Sample records for canyon dam idaho
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Mercury cycling in the Hells Canyon Complex of the Snake River, Idaho and Oregon
Clark, Gregory M.; Naymik, Jesse; Krabbenhoft, David P.; Eagles-Smith, Collin A.; Aiken, George R.; Marvin-DiPasquale, Mark C.; Harris, Reed C.; Myers, Ralph
2016-07-11
The Hells Canyon Complex (HCC) is a hydroelectric project built and operated by the Idaho Power Company (IPC) that consists of three dams on the Snake River along the Oregon and Idaho border (fig. 1). The dams have resulted in the creation of Brownlee, Oxbow, and Hells Canyon Reservoirs, which have a combined storage capacity of more than 1.5 million acre-feet and span about 90 miles of the Snake River. The Snake River upstream of and through the HCC historically has been impaired by water-quality issues related to excessive contributions of nutrients, algae, sediment, and other pollutants. In addition, historical data collected since the 1960s from the Snake River and tributaries near the HCC have documented high concentrations of mercury in fish tissue and sediment (Harris and Beals, 2013). Data collected from more recent investigations within the HCC continue to indicate elevated concentrations of mercury and methylmercury in the water column, bottom sediments, and biota (Clark and Maret, 1998; Essig, 2010; Fosness and others, 2013). As a result, Brownlee and Hells Canyon Reservoirs are listed as impaired for mercury by the State of Idaho, and the Snake River from the Oregon and Idaho border through the HCC downstream to the Oregon and Washington border is listed as impaired for mercury by the State of Oregon.
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Forde, Arnell S.; Dadisman, Shawn V.; Flocks, James G.; Fosness, Ryan L.; Welcker, Chris; Kelso, Kyle W.
2014-01-01
From March 16 - 31, 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with the Idaho Power Company conducted a geophysical survey to investigate sediment deposits and long-term sediment transport within the Snake River from Brownlee Dam to Hells Canyon Reservoir, along the Idaho and Oregon border; this effort will help the USGS to better understand geologic processes. This report serves as an archive of unprocessed digital chirp subbottom data, trackline maps, navigation files, Geographic Information System (GIS) files, Field Activity Collection System (FACS) logs, and formal Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) metadata. Gained (showing a relative increase in signal amplitude) digital images of the seismic profiles are also provided. Refer to the Acronyms page for expansions of acronyms and abbreviations used in this report.
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Covington, H.R.; Weaver, Jean N.
1990-01-01
The Snake River Plain is a broad, arcuate region of low relief that extends more than 300 mi across southern Idaho. The Snake River enters the plain near Idaho Falls and flows westward along the southern margin of the eastern Snake River Plain (fig 1), a position mainly determined by the basaltic lava flows that erupted near the axis of the plain. The highly productive Snake River Plain aquifer (water table) is typically less than 500 ft below the land surface, but us deeper than 1,000 ft in a few areas. The Snake River has excavated a canyon into the nearly flat lying basaltic and sedimentary rocks of the eastern Snake River Plain between Milner Dam and King Hill (fig. 2), a distance of almost 90 mi. For much of its length the canyon intersects the Snake River Plain aquifer, which discharges form the northern canyon wall as springs of variable size, spacing and altitude. Geologic controls on wprings are of importance because nearly 60 percent of the aquifer's discharge occurs as spring flow along this reach of the canyon. This report is one of the several that describes the geologic occurrence of the springs along the northern wall of the Snake River canyone from Milner Dam to King Hill.
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Covington, H.R.; Weaver, Jean N.
1990-01-01
The Snake River Plain is a broad, arcuate region of low relief that extends more than 300 mi across southern Idaho. The Snake River enters the plain near Idaho Falls and flows westward along the southern margin of the eastern Snake River Plain (fig. 1), a position mainly determined by the basaltic lava flows that erupted near the axis of the plain. The highly productive Snake River Plain aquifer north of the Snaked River underlies the most of the eastern plain. The aquifer is composed of basaltic ricks that are interbedded with fluvial and lacustrine sedimentary rocks. The top of the aquifer (water table) is typically less than 500 ft below the land surface, but is deeper than 1,000 ft in few areas. The Snake River had excavated a canyon into the nearly flat-lying basaltic and sedimentary rocks of the eastern Snake River Plain between Milner Dam and King Hill (fig. 2), a distance of almost 90 mi. For much of its length the canyon intersects the Snake River Plain aquifer, which discharges from the north canyon wall as springs of variable size, spacing, and altitude. Geologic controls on springs are of importance because nearly 60 percent of the aquifer's discharge occurs as spring flow along this reach of the canyon. This report is one of several that describes the geologic occurrence of springs along the northern wall of the Snake River canyon from Milner Dam to King Hill. To understand the local geologic controls on springs, the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey initiated a geologic mapping project as part of their Snake River Plain Regional Aquifer System-Analysis Program. Objectives of the project were (1) to prepare a geologic map of a strip of land immediately north of the Snake River canyon, (2) to map the geology of the north canyon wall in profile, (3) to locate spring occurrences along the north side of the Snake River between Milner Dam and King Hill, and (4) to estimate spring discharge from the north wall of the canyon.
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Covington, H.R.; Weaver, Jean N.
1990-01-01
The Snake River Plain is a broad, arcuate region of low relief that extends more than 300 mi across southern Idaho. The Snake River enters the plain near Idaho Falls and flows westward along the southern margin of the eastern Snake River Plain (fig. 1), a position mainly determined by the basaltic lava flows that erupted near the axis of the plain. The highly productive Snake River Plain aquifer north of the Snake River underlies most of the eastern plain. The aquifer is composed of basaltic rocks that are interbedded with fluvial and lacustrine sedimentary rocks. The top of the aquifer (water table) is typically less than 500 ft below the land surface, but is deeper than 1,000 ft in a few areas. The Snake River has excavated a canyon into the nearly flat-lying basaltic and sedimentary rocks of the eastern Snake River Plain between Milner Dam and King Hill (fig. 2), a distance of almost 90 mi. For much of its length the canyon wall as springs of variable size, spacing, and altitude. Geologic controls on springs are of importance because nearly 60 percent of the aquifer's discharge occurs as spring flow along this reach of the canyon. This report is one of several that describes the geologic occurrence of springs along the northern wall of the Snake River canyon from Milner Dam to King Hill (fig. 1). To understand the local geologic controls on springs, the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey initiated a geologic mapping project as part of their Snake River Plain Regional Aquifer System-Analysis Program. Objectives of the project were (1) to prepare a geologic map of a strip of land immediately north of the Snake River canyon, (2) to map the geology of the north canyon wall in profile, (3) to locate spring occurrences along the north side of the Snake River between Milner Dam and King Hill, and (4) to estimate spring discharge from the north wall of the canyon.
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Melis, Theodore S.; Walters, Carl; Korman, Josh
2015-01-01
With a focus on resources of the Colorado River ecosystem below Glen Canyon Dam, the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program has included a variety of experimental policy tests, ranging from manipulation of water releases from the dam to removal of non-native fish within Grand Canyon National Park. None of these field-scale experiments has yet produced unambiguous results in terms of management prescriptions. But there has been adaptive learning, mostly from unanticipated or surprising resource responses relative to predictions from ecosystem modeling. Surprise learning opportunities may often be viewed with dismay by some stakeholders who might not be clear about the purpose of science and modeling in adaptive management. However, the experimental results from the Glen Canyon Dam program actually represent scientific successes in terms of revealing new opportunities for developing better river management policies. A new long-term experimental management planning process for Glen Canyon Dam operations, started in 2011 by the U.S. Department of the Interior, provides an opportunity to refocus management objectives, identify and evaluate key uncertainties about the influence of dam releases, and refine monitoring for learning over the next several decades. Adaptive learning since 1995 is critical input to this long-term planning effort. Embracing uncertainty and surprise outcomes revealed by monitoring and ecosystem modeling will likely continue the advancement of resource objectives below the dam, and may also promote efficient learning in other complex programs.
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Recent sediment studies refute Glen Canyon Dam hypothesis
Rubin, David M.; Topping, David J.; Schmidt, John C.; Hazel, Joe; Kaplinski, Matt; Melis, Theodore S.
2002-01-01
Recent studies of sedimentology hydrology, and geomorphology indicate that releases from Glen Canyon Dam are continuing to erode sandbars and beaches in the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, despite attempts to restore these resources. The current strategy for dam operations is based on the hypothesis that sand supplied by tributaries of the Colorado River downstream from the dam will accumulate in the channel during normal dam operations and remain available for restoration floods. Recent work has shown that this hypothesis is false, and that tributary sand inputs are exported downstream rapidly typically within weeks or months under the current flow regime.
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Status and Trends of Resources Below Glen Canyon Dam Update - 2009
Hamill, John F.
2009-01-01
The protection of resources found in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, emerged as a significant public concern in the decades following the completion of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963. The dam, which lies about 15 miles upstream from the park, altered the Colorado River's flow, temperature, and sediment-carrying capacity, resulting over time in beach erosion, expansion of nonnative species, and losses of native fish. During the 1990s, in response to public concern, Congress and the Department of the Interior embarked on an ongoing effort to reduce and address the effects of dam operations on downstream resources. In 2005, the U.S. Geological Survey produced a comprehensive report entitled 'The State of the Colorado River Ecosystem in Grand Canyon', which documented the condition and trends of resources downstream of Glen Canyon Dam from 1991 to 2004. This fact sheet updates the 2005 report to extend its findings to include data published through April 2009 for key resources.
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75 FR 34476 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-06-17
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Reclamation Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group... Management Work Group. The purpose of the Adaptive Management Work Group is to advise and to provide... of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group is in the public interest in connection with...
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Science Activities Associated with Proposed 2008 High-Flow Experiment at Glen Canyon Dam
Hamill, John
2008-01-01
Grand Canyon National Park lies approximately 15 miles downriver from Glen Canyon Dam, which was built on the Colorado River just south of the Arizona-Utah border. Because the dam stops most sediment moving downstream, its presence has resulted in erosion and shrinkage of river sandbars in Grand Canyon. Fewer and smaller sandbars mean smaller camping beaches for visitors to use, continued erosion of cultural sites, and possibly less habitat for native fish, including the endangered humpback chub. In an effort to restore sandbars and related habitat and to comply with its responsibilities under the Grand Canyon Protection Act, the Department of the Interior has proposed a high-flow release of water from Glen Canyon Dam in March 2008. The U.S. Geological Survey?s (USGS) Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center is responsible for coordinating research associated with the proposed experiment. The proposed studies are designed to evaluate the feasibility of using such high flows to improve a range of Grand Canyon resources.
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A simplified water temperature model for the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam
Wright, S.A.; Anderson, C.R.; Voichick, N.
2009-01-01
Glen Canyon Dam, located on the Colorado River in northern Arizona, has affected the physical, biological and cultural resources of the river downstream in Grand Canyon. One of the impacts to the downstream physical environment that has important implications for the aquatic ecosystem is the transformation of the thermal regime from highly variable seasonally to relatively constant year-round, owing to hypolimnetic releases from the upstream reservoir, Lake Powell. Because of the perceived impacts on the downstream aquatic ecosystem and native fish communities, the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program has considered modifications to flow releases and release temperatures designed to increase downstream temperatures. Here, we present a new model of monthly average water temperatures below Glen Canyon Dam designed for first-order, relatively simple evaluation of various alternative dam operations. The model is based on a simplified heat-exchange equation, and model parameters are estimated empirically. The model predicts monthly average temperatures at locations up to 421 km downstream from the dam with average absolute errors less than 0.58C for the dataset considered. The modelling approach used here may also prove useful for other systems, particularly below large dams where release temperatures are substantially out of equilibrium with meteorological conditions. We also present some examples of how the model can be used to evaluate scenarios for the operation of Glen Canyon Dam.
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Sondossi, Hoda A.; Fairley, Helen C.
