to express my deep gratitude to Dr. Lee and Dr. Mitchell for taking time out to read and critique my work and also for their commitment to teaching, which is greatly underrated. Thanks also to my family, for graciously correcting my grammar and spelling all these years! TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION 1 II. HISTORY OF THE DAM 4 III. LIFE BEFORE THE DAM 7 IV. FORMATION OF THE GRAND CANYON 9 V. LIFE AFTER THE DAM 14 Lake Powell 14 Water Releases 15 Rapids 16 Sand and Sediment 16 Vegetation 17 Backwaters 18 Water Chemistry and Temperature 18 Heavy Metals 19 Salinity 20 Endangered Species 21 VI. THE PLAN 24 VII. THE EXPERIEMENT 27 VIII. RESULTS 30 Sandbars and Sediment Transportation 30 Rapids 31 ni Camping Beaches 31 Backwater Habitats 32 Geochemistry 33 Fisheries 33 Riparian Vegetation and Resources 34 Cultural Resources 34 IX. CONCLUSIONS 35 BIBLIOGRAPHY 36 IV CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Mankind has become so used to controlling nature that we often forget or over-look the consequences of our handiwork. -
Glen Canyon Unit, CRSP, Arizona and Utah
Contents Glen Canyon Unit ............................................................................................................................2 Project Location...................................................................................................................3 Historic Setting ....................................................................................................................4 Project Authorization .........................................................................................................8 Pre-Construction ................................................................................................................14 Construction.......................................................................................................................21 Project Benefits and Uses of Project Water.......................................................................31 Conclusion .........................................................................................................................36 Notes ..................................................................................................................................39 Bibliography ......................................................................................................................46 Index ..................................................................................................................................52 Glen Canyon Unit The Glen Canyon Unit, located along the Colorado River in north central -
Dam Failure Study at Glen Canyon
34 hours for the maximum stage of the flood wave to ar- Dam Failure Study rive at the upper reaches of Lake Powell. Routing the esti- mated flood inflow hydrograph indicated that Glen Can- At Glen Canyon Dam yon Dam would be overtopped for a duration of about 40 hours, with a peak depth of 2.9 feet over the parapet wall. By Stephen E. Latham, While it is unlikely this overtopping flow would cause the Bureau of Reclamation, July 1998 dam to fail, for the purposes of evaluating this scenario, Note: This document is abridged failure was assumed. Outflow assumptions prior to the Overtopping Failure Purpose of Study were as follows. Measures would likely have been taken The purpose of this study is to estimate the magnitude at Glen Canyon Dam to lower Lake Powell, probably by of flooding that would result along the Colorado River from opening the spillways 2 to 3 hours after notification of the Lake Powell to Hoover Dam due to the failure of Glen Can- Flaming Gorge Dam failure. Upon arrival of the flood wave yon Dam. This study was requested, pursuant to policy, by at Lake Powell, it was assumed that the spillway gates the Bureau of Reclamation. This information can be used would be opened uniformly to the normal maximum dis- in Reclamation’s emergency action plan for Glen Canyon charge of 238,000 cfs. Dam, and as a reference in preparing inundation maps for areas downstream of the dam. It can also be used to help Study Results local authorities develop warning and evacuation plans. -
Colorado River Slideshow Title TK
The Colorado River: Lifeline of the Southwest { The Headwaters The Colorado River begins in the Rocky Mountains at elevation 10,000 feet, about 60 miles northwest of Denver in Colorado. The Path Snow melts into water, flows into the river and moves downstream. In Utah, the river meets primary tributaries, the Green River and the San Juan River, before flowing into Lake Powell and beyond. Source: Bureau of Reclamation The Path In total, the Colorado River cuts through 1,450 miles of mountains, plains and deserts to Mexico and the Gulf of California. Source: George Eastman House It was almost 1,500 years ago when humans first tapped the river. Since then, the water has been claimed, reclaimed, divided and subdivided many times. The river is the life source for seven states – Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming – as well as the Republic of Mexico. River Water Uses There are many demands for Colorado River water: • Agriculture and Livestock • Municipal and Industrial • Recreation • Fish/Wildlife and Habitat • Hydroelectricity • Tribes • Mexico Source: USGS Agriculture The Colorado River provides irrigation water to about 3.5 million acres of farmland – about 80 percent of its flows. Municipal Phoenix Denver About 15 percent of Colorado River flows provide drinking and household water to more than 30 million people. These cities include: Las Vegas and Phoenix, and cities outside the Basin – Denver, Albuquerque, Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico. Recreation Source: Utah Office of Tourism Source: Emma Williams Recreation includes fishing, boating, waterskiing, camping and whitewater rafting in 22 National Wildlife Refuges, National Parks and National Recreation Areas along river. -
River Flow Advisory Bureau of Reclamation Upper Colorado Region Salt Lake City, Utah Vol
River Flow Advisory Bureau of Reclamation Upper Colorado Region Salt Lake City, Utah Vol. 16 No, 5 July 1986 With most of the snowmelt runoff now gone, the latest forecast is 166 percent of average, 8 percent lower than last month's forecast. Colorado River at Westwater Canyon The flow of the Colorado River for the first part of July is 16,000 cfs. This is about one-half of the peak which occurred on June 8. Cataract Canyon including the Green River The flow of the Colorado River through the canyon is 32,000 cfs. This is about one-half of the peak flow which occurred on June 8. Lake Powell Lake Powell is at elevation 3,697 feet, 3 feet short of full. It is still possible for Lake Powell to fill this year. Colorado River through Grand Canyon Releases from Glen Canyon have been decreased to an average of 23,000 cfs with fluctuations from 31,000 cfs during the day to 10,000 cfs at night during July. The flow will be slightly higher in August. Upper Green River - Fontenelle Reservoir The inflow into Fontenelle Reservc,,ir is 7,600 cfs. The peak of 20,000 cfs. the highest flow since 1918, was reached on June 8. The reservoir is at elevation 6,476 feet. The highest elevation was 6,495 feet on June 21. The pr~sent release is 11,000 cfs. High releases will be maintained until the reservoir elevation drops to 6,443 feet. Green River Flows below Flaming Gorge Dam Flaming Gorge is now at elevation 6,033 feet, and is expected to reach full elevation of 6,040 feet in August.