Skagit River Dam Failure Inundation Study
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Flooding the Border: Development, Politics, and Environmental Controversy in the Canadian-U.S
FLOODING THE BORDER: DEVELOPMENT, POLITICS, AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROVERSY IN THE CANADIAN-U.S. SKAGIT VALLEY by Philip Van Huizen A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in The Faculty of Graduate Studies (History) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) June 2013 © Philip Van Huizen, 2013 Abstract This dissertation is a case study of the 1926 to 1984 High Ross Dam Controversy, one of the longest cross-border disputes between Canada and the United States. The controversy can be divided into two parts. The first, which lasted until the early 1960s, revolved around Seattle’s attempts to build the High Ross Dam and flood nearly twenty kilometres into British Columbia’s Skagit River Valley. British Columbia favoured Seattle’s plan but competing priorities repeatedly delayed the province’s agreement. The city was forced to build a lower, 540-foot version of the Ross Dam instead, to the immense frustration of Seattle officials. British Columbia eventually agreed to let Seattle raise the Ross Dam by 122.5 feet in 1967. Following the agreement, however, activists from Vancouver and Seattle, joined later by the Upper Skagit, Sauk-Suiattle, and Swinomish Tribal Communities in Washington, organized a massive environmental protest against the plan, causing a second phase of controversy that lasted into the 1980s. Canadian and U.S. diplomats and politicians finally resolved the dispute with the 1984 Skagit River Treaty. British Columbia agreed to sell Seattle power produced in other areas of the province, which, ironically, required raising a different dam on the Pend d’Oreille River in exchange for not raising the Ross Dam. -
The Skagit-High Ross Controversy: Negotiation and Settlement
Volume 26 Issue 2 U.S. - Canada Transboundary Resource Issues Spring 1986 The Skagit-High Ross Controversy: Negotiation and Settlement Jackie Krolopp Kirn Marion E. Marts Recommended Citation Jackie K. Kirn & Marion E. Marts, The Skagit-High Ross Controversy: Negotiation and Settlement, 26 Nat. Resources J. 261 (1986). Available at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/nrj/vol26/iss2/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Natural Resources Journal by an authorized editor of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]. JACKIE KROLOPP KIRN* and MARION E. MARTS** The Skagit-High Ross Controversy: Negotiation and Settlement SETTING AND BACKGROUND The Skagit River is a short but powerful stream which rises in the mountains of southwestern British Columbia, cuts through the northern Cascades in a spectacular and once-remote mountain gorge, and empties into Puget Sound approximately sixty miles north of Seattle. The beautiful mountain scenery of the heavily glaciated north Cascades was formally recognized in the United States by the creation of the North Cascades National Park and the Ross Lake National Recreation Area in 1968, and earlier in British Columbia by creation of the E.C. Manning Provincial Park. The Ross Lake Recreation Area covers the narrow valley of the upper Skagit River in Washington and portions of several tributary valleys. It was created as a political and, to environmentalists who wanted national park status for the entire area, controversial, compromise which accom- modated the city of Seattle's Skagit River Project and the then-planned North Cascades Highway. -
Soil Survey of North Cascades National Park Complex, Washington
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE SOIL SURVEY OF NORTH CASCADES Joins sheet 11, Mount Prophet NATIONAL PARK COMPLEX, WASHINGTON UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ROSS DAM QUADRANGLE NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE SHEET NUMBER 18 OF 34 121°7’30"W 121°5’0"W Joins sheet 12, Pumpkin Mountain 121°2’30"W 121°0’0"W Joins sheet 13, Jack Mountain 8006 6502 9001 9010 9003 9003 7502 9003 9012 7015 6015 9999 48°45’0"N Sourdough Mountain 48°45’0"N 9010 9016 TRAIL 9008 7502 6014 9001 9003 7501 TRAIL 8007 9003 9003 9010 SOURDOUGH 9010 7015 9016 6010 7502 9016 9997 TRAIL 6505 9010 9008 6014 BEAVER 7502 9003 BANK BIG 9008 MOUNTAIN Hidden Hand 9016 Pass TRAIL 6010 9012 7501 9999 9003 9012 7502 ROSS LAKE 9010 7003 EAST NATIONAL RECREATION AREA BOUNDARY 7501 LAKE ROSS MOUNTAIN ROSS 7015 NORTH CASCADES NATIONAL PARK BOUNDARY DAM 9997 9016 7502 7501 Ruby Arm 6015 9001 7502 7015 6015 6009 7003 7015 9016 7500 9003 Happy JACK 6009 9999 7003 7502 7501 NORTH CASCADES HIGHWAY ( closed mid-Nov to April ) 9999 7501 6015 6014 Creek Diablo Lake DIABLO 6014 7502 Resort 7501 9997 TRAIL 6014 7015 7501 7015 9997 LAKE 6014 7003 7003 20 9999 7015 6009 7015 7015 7003 9999 DIABLO LAKE 6010 20 7003 6014 9016 48°42’30"N 9003 48°42’30"N 20 6014 6015 7015 9016 7003 6015 9012 6014 9012 7015 7015 9012 9012 NORTH CASCADES HIGHWAY 9016 7015 9003 THUNDER 7502 9010 7015 7501 9016 Thunder 9010 6015 7003 Lake KNOB 7501 7015 9999 9012 Pyramid 7015 6014 Lake Ruby 7003 9998 Mountain TRAIL Thunder Arm 9012 8006 9003 9012 7502 6014 9010 7015 6014 9012 -