2014-01-01
The development of a one-dimensional flow-routing model for the Colorado River between Lees Ferry and Diamond Creek, Arizona in 2008 provided a potentially useful tool for assessing the degree to which varying discharges from Glen Canyon Dam may inundate terrestrial environments and potentially affect resources located within the zone of inundation. Using outputs from the model, a geographic information system analysis was completed to evaluate the degree to which flows from Glen Canyon Dam might inundate archaeological sites located along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. The analysis indicates that between 4 and 19 sites could be partially inundated by flows released from Glen Canyon Dam under current (2014) operating guidelines, and as many as 82 archaeological sites may have been inundated to varying degrees by uncontrolled high flows released in June 1983. Additionally, the analysis indicates that more of the sites currently (2014) proposed for active management by the National Park Service are located at low elevations and, therefore, tend to be more susceptible to potential inundation effects than sites not currently (2014) targeted for management actions, although the potential for inundation occurs in both groups of sites. Because of several potential sources of error and uncertainty associated with the model and with limitations of the archaeological data used in this analysis, the results are not unequivocal. These caveats, along with the fact that dam-related impacts can involve more than surface-inundation effects, suggest that the results of this analysis should be used with caution to infer potential effects of Glen Canyon Dam on archaeological sites in the Grand Canyon.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chapman, K.; Parnell, R. A.; Smith, M. E.; Grams, P. E.; Mueller, E. R.
2015-12-01
The 1963 closure of Glen Canyon Dam drastically reduced the downstream sediment supply and altered daily flow regimes of the Colorado River through Grand Canyon, resulting in significant sandbar erosion downstream of the dam. Dam-release floods, known as High Flow Experiments (HFEs), have occurred six times since 1996 and are intended to rebuild Grand Canyon sandbars using tributary-supplied sediment. In Marble Canyon (first 100 km of Grand Canyon) the targeted tributary is the Paria River which supplies approximately 90% of the annual suspended sediment flux through Marble Canyon; the same input contributed less than 6% prior to the dam. Annual topographic surveys have established that HFEs are effective at rebuilding sandbars. However, the long-term viability of using HFEs for sandbar maintenance is dependent on a sustainable source of sediments comprising HFE deposits. Significant use of non-tributary, main-stem sediments (i.e. pre-dam sand stored in eddies or the channel bed) in HFE deposits would indicate reliance on a limited resource, and diminishing returns in the ability of HFEs to rebuild sandbars. In this study, we sampled vertically throughout 12 bars in Marble Canyon to document temporal and downstream changes in the proportion of sediment sourced from the Paria River during the 2013 and 2014 HFEs. Preliminary data suggest that heavy mineral compositions and concentrations of Ti, S, Cr and Rb, all of which are influenced by grainsize, could be sufficiently capable of differentiating Paria-derived and main-stem sediments when combined into a composite fingerprint (CF). A multivariate mixing model using these CFs quantitatively determines the contribution of Paria-derived sediment in each HFE deposit sample. Mixing model endmembers for non-Paria sand include pre-dam flood deposits in Glen and Marble Canyons, and Marble Canyon dredge samples. These results elucidate the role of contemporary versus legacy sediment in long-term sandbar maintenance.
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Covington, H.R.; Weaver, Jean N.
1991-01-01
The Snake River Plain is a broad, arcuate region of low relief that extends more than 300 mi across southern Idaho. The Snake River enters the plain near Idaho Falls and flows westward along the southern margin of the eastern Snake River Plain (fig. 1), a position mainly determined by the basaltic lava flows that erupted near the axis of the plain. The highly productive Snake River Plain aquifer north of the Snake River underlies most of the eastern plain. The aquifer is composed of basaltic rocks that are interbedded with fluvial and lacustrine sedimentary rocks. The top of the aquifer (water table) is typically less than 500 ft below the land surface but is deeper than 1,000 ft in a few areas. The Snake River has excavated a canyon into the nearly flat lying basaltic and sedimentary rocks of the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer, which discharges from the northern canyon wall as springs of variable size, spacing, and altitude. Geologic controls on springs are of importance because nearly 60 percent of the aquifer's discharge occurs as spring flow along the describes the geologic occurrence of springs along the northern wall of the Snake River canyon. This report is one of several that describes the geologic occurrence of springs along the northern wall of the Snake River canyon from Milner Dam to King Hill. To understand the local geologic controls on springs, the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey initiated a geologic mapping project as part of their Snake River Plain Regional Aquifer System-Analysis Program. Objectives of the project were (1) to prepare a geologic map of a strip of land immediately north of the Snake River canyon, (2) to map the geology of the north canyon wall in profile, (3) to locate spring occurrences along the north side of the Snake River between Milner Sam and King Hill, and (4) to estimate spring discharge from the north wall of the canyon.
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Exhumation Across Hells Canyon and the Arc-continent Boundary of Idaho-Oregon
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kahn, M.; Fayon, A. K.; Tikoff, B.
2015-12-01
Hells Canyon is located along the Idaho-Oregon border. It is proximal to the Salmon River suture zone, the Cretaceous-age western margin of North America that juxtaposes accreted terranes to the west and cratonic North America to the east. We applied (U-Th)/He zircon and apatite thermochronometry to samples along an EW transect across Hells Canyon. (U-Th)/He zircon and apatite ages record the time at which rocks cool below ~ 200 and 60 °C, respectively, providing information on both the timing and rate at which rocks cooled. Samples were collected with respect to structural position relative to the basal Columbia River basalt flow (Imnaha), dated at ~ 17.4 Ma, with most samples taken <100 m below the contact. Given that all localities were at the Earth's surface - and thus cooled below 60˚C - at ~ 17.4 Ma, the variation in obtained ages are assessed relative to this common datum. The easternmost sites were taken on the western margin of the Idaho batholith at Lava Buttes, ID at ~2,700 m elevation: The (U-Th)/He zircon and apatite ages are 64.9±4.6 Ma and 53.8±4.9 Ma, respectively. The westernmost sites occur in the Wallowa Mountains, Oregon, where the base of the Imnaha flow exists at ~3,000 m: The (U-Th)/He zircon and apatite ages are 136.2±42.8 Ma and 21.7±10.0 Ma. Additionally, the basal basalt contact occurs at ~900 m and ~600 m at the bottom of the Salmon River Canyon and Hells Canyon respectively. The (U-Th)/He zircon and apatite ages are 73.1±14.6 Ma and 20.0±7.4 Ma, respectively, for the Salmon River Canyon and 88.6±2.4 Ma and 3.4±0.6 Ma, respectively, for Hells Canyon. The data indicate that: 1) The western Wallowa (accreted) terrane cooled below ~200 °C prior to the formation of the Idaho batholith; 2) The western side of the Idaho batholith shows a rapid and consistent cooling between ~200 °C and ~60 °C in the Paleogene; and 3) Samples at low elevation in Hells Canyon cooled below 60˚C in the Pliocene, which requires reburial of the rocks
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78 FR 21415 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-04-10
...: The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (AMP) was implemented as a result of the Record of... consultation requirements of the Grand Canyon Protection Act (Pub. L. 102-575) of 1992. The AMP includes a.../amp/amwg/mtgs/13may08/index.html . Time will be allowed for any individual or organization wishing to...
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Recent vegetation changes along the Colorado River between Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Mead, Arizona
Turner, Raymond Marriner; Karpiscak, Martin M.
1980-01-01
Vegetation changes in the canyon of the Colorado River between Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Mead were studied by comparing photographs taken prior to completion of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963 with photographs taken afterwards at the same sites. In general, the older pictures show an absence of riparian plants along the banks of the river. The newer photographs of each pair were taken in 1972 through 1976 and reveal an increased density of many plant species. Exotic species, such as saltcedar and camel-thorn, and native riparian plants such as sandbar willow, arrowweed, desert broom and cattail, now form a new riparian community along much of the channel of the Colorado River between Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Mead. The matched photographs also reveal that changes have occurred in the amount of sand and silt deposited along the banks. Detailed maps are presented showing distribution of 25 plant species along the reach of the Colorado River studied. Data showing changes in the hydrologic regime since completion of Glen Canyon Dam are presented. (Kosco-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Idaho Falls South quadrangle, Idaho
Ray, Herman A.; Matthai, Howard F.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Idaho Falls South quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Idaho Falls North quadrangle, Idaho
Ray, Herman A.; Matthai, Howard F.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Idaho Falls North quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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East, Amy E.; Sankey, Joel B.; Fairley, Helen C.; Caster, Joshua J.; Kasprak, Alan
2017-08-29
The landscape of the Colorado River through Glen Canyon National Recreation Area formed over many thousands of years and was modified substantially after the completion of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963. Changes to river flow, sediment supply, channel base level, lateral extent of sedimentary terraces, and vegetation in the post-dam era have modified the river-corridor landscape and have altered the effects of geologic processes that continue to shape the landscape and its cultural resources. The Glen Canyon reach of the Colorado River downstream of Glen Canyon Dam hosts many archaeological sites that are prone to erosion in this changing landscape. This study uses field evaluations from 2016 and aerial photographs from 1952, 1973, 1984, and 1996 to characterize changes in potential windblown sand supply and drainage configuration that have occurred over more than six decades at 54 archaeological sites in Glen Canyon and uppermost Marble Canyon. To assess landscape change at these sites, we use two complementary geomorphic classification systems. The first evaluates the potential for aeolian (windblown) transport of river-derived sand from the active river channel to higher elevation archaeological sites. The second identifies whether rills, gullies, or arroyos (that is, overland drainages that erode the ground surface) exist at the archaeological sites as well as the geomorphic surface, and therefore the relative base level, to which those flow paths drain. Results of these assessments are intended to aid in the management of irreplaceable archaeological resources by the National Park Service and stakeholders of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program.
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The Glen Canyon Dam adaptive management program: progress and immediate challenges
Hamill, John F.; Melis, Theodore S.; Boon, Philip J.; Raven, Paul J.
2012-01-01
Adaptive management emerged as an important resource management strategy for major river systems in the United States (US) in the early 1990s. The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (‘the Program’) was formally established in 1997 to fulfill a statutory requirement in the 1992 Grand Canyon Protection Act (GCPA). The GCPA aimed to improve natural resource conditions in the Colorado River corridor in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona that were affected by the Glen Canyon dam. The Program achieves this by using science and a variety of stakeholder perspectives to inform decisions about dam operations. Since the Program started the ecosystem is now much better understood and several biological and physical improvements have been achieved. These improvements include: (i) an estimated 50% increase in the adult population of endangered humpback chub (Gila cypha) between 2001 and 2008, following previous decline; (ii) a 90% decrease in non-native rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), which are known to compete with and prey on native fish, as a result of removal experiments; and (iii) the widespread reappearance of sandbars in response to an experimental high-flow release of dam water in March 2008.Although substantial progress has been made, the Program faces several immediate challenges. These include: (i) defining specific, measurable objectives and desired future conditions for important natural, cultural and recreational attributes to inform science and management decisions; (ii) implementing structural and operational changes to improve collaboration among stakeholders; (iii) establishing a long-term experimental programme and management plan; and (iv) securing long-term funding for monitoring programmes to assess ecosystem and other responses to management actions. Addressing these challenges and building on recent progress will require strong and consistent leadership from the US Department of the Interior
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Canyon grassland vegetation changes following fire in northern Idaho
Corey L. Gucker; Stephen C. Bunting
2011-01-01
Native and nonnative vegetation mosaics are common in western rangelands. If land managers could better predict changes in the abundance of native and nonnative species following disturbances, maintenance of native plant cover and diversity may be improved. In August 2000, during suppression of a wildfire near Lewiston, Idaho, a backing fire burned canyon grassland...
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75 FR 44809 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group (AMWG)
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-07-29
... Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (AMP) was implemented as a result of the Record of Decision on the... of the Grand Canyon Protection Act (Pub. L. 102-575) of 1992. The AMP includes a Federal advisory... other administrative and resource issues pertaining to the AMP. To view a copy of the agenda and...
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75 FR 439 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group (AMWG)
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-01-05
... Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (AMP) was implemented as a result of the Record of Decision on the... of the Grand Canyon Protection Act (Pub. L. 102-575) of 1992. The AMP includes a Federal advisory... addition, other administrative and resource issues pertaining to the AMP may be discussed as necessary. To...
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Melis, Theodore S.; Grams, Paul E.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Ralston, Barbara E.; Robinson, Christopher T.; Schmidt, John C.; Schmit, Lara M.; Valdez, Richard A.; Wright, Scott A.
2011-01-01
Three high-flow experiments (HFEs) were conducted by the U.S. Department of the Interior at Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, in March 1996, November 2004, and March 2008. Also known as artificial or controlled floods, these scheduled releases of water above the dam's powerplant capacity were designed to mimic pre-dam seasonal flooding on the Colorado River. The goal of the HFEs was to determine whether high flows could be used to benefit important downstream resources in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park that have been affected by the existence and operation of Glen Canyon Dam. These downstream resources include native fish, particularly endangered humpback chub (Gila cypha), terrestrial and aquatic sandbar habitats, cultural sites, and recreational resources. This Fact Sheet summarizes HFE-related studies published since 1996 and outlines a possible strategy for implementing future HFEs.
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Amphitheater-headed canyons formed by megaflooding at Malad Gorge, Idaho
Lamb, Michael P.; Mackey, Benjamin H.; Farley, Kenneth A.
2014-01-01
Many bedrock canyons on Earth and Mars were eroded by upstream propagating headwalls, and a prominent goal in geomorphology and planetary science is to determine formation processes from canyon morphology. A diagnostic link between process and form remains highly controversial, however, and field investigations that isolate controls on canyon morphology are needed. Here we investigate the origin of Malad Gorge, Idaho, a canyon system cut into basalt with three remarkably distinct heads: two with amphitheater headwalls and the third housing the active Wood River and ending in a 7% grade knickzone. Scoured rims of the headwalls, relict plunge pools, sediment-transport constraints, and cosmogenic (3He) exposure ages indicate formation of the amphitheater-headed canyons by large-scale flooding ∼46 ka, coeval with formation of Box Canyon 18 km to the south as well as the eruption of McKinney Butte Basalt, suggesting widespread canyon formation following lava-flow diversion of the paleo-Wood River. Exposure ages within the knickzone-headed canyon indicate progressive upstream younging of strath terraces and a knickzone propagation rate of 2.5 cm/y over at least the past 33 ka. Results point to a potential diagnostic link between vertical amphitheater headwalls in basalt and rapid erosion during megaflooding due to the onset of block toppling, rather than previous interpretations of seepage erosion, with implications for quantifying the early hydrosphere of Mars. PMID:24344293
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Melis, Theodore S.
2011-01-01
Three high-flow experiments (HFEs) were conducted by the U.S. Department of the Interior at Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, in March 1996, November 2004, and March 2008. These experiments, also known as artificial or controlled floods, were large-volume, scheduled releases of water from Glen Canyon Dam that were designed to mimic some aspects of pre-dam Colorado River seasonal flooding. The goal of these experiments was to determine whether high flows could be used to benefit important physical and biological resources in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park that had been affected by the operation of Glen Canyon Dam. Efforts such as HFEs that seek to maintain and restore downstream resources are undertaken by the U.S. Department of the Interior under the auspices of the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992 (GCPA; title XVIII, secs. 1801-1809, of Public Law 102-575). Scientists conducted a wide range of monitoring and research activities before, during, and after the experiments. Initially, research efforts focused on whether HFEs could be used to rebuild and maintain Grand Canyon sandbars, which provide camping beaches for hikers and whitewater rafters, create habitats potentially used by native fish and other wildlife, and are the source of windborne sand that may help to protect some archaeological resources from weathering and erosion. As scientists gained a better understanding of how HFEs affect the physical environment, research efforts expanded to include additional investigations about the effects of HFEs on biological resources, such as native fishes, nonnative sports fishes, riverside vegetation, and the aquatic food web. The chapters that follow summarize and synthesize for decisionmakers and the public what has been learned about HFEs to provide a framework for implementing similar future experiments. This report is a product of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP), a Federal initiative authorized to ensure
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Melis, Theodore S.; Topping, David J.; Grams, Paul E.; Rubin, David M.; Wright, Scott A.; Draut, Amy E.; Hazel, Joseph E.; Ralston, Barbara E.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Rosi-Marshall, Emma; Korman, Josh; Hilwig, Kara D.; Schmit, Lara M.
2010-01-01
On March 5, 2008, the Department of the Interior began a 60-hour high-flow experiment at Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, to determine if water releases designed to mimic natural seasonal flooding could be used to improve downstream resources in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park. U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists and their cooperators undertook a wide range of physical and biological resource monitoring and research activities before, during, and after the release. Scientists sought to determine whether or not high flows could be used to rebuild Grand Canyon sandbars, create nearshore habitat for the endangered humpback chub, and benefit other resources such as archaeological sites, rainbow trout, aquatic food availability, and riverside vegetation. This fact sheet summarizes research completed by January 2010.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Crow, R.; Karlstrom, K. E.; McIntosh, W. C.; Peters, L.; Dunbar, N. W.
2010-12-01
New geochemical analyzes and 40Ar/39Ar dating of lava dam remnants allows for the more accurate reconstruction of the timing, extent, and structure of western Grand Canyon’s lava dams. Whole-rock major, trace, and rare-earth element (REE) analyzes on over 60 basaltic lava dam remnants, cascades, plugs, and basaltic alluvium, show compositional variation from basanites to alkali basalts to tholeiites. Whitmore Canyon flows, for example, are some of the only tholeiitic flows and have a distinguishable trace and REE composition, which allows for correlation of dam remnants. Over 30 new high-precision 40Ar/39Ar dates also aid in remnant correlation and establish a better-constrained sequence of intra-canyon lava dams. Reliable 40Ar/39Ar dates on western Grand Canyon’s intra-canyon basalts range from ca. 100 ka to 840 ka (new date). The best understood lava dam formed from tholeiitic flows that erupted on the north rim, flowed down Whitmore side canyon and blocked a 6-km-long reach of the Grand Canyon. The youngest of these flows is unique because we know its age (200ka), its composition (tholeiitic), and the exact area where it entered Grand Canyon. The highest flow in the resulting dam, Whitmore Cascade, is capped with very coarse basaltic alluvium that previous workers have attributed to an upstream catastrophic dam failure event at about 200 ka. However, strong similarities between the geochemistry and age of the alluvium with the underlying Whitmore Cascade flow suggest that the alluvial deposit is related to failure of the 200 ka Whitmore Cascade dam itself. Similarly the 100 ka Upper Gray Ledge flow is commonly overlain by a balsaltic alluvium that is indistinguishable in terms of age and geochemistry from the underlying Upper Gray Ledge flow. These observations lead to a new model for Grand Canyon lava dams by which lava dams undergo multi-staged failure where the upstream parts of dams fail quickly (sometimes catastrophically) but downstream parts are
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Austin, D. E.; Bulletts, K.; Bulletts, C.
2017-12-01
The traditional lands of the Southern Paiute people in the United States are bounded by more than 600 miles of the Colorado River from the Kaiparowits Plateau in the north to Blythe, California in the south. According to Southern Paiute traditional knowledge, Southern Paiutes were the first inhabitants of this region and are responsible for protecting and managing this land along with the water and all that is upon and within it. In 1963, the Bureau of Reclamation completed construction of Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River, and in 1972, the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area was established, encompassing Lake Mead above the Dam and a world class trout fishery on the Colorado River between the Dam and Lees Ferry. Below Lees Ferry on its way to Lake Mead and Hoover Dam, the Colorado River flows through Grand Canyon National Park and the Navajo and Hualapai reservations. U.S. federal law requires that Glen Canyon Dam be operated with minimal impact to the natural, recreational, and cultural resources of the region of the Colorado River that is potentially impacted by flows from the Dam. The Grand Canyon Protection Act and the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Operation of the Glen Canyon Dam established a program of long-term research and monitoring of the effects of the Dam on these resources. In 1991, three Southern Paiute tribes - the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians, the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah, and the San Juan Southern Paiute Tribe - agreed to participate in studies to identify cultural resources impacted by Glen Canyon Dam and to recommend strategies for their protection, In 1995, the EIS was completed and transition to the Adaptive Management Program (AMP) called for in the Grand Canyon Protection Act was begun. At that time, Southern Paiute activities expanded to include assessing potential environmental and cultural impacts of the dam, developing monitoring procedures, and interacting with scientists, other tribal representatives, and
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Simmons, George C.; Gualtieri, James L.; Close, Terry J.; Federspiel, Francis E.; Leszcykowski, Andrew M.
2007-01-01
Field studies supporting the evaluation of the mineral potential of the Hells Canyon study area were carried out by the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Bureau of Mines in 1974-76 and 1979. The study area includes (1) the Hells Canyon Wilderness; (2) parts of the Snake River, Rapid River, and West Fork Rapid River Wild and Scenic Rivers; (3) lands included in the second Roadless Area Review and Evaluation (RARE II); and (4) part of the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area. The survey is one of a series of studies to appraise the suitability of the area for inclusion in the National Wilderness Preservation System as required by the Wilderness Act of 1964. The spectacular and mineralized area covers nearly 950 mi2 (2,460 km2) in northeast Oregon and west-central Idaho at the junction of the Northern Rocky Mountains and the Columbia Plateau.
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Influence of a dam on fine-sediment storage in a canyon river
Hazel, J.E.; Topping, D.J.; Schmidt, J.C.; Kaplinski, M.
2006-01-01
Glen Canyon Dam has caused a fundamental change in the distribution of fine sediment storage in the 99-km reach of the Colorado River in Marble Canyon, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. The two major storage sites for fine sediment (i.e., sand and finer material) in this canyon river are lateral recirculation eddies and the main-channel bed. We use a combination of methods, including direct measurement of sediment storage change, measurements of sediment flux, and comparison of the grain size of sediment found in different storage sites relative to the supply and that in transport, in order to evaluate the change in both the volume and location of sediment storage. The analysis shows that the bed of the main channel was an important storage environment for fine sediment in the predam era. In years of large seasonal accumulation, approximately 50% of the fine sediment supplied to the reach from upstream sources was stored on the main-channel bed. In contrast, sediment budgets constructed for two short-duration, high experimental releases from Glen Canyon Dam indicate that approximately 90% of the sediment discharge from the reach during each release was derived from eddy storage, rather than from sandy deposits on the main-channel bed. These results indicate that the majority of the fine sediment in Marble Canyon is now stored in eddies, even though they occupy a small percentage (???17%) of the total river area. Because of a 95% reduction in the supply of fine sediment to Marble Canyon, future high releases without significant input of tributary sediment will potentially erode sediment from long-term eddy storage, resulting in continued degradation in Marble Canyon. Copyright 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.
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Vernieu, William S.
2013-01-01
This report presents the physical and chemical characteristics of water in Lake Powell and from Glen Canyon Dam releases from 1964 through 2012. These data are available in a several electronic formats. Data have been collected throughout this period by various offices of the Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Geological Survey and are compiled to represent the existing body of chemical and physical information on Lake Powell and Glen Canyon Dam releases. From this record, further interpretation may be made concerning mixing processes in Lake Powell, the movement and fate of advective inflow currents, effects of climate and hydrological variations, and the effects of the operation and structure of Glen Canyon Dam on the quality of water in Lake Powell and from Glen Canyon Dam releases.
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Druffel, Leroy; Stiltner, Gloria J.; Keefer, Thomas N.
1979-01-01
Mackay Dam is an irrigation reservoir on the Big Lost River, Idaho, approximately 7.2 kilometers northwest of Mackay, Idaho. Consequences of possible rupture of the dam have long concerned the residents of the river valley. The presence of reactors and of a management complex for nuclear wastes on the reservation of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL), near the river , give additional cause for concern over the consequences of a rupture of Mackay Dam. The objective of this report is to calculate and route the flood wave resulting from the hypothetical failure of Mackay Dam downstream to the INEL. Both a full and a 50 percent partial breach of this dam are investigated. Two techniques are used to develop the dam-break model. The method of characteristics is used to propagate the shock wave after the dam fails. The linear implicit finite-difference solution is used to route the flood wave after the shock wave has dissipated. The time of travel of the flood wave, duration of flooding, and magnitude of the flood are determined for eight selected sites from Mackay Dam, Idaho, through the INEL diversion. At 4.2 kilometers above the INEL diversion, peak discharges of 1,550.2 and 1,275 cubic meters per second and peak flood elevations of 1,550.3 and 1,550.2 meters were calculated for the full and partial breach, respectively. Flood discharges and flood peaks were not compared for the area downstream of the diversion because of the lack of detailed flood plain geometry. (Kosco-USGS)
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77 FR 43117 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-07-23
... [email protected] . SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (AMP) was...-575) of 1992. The AMP includes a Federal advisory committee, the AMWG, a technical work group (TWG), a... the AMP. To view a copy of the agenda and documents related to the above meeting, please visit...