Skagit - Ferc Project #553
SKAGIT - FERC PROJECT #553 EROSION CONTROL PROGRAM 2005 COMPLETION REPORT North Cascades National Park and Seattle City Light March, 2006 1 INTRODUCTION As stipulated in the 1991 Erosion Control Settlement Agreement (SA) between the National Park Service (NPS) and Seattle City Light (SCL), erosion control activities in Ross Lake National Recreation Area (NRA) continued for a twelfth year (including pre-license work). NPS crews, funded by SCL, conducted work at several sites in 2005 (Figure 1). Activity this year focused on contingency cribbing site E70A-6B, twenty yards south of E70A-6 on Ross Lake. In addition, site D-11, Thunder Point Campground on Diablo Lake was undertaken and completed. Detailed accounting of expenditures is provided in other reports and is not duplicated here. The purpose of this report is to update the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on progress under the terms of the new operating license for the Skagit Project. PROGRESS REPORTS BY PROJECT SITE D-11, Diablo Lake: Thunder Point Campground Approximately 250 ft of shoreline fronting the campground had become severely eroded. NPS erosion control crews in coordination with Seattle City Light barge, tug and boat crew imported 23 dump truck loads of building rock and one hundred yards of gravel. As per settlement agreement erosion control design, dry lay rock wall was installed to a height of 5’ along the 250’ of shoreline. Upon completion of dry wall, armor rock placed along the toe for the entire span. On the southwest end of the site, an additional 60’ of eroded shoreline was protected by half burying stumps in the drawdown and locking in drift logs in between the buried stumps and the shoreline creating a wave energy break. -
National Register of Historic Places Hydroeiectirc Projects Continuation Sheet
NPS Form 10-900-a OMB Approval No. 1024-O018 (8-86) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service skagit ^VQT & Newhalem Creek National Register of Historic Places Hydroeiectirc Projects Continuation Sheet Section number ___ Page ___ SUPPLEMENTARY LISTING RECORD NRIS Reference Number: 96000416 Date Listed: 4/26/96 Skagit River & Newhalem Creek Hvdroelectirc Projects Whatcom WA Property Name County State Hydroelectric Power Plant MPS Multiple Name This property is listed in the National Register of Historic Places in accordance with the attached nomination documentation subject to the following exceptions, exclusions, or amendments, notwithstanding the National Park Service certification included in the nomination documentation. Signature of tty^Keejifer Date of Action Amended Items in Nomination: Photographs: The SHPO has verified that the 1989 photographs accurately document the current condition and integrity of the nominated resources. Historic Photos #1-26 are provided as photocopy duplications. Resource Count: The resource count is revised to read: Contributing Noncontributing 21 6 buildings 2 - sites 5 6 structures 1 - objects 29 12 total Number of contributing resources previously listed in the National Register 16 . A revised inventory list is appended to clarify the resource count and contributing status of properties in the district, particularly at the powerplant/dam sites. (See attached) This information was confirmed with Lauren McCroskey of the WA SHPO. DISTRIBUTION: National Register property file Nominating Authority (without nomination attachment) NFS Form 10-900-a OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 (8-86) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service Skagit River & Newhalem Creek National Register of Historic Places Hydroelectirc Projects Continuation Sheet Section number The following is a list of the contributing and noncontributing resources within the district, beginning at its westernmost—downstream—end, organized according to geographic location. -
Youth Heritage Project
YOUTH HERITAGE PROJECT 2018 FINAL REPORT PARTNERS A huge thanks to our program partners for their significant financial and programmatic support for this year’s Youth Heritage Project! for the intrusion of the facilities within the Park. Students were able to witness a firsthand example NORTH CASCADES of this: all participants stayed at the North Cascades Institute’s Environmental Learning Center, which was constructed through mitigation funding as part NATIONAL PARK of a previous relicensing process. The relicensing process is once again being initiated. To take advantage of this real-world application, we The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation Within NOCA there is an active hydroelectric asked students to propose potential mitigation for held our seventh annual Discover Washington: project–a fairly unusual feature for a National Park. continuing operation of the hydroelectric project. Youth Heritage Project (YHP) this year at North These three dams, constructed from 1919-1960 prior We spent the first two days of YHP providing students Cascades National Park (NOCA). YHP continues to to establishment of the Park, still provide about with background information to aid their proposals, fulfill a long-standing goal of the Washington Trust 20% of Seattle’s electricity. Operation of the dams introducing students to both natural and historic to provide proactive outreach to and education for continues through a licensing agreement between resources within the Park. Students learned about young people. YHP is designed to introduce historic Seattle City Light and the Federal Energy Regulatory the establishment of the hydroelectric project and preservation to the younger generation, because in Commission. Periodically, Seattle City Light must the ongoing development of the Skagit River in the this next generation are the future leaders who will go through a relicensing process to continue twentieth century. -