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77 FR 9265 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-02-16
... (AMP) was implemented as a result of the Record of Decision on the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam Final.... L. 102-575) of 1992. The AMP includes a Federal advisory committee, the AMWG, a technical work group... administrative and resource issues pertaining to the AMP. To view a copy of the agenda and documents related to...
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Turbid releases from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, following rainfall-runoff events of September 2013
Wildman, Richard A.; Vernieu, William
2017-01-01
Glen Canyon Dam is a large dam on the Colorado River in Arizona. In September 2013, it released turbid water following intense thunderstorms in the surrounding area. Turbidity was >15 nephelometric turbidity units (NTU) for multiple days and >30 NTU at its peak. These unprecedented turbid releases impaired downstream fishing activity and motivated a rapid-response field excursion. At 5 locations upstream from the dam, temperature, specific conductance, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll a, and turbidity were measured in vertical profiles. Local streamflow and rainfall records were retrieved, and turbidity and specific conductance data in dam releases were evaluated. Profiling was conducted to determine possible sources of turbidity from 3 tributaries nearest the dam, Navajo, Antelope, and Wahweap creeks, which entered Lake Powell as interflows during this study. We discuss 4 key conditions that must have been met for tributaries to influence turbidity of dam releases: tributary flows must have reached the dam, tributary flows must have been laden with sediment, inflow currents must have been near the depth of dam withdrawals, and the settling velocity of particles must have been slow. We isolate 2 key uncertainties that reservoir managers should resolve in future similar studies: the reach of tributary water into the reservoir thalweg and the distribution of particle size of suspended sediment. These uncertainties leave the source of the turbidity ambiguous, although an important role for Wahweap Creek is possible. The unique combination of limnological factors we describe implies that turbid releases at Glen Canyon Dam will continue to be rare.
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75 FR 20381 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group (AMWG)
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-04-19
... call). SUMMARY: The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (AMP) was implemented as a result of... AMP includes a Federal advisory committee (AMWG), a technical work group (TWG), a monitoring and... visit Reclamation's Web site at: http://www.usbr.gov/uc/rm/amp/amwg/mtgs/10may06CC/index.html...
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Korman, Josh; Melis, Theodore S.
2011-01-01
The Lees Ferry reach of the Colorado River-a 16-mile segment from Glen Canyon Dam to the confluence with the Paria River-supports an important recreational rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) fishery. In Grand Canyon, nonnative rainbow trout prey on and compete for habitat and food with native fish, such as the endangered humpback chub (Gila cypha). Experimental flow fluctuations from the dam during winter and spring 2003-5 dewatered and killed a high proportion of rainbow trout eggs in gravel spawning bars, but this mortality had no measurable effect on the abundance of juvenile fish. Flow fluctuations during summer months reduced growth of juvenile trout relative to steadier flows. A high-flow experiment in March 2008 increased both trout survival rates for early life stages and fish abundance. These findings demonstrate that Glen Canyon Dam operations directly affect the trout population in the Lees Ferry reach and could be used to regulate nonnative fish abundance to limit potential negative effects of trout on native fish in Grand Canyon.
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Voichick, Nicholas
2008-01-01
The construction of Glen Canyon Dam, completed in 1963, resulted in substantial physical and biological changes to downstream Colorado River environments between Lake Powell and Lake Mead - an area almost entirely within Grand Canyon National Park, Ariz. In an effort to understand these changes, data have been collected to assess the condition of a number of downstream resources. In terms of measuring water quality, the collection of specific-conductance data is a cost-effective method for estimating salinity. Data-collection activities were initially undertaken by the Bureau of Reclamation's Glen Canyon Environmental Studies (1982-96); these efforts were subsequently transferred to the U.S. Geological Survey's Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (1996 to the present). This report describes the specific-conductance dataset collected for the Colorado River between Glen Canyon Dam and Diamond Creek from 1988 to 2007. Data-collection and processing methods used during the study period are described, and time-series plots of the data are presented. The report also includes plots showing the relation between specific conductance and total dissolved solids. Examples of the use of specific conductance as a natural tracer of parcels of water are presented. Analysis of the data indicates that short-duration spikes and troughs in specific-conductance values lasting from hours to days are primarily the result of flooding in the Paria and Little Colorado Rivers, Colorado River tributaries below Glen Canyon Dam. Specific conductance also exhibits seasonal variations owing to changes in the position of density layers within the reservoir; these changes are driven by inflow hydrology, meteorological conditions, and background stratification. Longer term trends in Colorado River specific conductance are reflective of climatological conditions in the upper Colorado River Basin. For example, drought conditions generally result in an increase in specific conductance in Lake
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Assessment of Hazards Associated with the Bluegill Landslide, South-Central Idaho
Ellis, William L.; Schuster, Robert L.; Schulz, William H.
2004-01-01
The Bluegill landslide, located in south-central Idaho, is part of a larger landslide complex that forms an area the Salmon Falls Creek drainage named Sinking Canyon Recent movement of the Bluegill landslide, apparently beginning sometime in late 1998 or early 1999, has caused a 4.5 ha area of the canyon rim to drop as much as 8 m and move horizontally several meters into the canyon. Upward movement of the toe of the landslide in the bottom of canyon has created a dam that impounds a lake approximately 2 km in length. The landslide is on public administered by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM). As part of ongoing efforts to address possible public safety concerns, the BLM requested that the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conduct a preliminary hazard assessment of the landslide, examine possible mitigation options, and identify alternatives for further study and monitoring of the landslide. This report presents the findings of that assessment based on a field reconnaissance of the landslide on September 24, 2003, a review of data and information provided by BLM and researchers from Idaho State University, and information collected from other sources.
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78 FR 42799 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group Meetings
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-07-17
... Environmental Impact Statement, (2) results of the 2012 Fall high flow experiment, (3) basin hydrology and the potential for a fall high flow experiment, (4) reports from the Glen Canyon Dam Tribal Liaison. The AMWG... Office, 125 South State Street, Room 6107, Salt Lake City, Utah, 84138; telephone 801-524-3781; facsimile...
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76 FR 54487 - Charter Renewal, Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-09-01
... Management Work Group AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior. ACTION: Notice of renewal. SUMMARY: Following... Interior (Secretary) is renewing the charter for the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group. The purpose of the Adaptive Management Work Group is to advise and to provide recommendations to the Secretary...
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Formation of Box Canyon, Idaho, by megaflood: implications for seepage erosion on Earth and Mars.
Lamb, Michael P; Dietrich, William E; Aciego, Sarah M; Depaolo, Donald J; Manga, Michael
2008-05-23
Amphitheater-headed canyons have been used as diagnostic indicators of erosion by groundwater seepage, which has important implications for landscape evolution on Earth and astrobiology on Mars. Of perhaps any canyon studied, Box Canyon, Idaho, most strongly meets the proposed morphologic criteria for groundwater sapping because it is incised into a basaltic plain with no drainage network upstream, and approximately 10 cubic meters per second of seepage emanates from its vertical headwall. However, sediment transport constraints, 4He and 14C dates, plunge pools, and scoured rock indicate that a megaflood (greater than 220 cubic meters per second) carved the canyon about 45,000 years ago. These results add to a growing recognition of Quaternary catastrophic flooding in the American northwest, and may imply that similar features on Mars also formed by floods rather than seepage erosion.
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,
2008-01-01
Executive Summary Glen Canyon Dam is located in the lower reaches of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area on the Colorado River, approximately 15 miles upriver from Grand Canyon National Park (fig. 1). In 1992, Congress passed and the President signed into law the Grand Canyon Protection Act (GCPA; title XVIII, sec. 1801?1809, of Public Law 102-575), which seeks ?to protect, mitigate adverse impacts to, and improve the values for which Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area were established.? The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP) was implemented as a result of the 1996 Record of Decision on the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam Final Environmental Impact Statement to ensure that the primary mandate of the GCPA is met through advances in information and resources management (U.S. Department of the Interior, 1995). On November 3, 2006, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) announced it would develop a long-term experimental plan environmental impact statement (LTEP EIS) for operational activities at Glen Canyon Dam and other management actions on the Colorado River. The purpose of the long-term experimental plan is twofold: (1) to increase the scientific understanding of the ecosystem and (2) to improve and protect important downstream resources. The proposed plan would implement a structured, longterm program of experimentation to include dam operations, potential modifications to Glen Canyon Dam intake structures, and other management actions such as removal of nonnative fish species. The development of the long-term experimental plan continues efforts begun by the GCDAMP to protect resources downstream of Glen Canyon Dam, including Grand Canyon, through adaptive management and scientific experimentation. The LTEP EIS will rely on the extensive scientific studies that have been undertaken as part of the adaptive management program by the U.S. Geological Survey?s (USGS) Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-08-04
... . SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (AMP) was implemented as a result of... AMP includes a Federal advisory committee, the AMWG, a technical work group (TWG), a Grand Canyon... other administrative and resource issues pertaining to the AMP. To view a copy of the agenda and...
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24. VIEW OF CANYON TAKEN FROM NORTH CANYON RIM AROUND ...
24. VIEW OF CANYON TAKEN FROM NORTH CANYON RIM AROUND 1920. CAMERA FACES SOUTH. VILLAGE IS TREE-COVERED AREA TO LEFT OF DAM AND POWERHOUSE. SUPERINTENDENT SAM GLASS'S ORCHARD IS DOWNSTREAM OF DAM ABOUT A QUARTER OF A MILE. - Swan Falls Village, Snake River, Kuna, Ada County, ID
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Griffin, Eleanor R.; Wiele, Stephen M.
1996-01-01
A one-dimensional model of unsteady discharge waves was applied to research flowr that were released from Glen Canyon Dam in support of the Glen Canyon Environmental Studies. These research flows extended over periods of 11 days during which the discharge followed specific, regular patterns repeated on a daily cycle that were similar to the daily releases for power generation. The model was used to produce discharge hydrographs at 38 selected sites in Marble and Grand Canyons for each of nine unsteady flows released from the dam in 1990 and 1991. In each case, the discharge computed from stage measurements and the associated stage-discharge relation at the streamflow-gaging station just below the dam (09379910 Colorado River Hlow Glen Canyon Dam) was routed to Diamond Creek, which is 386 kilometers downstream. Steady and unsteady tributary inflows downstream from the dam were included in the model calculations. Steady inflow to the river from tributaries downstream from the dam was determined for each case by comparing the steady base flow preceding and following the unsteady flow measured at six streamflow-gaging stations between Glen Canyon Dam and Diamond Creek. During three flow periods, significant unsteady inflow was received from the Paria River, or the Little Colorado River, or both. The amount and timing of unsteady inflow was determined using the discharge computed from records of streamflow-gaging stations on the tributaries. Unsteady flow then was added to the flow calculated by the model at the appropriate location. Hydrographs were calculated using the model at 5 streamflow-gaging stations downstream from the dam and at 33 beach study sites. Accuracy of model results was evaluated by comparing the results to discharge hydrographs computed from the records of the five streamflow-gaging stations between Lees Ferry and Lake Mead. Results show that model predictions of wave speed and shape agree well with data from the five streamflow-gaging stations.
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Research Furthers Conservation of Grand Canyon Sandbars
Melis, Theodore S.; Topping, David J.; Rubin, David M.; Wright, Scott A.
2007-01-01
Grand Canyon National Park lies approximately 25 km (15 mi) down-river from Glen Canyon Dam, which was built on the Colorado River just south of the Arizona-Utah border in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Before the dam began to regulate the Colorado River in 1963, the river carried such large quantities of red sediment, for which the Southwest is famous, that the Spanish named the river the Rio Colorado, or 'red river'. Today, the Colorado River usually runs clear below Glen Canyon Dam because the dam nearly eliminates the main-channel sand supply. The daily and seasonal flows of the river were also altered by the dam. These changes have disrupted the sedimentary processes that create and maintain Grand Canyon sandbars. Throughout Grand Canyon, sandbars create habitat for native plants and animals, supply camping beaches for river runners and hikers, and provide sediment needed to protect archaeological resources from weathering and erosion. Maintenance of sandbars in the Colorado River ecosystem, the river corridor that stretches from the dam to the western boundary of Grand Canyon National Park, is a goal of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program. The program is a federally authorized initiative to ensure that the mandates of the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992 are met through advances in information and resource management. The U.S. Geological Survey's Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center has responsibility for scientific monitoring and research efforts for the program. Extensive research and monitoring during the past decade have resulted in the identification of possible alternatives for operating Glen Canyon Dam that hold new potential for the conservation of sand resources.
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Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center
Hamill, John F.
2009-01-01
The Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, one of the world's most spectacular gorges, is a premier U.S. National Park and a World Heritage Site. The canyon supports a diverse array of distinctive plants and animals and contains cultural resources significant to the region's Native Americans. About 15 miles upstream of Grand Canyon National Park sits Glen Canyon Dam, completed in 1963, which created Lake Powell. The dam provides hydroelectric power for 200 wholesale customers in six western States, but it has also altered the Colorado River's flow, temperature, and sediment-carrying capacity. Over time this has resulted in beach erosion, invasion and expansion of nonnative species, and losses of native fish. Public concern about the effects of Glen Canyon Dam operations prompted the passage of the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992, which directs the Secretary of the Interior to operate the dam 'to protect, mitigate adverse impacts to, and improve values for which Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area were established...' This legislation also required the creation of a long-term monitoring and research program to provide information that could inform decisions related to dam operations and protection of downstream resources.
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Topping, David J.; Rubin, David M.; Vierra, L.E.
2000-01-01
Analyses of flow, sediment‐transport, bed‐topographic, and sedimentologic data suggest that before the closure of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963, the Colorado River in Marble and Grand Canyons was annually supply‐limited with respect to fine sediment (i.e., sand and finer material). Furthermore, these analyses suggest that the predam river in Glen Canyon was not supply‐limited to the same degree and that the degree of annual supply limitation increased near the head of Marble Canyon. The predam Colorado River in Grand Canyon displays evidence of four effects of supply limitation: (1) seasonal hysteresis in sediment concentration, (2) seasonal hysteresis in sediment grain size coupled to the seasonal hysteresis in sediment concentration, (3) production of inversely graded flood deposits, and (4∥ development or modification of a lag between the time of a flood peak and the time of either maximum or minimum (depending on reach geometry) bed elevation. Analyses of sediment budgets provide additional support for the interpretation that the predam river was annually supply‐limited with respect to fine sediment, but it was not supply‐limited with respect to fine sediment during all seasons. In the average predam year, sand would accumulate and be stored in Marble Canyon and upper Grand Canyon for 9 months of the year (from July through March) when flows were dominantly below 200–300 m3/s; this stored sand was then eroded during April through June when flows were typically higher. After closure of Glen Canyon Dam, because of the large magnitudes of the uncertainties in the sediment budget, no season of substantial sand accumulation is evident. Because most flows in the postdam river exceed 200–300 m3/s, substantial sand accumulation in the postdam river is unlikely.
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Jennifer L. Birdsall; George P. Markin
2010-01-01
Yellow starthistle is an invasive, annual, spiny forb that, for the past 30 yr has been steadily advancing up the Salmon River Canyon in west central Idaho. In 1994, a decision was made to attempt to manage yellow starthistle by establishing a complex of biological control agents in a containment zone where the weed was most dense. Between 1995 and 1997, six species of...
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Flocks, James; Kelso, Kyle; Fosness, Ryan; Welcker, Chris
2014-01-01
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center, in cooperation with the USGS Idaho Water Science Center and the Idaho Power Company, collected high-resolution seismic reflection data in the Brownlee and Hells Canyon Reservoirs, in March of 2013.These reservoirs are located along the Snake River, and were constructed in 1958 (Brownlee) and 1967 (Hells Canyon). The purpose of the survey was to gain a better understanding of sediment accumulation within the reservoirs since their construction. The chirp system used in the survey was an EdgeTech Geo-Star Full Spectrum Sub-Bottom (FSSB) system coupled with an SB-424 towfish with a frequency range of 4 to 24 kHz. Approximately 325 kilometers of chirp data were collected, with water depths ranging from 0-90 meters. These reservoirs are characterized by very steep rock valley walls, very low flow rates, and minimal sediment input into the system. Sediments deposited in the reservoirs are characterized as highly fluid clays. Since the acoustic signal was not able to penetrate the rock substrate, only the thin veneer of these recent deposits were imaged. Results from the seismic survey indicate that throughout both of the Brownlee and Hells Canyon reservoirs the accumulation of sediments ranged from 0 to 2.5 m, with an average of 0.5 m. Areas of above average sediment accumulation may be related to lower slope, longer flooding history, and proximity to fluvial sources.
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Grams, P.E.; Schmidt, J.C.; Topping, D.J.
2007-01-01
Closure of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963 transformed the Colorado River by reducing the magnitude and duration of spring floods, increasing the magnitude of base flows, and trapping fine sediment delivered from the upper watershed. These changes caused the channel downstream in Glen Canyon to incise, armor, and narrow. This study synthesizes over 45 yr of channel-change measurements and demonstrates that the rate and style of channel adjustment are directly related to both natural processes associated with sediment deficit and human decisions about dam operations. Although bed lowering in lower Glen Canyon began when the first cofferdam was installed in 1959, most incision occurred in 1965 in conjunction with 14 pulsed high flows that scoured an average of 2.6 m of sediment from the center of the channel. The average grain size of bed material has increased from 0.25 mm in 1956 to over 20 mm in 1999. The magnitude of incision at riffles decreases with distance downstream from the dam, while the magnitude of sediment evacuation from pools is spatially variable and extends farther downstream. Analysis of bed-material mobility indicates that the increase in bed-material grain size and reduction in reach-average gradient are consistent with the transformation of an adjustable-bed alluvial river to a channel with a stable bed that is rarely mobilized. Decreased magnitude of peak discharges in the post-dam regime coupled with channel incision and the associated downward shifts of stage-discharge relations have caused sandbar and terrace erosion and the transformation of previously active sandbars and gravel bars to abandoned deposits that are no longer inundated. Erosion has been concentrated in a few pre-dam terraces that eroded rapidly for brief periods and have since stabilized. The abundance of abandoned deposits decreases downstream in conjunction with decreasing magnitude of shift in the stage-discharge relations. In the downstream part of the study area where riffles
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The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program: An experiment in science-based resource management
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
kaplinski, m
2001-12-01
In 1996, Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management (GCDAMP) program was established to provide input on Glen Canyon Dam operations and their affect on the Colorado Ecosystem in Grand Canyon. The GCDAMP is a bold experiment in federal resource management that features a governing partnership with all relevant stakeholders sitting at the same table. It is a complicated, difficult process where stakeholder-derived management actions must balance resource protection with water and power delivery compacts, the Endangered Species Act, the National Historical Preservation Act, the Grand Canyon Protection Act, National Park Service Policy, and other stakeholder concerns. The program consists of four entities: the Adaptive Management Workgroup (AMWG), the Technical Workgroup (TWG), the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC), and independent review panels. The AMWG and TWG are federal advisory committees that consists of federal and state resource managers, Native American tribes, power, environmental and recreation interests. The AMWG is develops, evaluates and recommends alternative dam operations to the Secretary. The TWG translates AMWG policy and goals into management objectives and information needs, provides questions that serve as the basis for long-term monitoring and research activities, interprets research results from the GCMRC, and prepares reports as required for the AMWG. The GCMRC is an independent science center that is responsible for all GCDAMP monitoring and research activities. The GCMRC utilizes proposal requests with external peer review and an in-house staff that directs and synthesizes monitoring and research results. The GCMRC meets regularly with the TWG and AMWG and provides scientific information on the consequences of GCDAMP actions. Independent review panels consist of external peer review panels that provide reviews of scientific activities and the program in general, technical advice to the GCMRC, TWG and AMWG, and play a critical
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Vanderkooi, Scott P.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Topping, David J.; Grams, Paul E.; Ward, David L.; Fairley, Helen C.; Bair, Lucas S.; Sankey, Joel B.; Yackulic, Charles B.; Schmidt, John C.
2017-01-18
IntroductionThe purpose of this document is to describe a strategy by which monitoring and research data in the natural and social sciences will be collected, analyzed, and provided to the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), its bureaus, and to the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP) in support of implementation of the Glen Canyon Dam Long-Term Experimental and Management Plan (LTEMP) (U.S. Department of the Interior, 2016a). The selected alternative identified in the LTEMP Record of Decision (ROD) (U.S. Department of the Interior, 2016b) describes various data collection, analysis, modeling, and interpretation efforts to be conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC), partner agencies, and cooperators that will inform decisions about operations of Glen Canyon Dam and management of downstream resources between 2017 and 2037, the performance period of the LTEMP. General data collection, analysis, modeling, and interpretation activities are described in this science plan, whereas specific monitoring and research activities and detailed study plans are to be described in the GCDAMP’s triennial work plans (TWPs) to be developed by the Bureau of Reclamation and GCMRC with input from partner agencies and cooperators during the LTEMP period, which are to be reviewed and recommended by the GCDAMP and approved by the Secretary of the Interior. The GCDAMP consists of several components, the primary committee being the Adaptive Management Work Group (AMWG). This Federal advisory committee is composed of 25 agencies and stakeholder groups and is chaired by the Secretary of the Interior’s designee. The AMWG makes recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior concerning operations of Glen Canyon Dam and other experimental management actions that are intended to fulfill some obligations of the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992. The Technical Work Group (TWG) is a subcommittee of the AMWG and
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Korman, Josh; Melis, Ted; Kennedy, Theodore A.
2012-01-01
Closure of Glen Canyon Dam reduced sand supply to the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park by about 94% while its operation has also eroded the park's sandbar habitats. Three controlled floods released from the dam since 1995 suggest that sandbars might be rebuilt and maintained, but only if repeated floods are timed to follow tributary sand deliveries below the dam. Monitoring data show that sandbars are dynamic and that their erosion after bar building is positively related with mean daily discharge and negatively related with tributary sand production after controlled floods. The March 2008 flood affected non-native rainbow trout abundance in the Lees Ferry tailwater, which supports a blue ribbon fishery. Downstream trout dispersal from the tailwater results in negative competitive interactions and predation on endangered humpback chub. Early survival rates of age-0 trout increased more than fourfold following the 2008 flood, and twofold in 2009, relative to prior years (2006-2007). Hatch-date analysis indicated that early survival rates were much higher for cohorts that emerged about 2 months after the 2008 flood relative to cohorts that emerged earlier that year. The 2009 survival data suggest that tailwater habitat improvements persisted for at least a year, but apparently decreased in 2010. Increased early survival rates for trout coincided with the increased availability of higher quality drifting food items after the 2008 flood owing to an increase in midges and black flies, preferred food items of rainbow trout. Repeated floods from the dam might sustainably rebuild and maintain sandbars if released when new tributary sand is available below the tailwater. Spring flooding might also sustain increased trout abundance and benefit the tailwater fishery, but also be a potential risk to humpback chub in Grand Canyon.
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Firth quadrangle, Idaho
Hubbard, Larry L.; Bartells, John H.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Firth quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Rose quadrangle, Idaho
Bartells, John H.; Hubbard, Larry L.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Rose quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Rexburg quadrangle, Idaho
Harenberg, W.A.; Bigelow, B.B.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification on these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Rexburg quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Parker quadrangle, Idaho
Thomas, Cecil Albert; Ray, Herman A.
1976-01-01
The failure of Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls, Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Parker quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Woodville quadrangle, Idaho
Matthai, Howard F.; Ray, Herman A.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Woodville quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Lewisville quadrangle, Idaho
Ray, Herman A.; Bigelow, Bruce B.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Lewisville quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Pingree quadrangle, Idaho
Hubbard, Larry L.; Bartells, John H.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Pingree quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Blackfoot quadrangle, Idaho
Bartells, J.H.; Hubbard, Larry L.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Blackfoot quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Moreland quadrangle, Idaho
Hubbard, Larry L.; Bartells, John H.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The aea covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Moreland quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Rigby quadrangle, Idaho
Ray, Herman A.; Bigelow, Bruce B.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Rigby quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Newdale quadrangle, Idaho
Ray, Herman A.; Matthai, Howard F.; Thomas, Cecil A.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Newdale quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Moody quadrangle, Idaho
Harenberg, William A.; Bigelow, Bruce B.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Moody quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Topping, David J.; Rubin, David M.; Grams, Paul E.; Griffiths, Ronald E.; Sabol, Thomas A.; Voichick, Nicholas; Tusso, Robert B.; Vanaman, Karen M.; McDonald, Richard R.