Washington State's Scenic Byways & Road Trips
waShington State’S Scenic BywayS & Road tRipS inSide: Road Maps & Scenic drives planning tips points of interest 2 taBLe of contentS waShington State’S Scenic BywayS & Road tRipS introduction 3 Washington State’s Scenic Byways & Road Trips guide has been made possible State Map overview of Scenic Byways 4 through funding from the Federal Highway Administration’s National Scenic Byways Program, Washington State Department of Transportation and aLL aMeRican RoadS Washington State Tourism. waShington State depaRtMent of coMMeRce Chinook Pass Scenic Byway 9 director, Rogers Weed International Selkirk Loop 15 waShington State touRiSM executive director, Marsha Massey nationaL Scenic BywayS Marketing Manager, Betsy Gabel product development Manager, Michelle Campbell Coulee Corridor 21 waShington State depaRtMent of tRanSpoRtation Mountains to Sound Greenway 25 Secretary of transportation, Paula Hammond director, highways and Local programs, Kathleen Davis Stevens Pass Greenway 29 Scenic Byways coordinator, Ed Spilker Strait of Juan de Fuca - Highway 112 33 Byway leaders and an interagency advisory group with representatives from the White Pass Scenic Byway 37 Washington State Department of Transportation, Washington State Department of Agriculture, Washington State Department of Fish & Wildlife, Washington State Tourism, Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission and State Scenic BywayS Audubon Washington were also instrumental in the creation of this guide. Cape Flattery Tribal Scenic Byway 40 puBLiShing SeRviceS pRovided By deStination -
The Damnation of a Dam : the High Ross Dam Controversy
THE DAMYIATION OF A DAM: TIIE HIGH ROSS DAM CONTROVERSY TERRY ALLAN SIblMONS A. B., University of California, Santa Cruz, 1968 A THESIS SUBIUTTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of Geography SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY May 1974 All rights reserved. This thesis may not b? reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission of the author. APPROVAL Name: Terry Allan Simmons Degree: Master of Arts Title of Thesis: The Damnation of a Dam: The High Ross Dam Controversy Examining Committee: Chairman: F. F. Cunningham 4 E.. Gibson Seni Supervisor / /( L. J. Evendon / I. K. Fox ernal Examiner Professor School of Community and Regional Planning University of British Columbia PARTIAL COPYRIGHT LICENSE I hereby grant to Simon Fraser University rhe righc to lcnd my thesis or dissertation (the title of which is shown below) to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. I further agree that permission for multiple copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by me or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed ' without my written permission. Title of' ~hesis /mqqmkm: The Damnation nf a nam. ~m -Author: / " (signature ) Terrv A. S.imrnonze (name ) July 22, 1974 (date) ABSTRACT In 1967, after nearly fifty years of preparation, inter- national negotiations concerning the construction of the High Ross Dan1 on the Skagit River were concluded between the Province of British Columbia and the City of Seattle. -
The Wild Cascades
THE WILD CASCADES December 1969-January 1970 2 THE WILD CASCADES JXTOR/rH CASCADE3S TJTSTDIEiR. AT1 T_As.C> Je^ BATTLE LINES DRAWN by The Kerosene Kid duty it should have been to protect the park. Each such campaign has been accompanied by barrages of propaganda that the resources of the park were essential to the continued growth of the surrounding area or that new roads were needed along the wilderness beach or across the park's wilderness core "to open it up for the peepul. " Each time the friends of Olympic have rallied, mounted counter-attacks and saved the park. We have no reason to believe the history of the North Cascades over the next third of a century will be any different. But, to para phrase Mr. Churchill, the North Cascades Conservation Council (N3C) was not organized to preside over the dissolution of the North Cascades. We expect attacks and we confi dently expect to win. To prevent Seattle City Light from imple menting its destructive proposals in the Ross Lake National Recreation Area will require as If any conservationist felt he was honor tough a fight as conservationists ever have ably discharged from the wars upon passage waged. The nature of the adversary contrib of the 1968 North Cascades Act, he lacked utes to the difficulty of the battle. Seattle City knowledge of the history of the American Light is no ordinary despoiler of wilderness. National Park system. He may have said to In fact, it's hard to say just what Seattle City himself, "Whew! I'm glad that's over. -