2010-01-01
Three large-scale field experiments were conducted on the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam in 1996, 2004, and 2008 to evaluate whether artificial (that is, controlled) floods released from the dam could be used in conjunction with the sand supplied by downstream tributaries to rebuild and sustainably maintain eddy sandbars in the river in Grand Canyon National Park. Higher suspended-sand concentrations during a controlled flood will lead to greater eddy-sandbar deposition rates. During each controlled flood experiment, sediment-transport and bed-sediment data were collected to evaluate sediment-supply effects on sandbar deposition. Data collection substantially increased in spatial and temporal density with each subsequent experiment. The suspended- and bed-sediment data collected during all three controlled-flood experiments are presented and analyzed in this report. Analysis of these data indicate that in designing the hydrograph of a controlled flood that is optimized for sandbar deposition in a given reach of the Colorado River, both the magnitude and the grain size of the sand supply must be considered. Because of the opposing physical effects of bed-sand area and bed-sand grain size in regulating suspended-sand concentration, larger amounts of coarser sand on the bed can lead to lower suspended-sand concentrations, and thus lower rates of sandbar deposition, during a controlled flood than can lesser amounts of finer sand on the bed. Although suspended-sand concentrations were higher at all study sites during the 2008 controlled-flood experiment (CFE) than during either the 1996 or 2004 CFEs, these higher concentrations were likely associated with more sand on the bed of the Colorado River in only lower Glen Canyon. More sand was likely present on the bed of the river in Grand Canyon during the 1996 CFE than during either the 2004 or 2008 CFEs. The question still remains as to whether sandbars can be sustained in the Colorado River in Grand
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Fenton, C.R.; Poreda, R.J.; Nash, B.P.; Webb, R.H.; Cerling, T.E.
2004-01-01
Pleistocene basaltic lava dams and outburst-flood deposits in the western Grand Canyon, Arizona, have been correlated by means of cosmogenic 3He (3Hec) ages and concentrations of SiO2, Na2O, K2O, and rare earth elements. These data indicate that basalt clasts and vitroclasts in a given outburst-flood deposit came from a common source, a lava dam. With these data, it is possible to distinguish individual dam-flood events and improve our understanding of the interrelations of volcanism and river processes. At least five lava dams on the Colorado River failed catastrophically between 100 and 525 ka; subsequent outburst floods emplaced basalt-rich deposits preserved on benches as high as 200 m above the current river and up to 53 km downstream of dam sites. Chemical data also distinguishes individual lava flows that were collectively mapped in the past as large long-lasting dam complexes. These chemical data, in combination with age constraints, increase our ability to correlate lava dams and outburst-flood deposits and increase our understanding of the longevity of lava dams. Bases of correlated lava dams and flood deposits approximate the elevation of the ancestral river during each flood event. Water surface profiles are reconstructed and can be used in future hydraulic models to estimate the magnitude of these large-scale floods.
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Gloss, Steven P.; Lovich, Jeffrey E.; Melis, Theodore S.
2005-01-01
This report is an important milestone in the effort by the Secretary of the Interior to implement the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992 (GCPA; title XVIII, secs. 1801-1809, of Public Law 102-575), the most recent authorizing legislation for Federal efforts to protect resources downstream from Glen Canyon Dam. The chapters that follow are intended to provide decision makers and the American public with relevant scientific information about the status and recent trends of the natural, cultural, and recreational resources of those portions of Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area affected by Glen Canyon Dam operations. Glen Canyon Dam is one of the last major dams that was built on the Colorado River and is located just south of the Arizona-Utah border in the lower reaches of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, approximately 15 mi (24 km) upriver from Grand Canyon National Park (fig. 1). The information presented here is a product of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP), a federally authorized initiative to ensure that the primary mandate of the GCPA is met through advances in information and resource management. The U.S. Geological Survey`s (USGS) Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC) has responsibility for the scientific monitoring and research efforts for the program, including the preparation of reports such as this one.
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Palmquist, Emily C.; Ralston, Barbara E.; Sarr, Daniel A.; Johnson, Taylor C.
2018-06-05
Vegetation in the riparian zone (the area immediately adjacent to streams, such as stream banks) along the Colorado River downstream of Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, supports many ecosystem and societal functions. In both Glen Canyon and Grand Canyon, this ecosystem has changed over time in response to flow alterations, invasive species, and recreational use. Riparian-vegetation cover and composition are likely to continue to change as these pressures persist and new ones emerge. Because this system is a valuable resource that is known to change in response to flow regime and other disturbances, a long-term monitoring protocol has been designed with three primary objectives:Annually measure and summarize the status (composition and cover) of native and non-native vascular-plant species within the riparian zone of the Colorado River between Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Mead.At 5-year intervals, assess change in vegetation composition and cover in the riparian zone, as related to geomorphic setting and dam operations, particularly flow regime.Collect data in a manner that can be used by multiple stakeholders, particularly the basinwide monitoring program overseen by the National Park Service’s Northern Colorado Plateau Network Inventory and Monitoring program.A protocol for the long-term monitoring of riparian vegetation is described in detail and standard operating procedures are included herein for all tasks. Visual estimates of foliar and ground covers are collected in conjunction with environmental measurements to assess correlations of foliar cover with abiotic and flow variables. Sample quadrats are stratified by frequency of inundation, geomorphic feature, and by river segment to account for differences in vegetation type. Photographs of sites are also taken to illustrate qualitative characteristics of the site at the time of sampling. Procedures for field preparation, generating random samples, data collection, data management, collecting and managing unknown
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Wright, Scott A.; Grams, Paul E.
2010-01-01
This report describes numerical modeling simulations of sand transport and sand budgets for reaches of the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam. Two hypothetical Water Year 2011 annual release volumes were each evaluated with six hypothetical operational scenarios. The six operational scenarios include the current operation, scenarios with modifications to the monthly distribution of releases, and scenarios with modifications to daily flow fluctuations. Uncertainties in model predictions were evaluated by conducting simulations with error estimates for tributary inputs and mainstem transport rates. The modeling results illustrate the dependence of sand transport rates and sand budgets on the annual release volumes as well as the within year operating rules. The six operational scenarios were ranked with respect to the predicted annual sand budgets for Marble Canyon and eastern Grand Canyon reaches. While the actual WY 2011 annual release volume and levels of tributary inputs are unknown, the hypothetical conditions simulated and reported herein provide reasonable comparisons between the operational scenarios, in a relative sense, that may be used by decision makers within the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jain, S.; Melis, T. S.; Topping, D. J.; Pulwarty, R. S.; Eischeid, J.
2013-12-01
The planning and decision processes in the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP) strive to balance numerous, often competing, objectives, such as, water supply, hydropower generation, low flow maintenance, maximizing conservation of downstream tributary sand supply, endangered native fish, and other sociocultural resources of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park. In this context, use of monitored and predictive information on the warm season floods (at point-to-regional scales) has been identified as lead-information for a new 10-year long controlled flooding experiment (termed the High-Flow Experiment Protocol) intended to determine management options for rebuilding and maintaining sandbars in Grand Canyon; an adaptive strategy that can potentially facilitate improved planning and dam operations. In this work, we focus on a key concern identified by the GCDAMP, related to the timing and volume of tributary sand input from the Paria and Little Colorado Rivers (located 26 and 124 km below the dam, respectively) into the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park. Episodic and intraseasonal variations (with links to equatorial and sub-tropical Pacific sea surface temperature variability) in the southwest hydroclimatology are investigated to understand the magnitude, timing and spatial scales of warm season floods from this relatively small, but prolific sand producing drainage of the semi-arid Colorado Plateau. The coupled variations of the flood-driven sediment input (magnitude and timing) from these two drainages into the Colorado River are also investigated. The physical processes, including diagnosis of storms and moisture sources, are mapped alongside the planning and decision processes for the ongoing experimental flood releases from the Glen Canyon Dam which are aimed at achieving restoration and maintenance of sandbars and instream ecology. The GCDAMP represents one of the most visible and widely recognized
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Deer Parks quadrangle, Idaho
Ray, Herman A.; Bennett, C. Michael; Records, Andrew W.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Deer Parks quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, St. Anthony quadrangle, Idaho
Thomas, Cecil A.; Ray, Herman A.; Matthai, Howard F.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the St. Anthony quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Teton Dam flood of June 1976, Menan Buttes quadrangle, Idaho
Thomas, Cecil A.; Ray, Herman A.; Harenberg, William A.
1976-01-01
The failure of the Teton Dam caused extreme flooding along the Teton River, Henrys Fork, and Snake River in southeastern Idaho on June 5-8, 1976. No flooding occurred downstream from American Falls Reservoir. The inundated areas and maximum water-surface elevations are shown in a series of 17 hydrologic atlases. The area covered by the atlases extends from Teton Dam downstream to American Falls Reservoir, a distance of 100 miles. The extent of flooding shown on the maps was obtained by field inspections and aerial photographs made during and immediately after the flood. There may be small isolated areas within the boundaries shown that were not flooded, but the identification of these sites was beyond the scope of the study. The elevation data shown are mean-sea-level elevations of high-water marks identified in the field. This particular map (in the 17-map series) shows conditions in the Menan Buttes quadrangle. (Woodard-USGS)
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Flynn, Marilyn E.; Hart, Robert J.; Marzolf, G. Richard; Bowser, Carl J.
2001-01-01
The productivity of the trout fishery in the tailwater reach of the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam depends on the productivity of lower trophic levels. Photosynthesis and respiration are basic biological processes that control productivity and alter pH and oxygen concentration. During 1998?99, data were collected to aid in the documentation of short- and long-term trends in these basic ecosystem processes in the Glen Canyon reach. Dissolved-oxygen, temperature, and specific-conductance profile data were collected monthly in the forebay of Glen Canyon Dam to document the status of water chemistry in the reservoir. In addition, pH, dissolved-oxygen, temperature, and specific-conductance data were collected at five sites in the Colorado River tailwater of Glen Canyon Dam to document the daily, seasonal, and longitudinal range of variation in water chemistry that could occur annually within the Glen Canyon reach.
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Multicriteria decision analysis applied to Glen Canyon Dam
Flug, M.; Seitz, H.L.H.; Scott, J.F.
2000-01-01
Conflicts in water resources exist because river-reservoir systems are managed to optimize traditional benefits (e.g., hydropower and flood control), which are historically quantified in economic terms, whereas natural and environmental resources, including in-stream and riparian resources, are more difficult or impossible to quantify in economic terms. Multicriteria decision analysis provides a quantitative approach to evaluate resources subject to river basin management alternatives. This objective quantification method includes inputs from special interest groups, the general public, and concerned individuals, as well as professionals for each resource considered in a trade-off analysis. Multicriteria decision analysis is applied to resources and flow alternatives presented in the environmental impact statement for Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River. A numeric rating and priority-weighting scheme is used to evaluate 29 specific natural resource attributes, grouped into seven main resource objectives, for nine flow alternatives enumerated in the environmental impact statement.
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Rote, John J.; Flynn, Marilyn E.; Bills, D.J.
1997-01-01
The U.S. Geological Survey collected hydrologic data at 12 continuous-record stations along the Colorado River and its major tributaries between Glen Canyon Dam and Diamond Creek. The data were collected from October 1989 through September 1995 as part of the Bureau of Reclamation's Glen Canyon Environmental Studies. The data include daily values for streamflow discharge, suspended-sediment discharge, temperature, specific conductance, pH, and dissolved-oxygen concentrations, and discrete values for physical properties and chemical constituents of water. All data are presented in tabular form.
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Peak discharge of a Pleistocene lava-dam outburst flood in Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA
Fenton, C.R.; Webb, R.H.; Cerling, T.E.
2006-01-01
The failure of a lava dam 165,000 yr ago produced the largest known flood on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. The Hyaloclastite Dam was up to 366 m high, and geochemical evidence linked this structure to outburst-flood deposits that occurred for 32 km downstream. Using the Hyaloclastite outburst-flood deposits as paleostage indicators, we used dam-failure and unsteady flow modeling to estimate a peak discharge and flow hydrograph. Failure of the Hyaloclastite Dam released a maximum 11 ?? 109 m3 of water in 31 h. Peak discharges, estimated from uncertainty in channel geometry, dam height, and hydraulic characteristics, ranged from 2.3 to 5.3 ?? 105 m3 s-1 for the Hyaloclastite outburst flood. This discharge is an order of magnitude greater than the largest known discharge on the Colorado River (1.4 ?? 104 m3 s-1) and the largest peak discharge resulting from failure of a constructed dam in the USA (6.5 ?? 104 m3 s-1). Moreover, the Hyaloclastite outburst flood is the oldest documented Quaternary flood and one of the largest to have occurred in the continental USA. The peak discharge for this flood ranks in the top 30 floods (>105 m3 s-1) known worldwide and in the top ten largest floods in North America. ?? 2005 University of Washington. All rights reserved.
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Peak discharge of a Pleistocene lava-dam outburst flood in Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fenton, Cassandra R.; Webb, Robert H.; Cerling, Thure E.
2006-03-01
The failure of a lava dam 165,000 yr ago produced the largest known flood on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. The Hyaloclastite Dam was up to 366 m high, and geochemical evidence linked this structure to outburst-flood deposits that occurred for 32 km downstream. Using the Hyaloclastite outburst-flood deposits as paleostage indicators, we used dam-failure and unsteady flow modeling to estimate a peak discharge and flow hydrograph. Failure of the Hyaloclastite Dam released a maximum 11 × 10 9 m 3 of water in 31 h. Peak discharges, estimated from uncertainty in channel geometry, dam height, and hydraulic characteristics, ranged from 2.3 to 5.3 × 10 5 m 3 s -1 for the Hyaloclastite outburst flood. This discharge is an order of magnitude greater than the largest known discharge on the Colorado River (1.4 × 10 4 m 3 s -1) and the largest peak discharge resulting from failure of a constructed dam in the USA (6.5 × 10 4 m 3 s -1). Moreover, the Hyaloclastite outburst flood is the oldest documented Quaternary flood and one of the largest to have occurred in the continental USA. The peak discharge for this flood ranks in the top 30 floods (>10 5 m 3 s -1) known worldwide and in the top ten largest floods in North America.
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Lewis, Reed S.; Smith, Keegan L.; Gaschnig, Richard M.; LaMaskin, Todd A.; Lund, Karen; Gray, Keith D.; Tikoff, Basil; Stetson-Lee, Tor; Moore, Nicholas
2014-01-01
This field guide covers geology across north-central Idaho from the Snake River in the west across the Bitterroot Mountains to the east to near Missoula, Montana. The regional geology includes a much-modified Mesozoic accretionary boundary along the western side of Idaho across which allochthonous Permian to Cretaceous arc complexes of the Blue Mountains province to the west are juxtaposed against autochthonous Mesoproterozoic and Neoproterozoic North American metasedimentary assemblages intruded by Cretaceous and Paleogene plutons to the east. The accretionary boundary turns sharply near Orofino, Idaho, from north-trending in the south to west-trending, forming the Syringa embayment, then disappears westward under Miocene cover rocks of the Columbia River Basalt Group. The Coolwater culmination east of the Syringa embayment exposes allochthonous rocks well east of an ideal steep suture. North and east of it is the Bitterroot lobe of the Idaho batholith, which intruded Precambrian continental crust in the Cretaceous and Paleocene to form one of the classical North American Cordilleran batholiths. Eocene Challis plutons, products of the Tertiary western U.S. ignimbrite flare-up, intrude those batholith rocks. This guide describes the geology in three separate road logs: (1) The Wallowa terrane of the Blue Mountains province from White Bird, Idaho, west into Hells Canyon and faults that complicate the story; (2) the Mesozoic accretionary boundary from White Bird to the South Fork Clearwater River east of Grangeville and then north to Kooskia, Idaho; and (3) the bend in the accretionary boundary, the Coolwater culmination, and the Bitterroot lobe of the Idaho batholith along Highway 12 east from near Lewiston, Idaho, to Lolo, Montana.
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Observations of environmental change in Grand Canyon, Arizona
Webb, Robert H.; Melis, Theodore S.; Valdez, Richard A.
2002-01-01
Few scientific data have been collected on pre-dam conditions of the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon National Park. Using historical diaries, interviews with pre-dam river runners (referred to as the ?Old Timers?), and historical scientific data and observations, we compiled anecdotal information on environmental change in Grand Canyon. The most significant changes are the: lowering of water temperature in the river, near-elimination of heavily sediment-laden flows, erosion of sand bars, invasion of non-native tamarisk trees, reduction in driftwood, development of marshes, increase in non-native fish at the expense of native fishes, and increase in water bird populations. In addition, few debris flows were observed before closure of Glen Canyon Dam, which might suggests that the frequency of debris flows in Grand Canyon has increased. Other possible changes include decreases in bat populations and increases in swallow and bighorn sheep populations, although the evidence is anecdotal and inconclusive. These results provide a perspective on managing the Colorado River that may allow differentiation of the effects of Glen Canyon Dam from other processes of change.
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Moyle, Phillip R.; Wallis, John C.; Bliss, James D.; Bolm, Karen D.
2004-01-01
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) compiled a database of aggregate sites and geotechnical sample data for six counties - Ada, Boise, Canyon, Elmore, Gem, and Owyhee - in southwest Idaho as part of a series of studies in support of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) planning process. Emphasis is placed on sand and gravel sites in deposits of the Boise River, Snake River, and other fluvial systems and in Neogene lacustrine deposits. Data were collected primarily from unpublished Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) records and BLM site descriptions, published Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) records, and USGS sampling data. The results of this study provides important information needed by land-use planners and resource managers, particularly in the BLM, to anticipate and plan for demand and development of sand and gravel and other mineral material resources on public lands in response to the urban growth in southwestern Idaho.
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77 FR 48151 - Boulder Canyon Project
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-08-13
... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Western Area Power Administration Boulder Canyon Project AGENCY: Western Area... Canyon Project (BCP) electric service provided by the Western Area Power Administration (Western). The... INFORMATION: Hoover Dam, authorized by the Boulder Canyon Project Act (45 Stat. 1057, December 21, 1928), sits...
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Braatne, Jeffrey H.; Goater, Lori A.; Blair, Charles L.
2007-01-01
River damming provides a dominant human impact on river environments worldwide, and while local impacts of reservoir flooding are immediate, subsequent ecological impacts downstream can be extensive. In this article, we assess seven research strategies for analyzing the impacts of dams and river flow regulation on riparian ecosystems. These include spatial comparisons of (1) upstream versus downstream reaches, (2) progressive downstream patterns, or (3) the dammed river versus an adjacent free-flowing or differently regulated river(s). Temporal comparisons consider (4) pre- versus post-dam, or (5) sequential post-dam conditions. However, spatial comparisons are complicated by the fact that dams are not randomly located, and temporal comparisons are commonly limited by sparse historic information. As a result, comparative approaches are often correlative and vulnerable to confounding factors. To complement these analyses, (6) flow or sediment modifications can be implemented to test causal associations. Finally, (7) process-based modeling represents a predictive approach incorporating hydrogeomorphic processes and their biological consequences. In a case study of Hells Canyon, the upstream versus downstream comparison is confounded by a dramatic geomorphic transition. Comparison of the multiple reaches below the dams should be useful, and the comparison of Snake River with the adjacent free-flowing Salmon River may provide the strongest spatial comparison. A pre- versus post-dam comparison would provide the most direct study approach, but pre-dam information is limited to historic reports and archival photographs. We conclude that multiple study approaches are essential to provide confident interpretations of ecological impacts downstream from dams, and propose a comprehensive study for Hells Canyon that integrates multiple research strategies. PMID:18043964
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Grams, Paul E.; Schmidt, John C.; Andersen, Matthew E.
2010-01-01
The March 2008 high-flow experiment (HFE) at Glen Canyon Dam resulted in sandbar deposition and sandbar reshaping such that the area and volume of associated backwater aquatic habitat in Grand Canyon National Park was greater following the HFE. Analysis of backwater habitat area and volume for 116 locations at 86 study sites, comparing one month before and one month after the HFE, shows that total habitat area increased by 30 percent to as much as a factor of 3 and that volume increased by 80 percent to as much as a factor of 15. These changes resulted from an increase in the area and elevation of sandbars, which isolate backwaters from the main channel, and the scour of eddy return-current channels along the bank where the habitat occurs. Because of this greater relief on the sandbars, backwaters were present across a broader range of flows following the HFE than before the experiment. Reworking of sandbars during diurnal fluctuating flow operations in the first 6 months following the HFE caused sandbar erosion and a reduction of backwater size and abundance to conditions that were 5 to 14 percent greater than existed before the HFE. In the months following the HFE, erosion of sandbars and deposition in eddy return-current channels caused reductions of backwater area and volume. However, sandbar relief was still greater in October 2008 such that backwaters were present across a broader range of discharges than in February 2008. Topographic analyses of the sandbar and backwater morphologic data collected in this study demonstrate that steady flows are associated with a greater amount of continuously available backwater habitat than fluctuating flows, which result in a greater amount of intermittently available habitat. With the exception of the period immediately following the HFE, backwater habitat in 2008 was greater for steady flows associated with dam operations of relatively lower monthly volume (about 227 m3/s) than steady flows associated with dam operations
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Geology of an Ordovician stratiform base-metal deposit in the Long Canyon Area, Blaine County, Idaho
Otto, B.R.; Zieg, G.A.
2003-01-01
In the Long Canyon area, Blaine County, Idaho, a strati-form base-metal-bearing gossan is exposed within a complexly folded and faulted sequence of Ordovician strata. The gossan horizon in graptolitic mudrock suggests preservation of bedded sulfides that were deposited by an Ordovician subaqueous hydrothermal system. Abrupt thickness changes and geochemi-cal zoning in the metal-bearing strata suggest that the gossan is near the source of the hydrothermal system. Ordovician sedimentary rocks at Long Canyon represent a coarsening-upward section that was deposited below wave base in a submarine depositional environment. The lowest exposed rocks represent deposition in a starved, euxinic basin and over-lying strata represent a prograding clastic wedge of terrigenous and calcareous detritus. The metalliferous strata are between these two types of strata. Strata at Long Canyon have been deformed by two periods of thrust faulting, at least three periods of normal faulting, and two periods of folding. Tertiary extensional faulting formed five subhorizontal structural plates. These low-angle fault-bounded plates truncate Sevier-age and possibly Antler-age thrust faults. The presence of gossan-bearing strata in the four upper plates suggests that there was only minor, although locally complex, stratigraphic displacement and rotation. The lack of correlative strata in the lowest plate suggests the displacement was greater than 2000 ft. The metalliferous strata were exposed to surface weathering, oxidation, and erosion prior to and during deposition of the Eocene Challis Volcanic Group. The orientations of erosional canyons formed during this early period of exposure were related to the orientations of Sevier-age thrust faults, and stream-channel gravel was deposited in the canyons. During this and subsequent intervals of exposure, sulfidic strata were oxi-dized to a minimum depth of 700 ft.
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White, M.A.; Schmidt, J.C.; Topping, D.J.
2005-01-01
Wavelet analysis is a powerful tool with which to analyse the hydrologic effects of dam construction and operation on river systems. Using continuous records of instantaneous discharge from the Lees Ferry gauging station and records of daily mean discharge from upstream tributaries, we conducted wavelet analyses of the hydrologic structure of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. The wavelet power spectrum (WPS) of daily mean discharge provided a highly compressed and integrative picture of the post-dam elimination of pronounced annual and sub-annual flow features. The WPS of the continuous record showed the influence of diurnal and weekly power generation cycles, shifts in discharge management, and the 1996 experimental flood in the post-dam period. Normalization of the WPS by local wavelet spectra revealed the fine structure of modulation in discharge scale and amplitude and provides an extremely efficient tool with which to assess the relationships among hydrologic cycles and ecological and geomorphic systems. We extended our analysis to sections of the Snake River and showed how wavelet analysis can be used as a data mining technique. The wavelet approach is an especially promising tool with which to assess dam operation in less well-studied regions and to evaluate management attempts to reconstruct desired flow characteristics. Copyright ?? 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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Vernieu, William S.