1968 Mountaineer Outings
The Mountaineer The Mountaineer 1969 Cover Photo: Mount Shuksan, near north boundary North Cascades National Park-Lee Mann Entered as second-class matter, April 8, 1922, at Post Office, Seattle, Wash., under the Act of March 3, 1879. Published monthly and semi-monthly during June by The Mountaineers, P.O. Box 122, Seattle, Washington 98111. Clubroom is at 7191h Pike Street, Seattle. Subscription price monthly Bulletin and Annual, $5.00 per year. EDITORIAL STAFF: Alice Thorn, editor; Loretta Slat er, Betty Manning. Material and photographs should be submitted to The Mountaineers, at above address, before Novem ber 1, 1969, for consideration. Photographs should be black and white glossy prints, 5x7, with caption and photographer's name on back. Manuscripts should be typed double-spaced and include writer's name, address and phone number. foreword Since the North Cascades National Park was indubi tably the event of this past year, this issue of The Mountaineer attempts to record aspects of that event. Many other magazines and groups have celebrated by now, of course, but hopefully we have managed to avoid total redundancy. Probably there will be few outward signs of the new management in the park this summer. A great deal of thinking and planning is in progress as the Park Serv ice shapes its policies and plans developments. The North Cross-State highway, while accessible by four wheel vehicle, is by no means fully open to the public yet. So, visitors and hikers are unlikely to "see" the changeover to park status right away. But the first articles in this annual reveal both the thinking and work which led to the park, and the think ing which must now be done about how the park is to be used. -
North Cascades and Skagit Watershed Eco-Facts
North Cascades and Skagit Watershed Eco-facts THE SKAGIT RIVER The Skagit River begins in southern British Columbia and flows 120 miles to Puget Sound, passing right by the Learning Center as Diablo Lake. In volume of water, it is the third largest river on the west coast of the contiguous United States. It is fed by over 3,000 streams and drains the largest watershed in the Puget Sound basin, an area roughly the size of Delaware. The Skagit is the only river system in Washington that supports all five species of salmon: Chinook, chum, Coho, pink and sockeye. It is home to six of the region’s 22 populations of threatened Chinook salmon and contains the largest listed bull trout, pink salmon and steelhead stocks in Washington. The Skagit Delta also supports huge concentrations of waterfowl, shorebirds and raptors, including trumpeter and tundra swans, snow geese, gray- bellied brant, rough-legged hawks, peregrine falcons and one of the nation’s largest gatherings of bald eagles. NORTH CASCADES MOUNTAINS Thrust up from the ocean floor in a tectonic collision millions of years ago, the North Cascades have been chiseled by glaciers into a jagged mountain realm full of sharp, stony peaks, deep valleys and long lakes. The North Cascades are part of the American Cordillera, the mountain chain that stretches more than 12,000 from Tierra del Fuego to the Alaskan Peninsula. Mile for mile, the North Cascades are steeper and wetter than nearly any other range in the conterminous U.S., and they are the most glaciated American mountains outside of Alaska. -
Ross Lake National Recreation Area Within North Q Baker Lake Cascades National Park Service Complex
' »* » « L i r * ' IwJ^I WM Mt. Shuksan of North Cascades National Park and Mt. Baker of Mt. Baker Snoqualmie National Forest Welcome to National Park and National Forest lands of the North Cascades. Recreational Located east of 1-5, there are many opportunities for you to enjoy this area with easy access Opportunities from several major highways. Start in the north and take a drive on the Mt. Baker Scenic Byway page 2 (State Route 542). This route begins in Bellingham, winds along the North Fork of the Nooksack River, and, from the town of Glacier, climbs 24 miles to an elevation of 5,100 feet at Artist Point in Heather Meadows. This destination is legendary for spectacular views of Mt. Baker, Mt. Shuksan and surrounding peaks. For other stunning vistas, follow the northern part of the Cascade Loop along the North Cascades Scenic Highway (State Route 20). A side trip up the Baker Lake Road, 16 miles east of Sedro-Woolley, leads into the Baker Lake Basin, which features campgrounds, water recreation, and numerous trails. Trip Planning and Safety page 3 The 125-mile Skagit Wild and Scenic River System - made up of segments of the Skagit, Cascade, Sauk, and Suiattle rivers - provides important wildlife habitat and recreation. The Skagit River is home to one of the largest winter populations of bald eagles in the United States and provides spawning grounds for one-third of all salmon in Puget Sound. The North Cascades Scenic Highway winds east £ through the gateway communities of Concrete, D Rockport, and Marblemount before reaching Ross Lake National Recreation Area within North Q Baker Lake Cascades National Park Service Complex.