2015-10-06
The results of these analyses are presented in this report. From this record, further interpretation may be made concerning primary and secondary production in Lake Powell. These data provide a linkage between physical and chemical water-quality data and fisheries investigations in Lake Powell. They also provide information regarding the export of biological material from Glen Canyon Dam.
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Makinster, Andrew S.; Persons, William R.; Avery, Luke A.
2011-01-01
The Lees Ferry reach of the Colorado River, a 25-kilometer segment of river located immediately downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, has contained a nonnative rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) sport fishery since it was first stocked in 1964. The fishery has evolved over time in response to changes in dam operations and fish management. Long-term monitoring of the rainbow trout population downstream of Glen Canyon Dam is an essential component of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program. A standardized sampling design was implemented in 1991 and has changed several times in response to independent, external scientific-review recommendations and budget constraints. Population metrics (catch per unit effort, proportional stock density, and relative condition) were estimated from 1991 to 2009 by combining data collected at fixed sampling sites during this time period and at random sampling sites from 2002 to 2009. The validity of combining population metrics for data collected at fixed and random sites was confirmed by a one-way analysis of variance by fish-length class size. Analysis of the rainbow trout population metrics from 1991 to 2009 showed that the abundance of rainbow trout increased from 1991 to 1997, following implementation of a more steady flow regime, but declined from about 2000 to 2007. Abundance in 2008 and 2009 was high compared to previous years, which was likely the result of increased early survival caused by improved habitat conditions following the 2008 high-flow experiment at Glen Canyon Dam. Proportional stock density declined between 1991 and 2006, reflecting increased natural reproduction and large numbers of small fish in samples. Since 2001, the proportional stock density has been relatively stable. Relative condition varied with size class of rainbow trout but has been relatively stable since 1991 for fish smaller than 152 millimeters (mm), except for a substantial decrease in 2009. Relative condition was more variable for larger
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MacCoy, Dorene E.
2004-01-01
The water quality and biotic integrity of the lower Boise River between Lucky Peak Dam and the river's mouth near Parma, Idaho, have been affected by agricultural land and water use, wastewater treatment facility discharge, urbanization, reservoir operations, and river channel alteration. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and cooperators have studied water-quality and biological aspects of the lower Boise River in the past to address water-quality concerns and issues brought forth by the Clean Water Act of 1977. Past and present issues include preservation of beneficial uses of the river for fisheries, recreation, and irrigation; and maintenance of high-quality water for domestic and agricultural uses. Evaluation of the data collected from 1994 to 2002 by the USGS revealed increases in constituent concentrations in the lower Boise in a downstream direction. Median suspended sediment concentrations from Diversion Dam (downstream from Lucky Peak Dam) to Parma increased more than 11 times, nitrogen concentrations increased more than 8 times, phosphorus concentrations increased more than 7 times, and fecal coliform concentrations increased more than 400 times. Chlorophyll-a concentrations, used as an indicator of nutrient input and the potential for nuisance algal growth, also increased in a downstream direction; median concentrations were highest at the Middleton and Parma sites. There were no discernible temporal trends in nutrients, sediment, or bacteria concentrations over the 8-year study. The State of Idaho?s temperature standards to protect coldwater biota and salmonid spawning were exceeded most frequently at Middleton and Parma. Suspended sediment concentrations exceeded criteria proposed by Idaho Department of Environmental Quality most frequently at Parma and at all but three tributaries. Total nitrogen concentrations at Glenwood, Middleton, and Parma exceeded national background levels; median flow-adjusted total nitrogen concentrations at Middleton and
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-10-25
... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE Foreign-Trade Zones Board [Docket 65-2011] Proposed Foreign-Trade Zone--Ada... establish a general-purpose foreign-trade zone at sites in Ada and Canyon Counties, Idaho, adjacent to the... proposed service area under the ASF would be Ada and Canyon Counties, Idaho. If approved, the applicant...
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Paleozoic carbonate buildup (reef) inventory, central and southeastern Idaho
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Isaacson, P.E.
1987-08-01
Knowledge of central and southeastern Idaho's Paleozoic rocks to date suggest that three styles of buildup (reef) complexes occur in Late Devonian, Mississippian, and Pennsylvanian-Permian time. The Late Devonian Jefferson Formation has stromatoporoid and coral (both rugosan and tabulate) organisms effecting a buildup in the Grandview Canyon vicinity; Early Mississippian Waulsortian-type mud mounds occur in the Lodgepole formation of southeastern Idaho; there are Late Mississippian Waulsortian-type mounds in the Surrett Canyon Formation of the Lost River Range; and cyclic Pennsylvanian-Permian algal and hydrozoan buildups occur in the Juniper gulch Member of the Snaky Canyon Formation in the Arco Hills andmore » Lemhi Range. Late Devonian (Frasnian) carbonates of the Jefferson formation show buildup development on deep ramp sediments.« less
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Grand Canyon, Lake Powell, and Lake Mead
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
2002-01-01
A snowfall in the American West provides contrast to the landscape's muted earth tones and indicates changes in topography and elevation across (clockwise from top left) Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. In Utah, the southern ranges of the Wasatch Mountains are covered in snow, and the Colorado River etches a dark ribbon across the red rock of the Colorado Plateau. In the center of the image is the reservoir created by the Glen Canyon Dam. To the east are the gray-colored slopes of Navaho Mountain, and to the southeast, dusted with snow is the region called Black Mesa. Southwest of Glen Canyon, the Colorado enters the Grand Canyon, which cuts westward through Arizona. At a deep bend in the river, the higher elevations of the Keibab Plateau have held onto snow. At the end of the Grand Canyon lies another large reservoir, Lake Mead, which is formed by the Hoover Dam. Credit: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC
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Financial Analysis of Experimental Releases Conducted at Glen Canyon Dam during Water Year 2013
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Graziano, Diane; Poch, Leslie A.; Veselka, Thomas D.
2014-06-01
This report examines the financial implications of experimental flows conducted at the Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) in water year 2013. It is the fifth report in a series examining the financial implications of experimental flows conducted since the Record of Decision (ROD) was adopted in February 1997 (Reclamation 1996). A report released in January 2011 examined water years 1997 to 2005 (Veselka et al. 2011), a report released in August 2011 examined water years 2006 to 2010 (Poch et al. 2011), a report released June 2012 examined water year 2011 (Poch et al. 2012), and a report released April 2013more » examined water year 2012 (Poch et al. 2013).« less
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Financial analysis of experimental releases conducted at Glen Canyon Dam during Water Year 2013
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Graziano, D. J.; Poch, L. A.; Veselka, T. D.
2014-08-18
This report examines the financial implications of experimental flows conducted at the Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) in water year 2013. It is the fifth report in a series examining the financial implications of experimental flows conducted since the Record of Decision (ROD) was adopted in February 1997 (Reclamation 1996). A report released in January 2011 examined water years 1997 to 2005 (Veselka et al. 2011), a report released in August 2011 examined water years 2006 to 2010 (Poch et al. 2011), a report released June 2012 examined water year 2011 (Poch et al. 2012), and a report released April 2013more » examined water year 2012 (Poch et al. 2013).« less
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Geology of Raymond Canyon, Sublette Range, western Wyoming
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Shoemaker, W.A.
1984-07-01
Raymond Canyon is located on the west side of the Sublette Range, Lincoln County, Wyoming. The study area is just east of the Idaho border and 10 mi (16 km) southeast of Geneva, Idaho. Formations exposed range in age from Late Pennsylvanian to Tertiary (Pliocene) and include: the lower part of the Wells Formation (Pennsylvanian, total thickness 720 ft or 219 m); the upper part of the Wells Formation and the Phosphoria Formation (both Permian, 153-210 ft or 47-64 m); the Dinwoody Formation (185 ft or 56 m); Woodside Shale (540 ft or 165 m); Thaynes Limestone (2345 ft ormore » 715 m); and Ankareh Formation (930 ft or 283 m), all of Triassic age; the Nugget Sandstone (1610 ft or 491 m), Twin Creek Limestone, Preuss Sandstone, and Stump Formation, all of Jurassic age; and the Salt Lake formation and the Sublette conglomerate, both Pliocene postorogenic continental deposits. Generally these formations are thinner than in nearby areas to the west and northwest. Raymond Canyon lies on the upper plate of the Tunp thrust and the lower plate of the Crawford thrust of the Idaho-Wyoming thrust belt. Thus, it lies near the middle of the imbricate stack of shallowly dipping thrust faults that formed in the late Mesozoic. Study of the stratigraphy, structure, petrography, and inferred depositional environments exposed in Raymond Canyon may be helpful to those engaged in energy development in the Idaho-Wyoming thrust belt.« less
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Lava Flows in the Grand Canyon
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
2003-01-01
Over vast expanses of time, natural processes like floods and volcanoes deposit layers of rock on the Earth's surface. To delve down through layers of rock is to explore our planet's history. Sometimes rock layers are exposed through human activity, such as drilling or excavation. Other times, rivers carve through the rock. One of the best, and most well-known, examples of a river exposing ancient rocks is Colorado River in Arizona's Grand Canyon. What fewer people know is that the Grand Canyon also has a history of relatively recent (on geologic time scales) volcanism. The evidence--hardened lava--spills down the canyon walls all the way to the river. On June 22, 2003, the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA's Terra satellite captured this image of the Grand Canyon, near 36.2 degrees north latitude and 113.2 degrees west longitude. ASTER detects light visible to human eyes as well as 'invisible' infrared light. Because different minerals reflect different portions of the light spectrum, ASTER can see varying mineral compositions of the rocks it observes, as well as detecting vegetation. In this three-dimensional visualization, lava fields appear brownish gray, darker than the layers of limestone, sandstone and other rock in the canyon. Vegetation appears green, and sparsely vegetated areas appear mustard. Water in the Colorado River is blue-purple. Geologists estimate that between 1.8 million and 400,000 years ago, lava flows actually dammed the Colorado River more than a dozen times. Some of the lava dams were as high as 600 meters (about 1,969 feet), forming immense reservoirs. Over time, enough water and sediment built up to push the river flow over the tops of these dams and eventually erode them away. Today, remnants of these lava dams remain throughout the area, along with the much older rock layers they cover. Among the most well known examples of these 'frozen' lava cascades is Lava Falls, which spills down to the
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Wellard Kelly, Holly A.; Rosi-Marshall, Emma J.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Hall, Robert O.; Cross, Wyatt F.; Baxter, Colden V.
2013-01-01
Physical changes to rivers associated with large dams (e.g., water temperature) directly alter macroinvertebrate assemblages. Large dams also may indirectly alter these assemblages by changing the food resources available to support macroinvertebrate production. We examined the diets of the 4 most common macroinvertebrate taxa in the Colorado River through Glen and Grand Canyons, seasonally, at 6 sites for 2.5 y. We compared macroinvertebrate diet composition to the composition of epilithon (rock and cliff faces) communities and suspended organic seston to evaluate the degree to which macroinvertebrate diets tracked downstream changes in resource availability. Diets contained greater proportions of algal resources in the tailwater of Glen Canyon Dam and more terrestrial-based resources at sites downstream of the 1st major tributary. As predicted, macroinvertebrate diets tracked turbidity-driven changes in resource availability, and river turbidity partially explained variability in macroinvertebrate diets. The relative proportions of resources assimilated by macroinvertebrates ranged from dominance by algae to terrestrial-based resources, despite greater assimilation efficiencies for algal than terrestrial C. Terrestrial resources were most important during high turbidity conditions, which occurred during the late-summer monsoon season (July–October) when tributaries contributed large amounts of organic matter to the mainstem and suspended sediments reduced algal production. Macroinvertebrate diets were influenced by seasonal changes in tributary inputs and turbidity, a result suggesting macroinvertebrate diets in regulated rivers may be temporally dynamic and driven by tributary inputs.
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1. 'SANTA ANA RIVER IN SANTA ANA CANYON. ORANGE COUNTY.' ...
1. 'SANTA ANA RIVER IN SANTA ANA CANYON. ORANGE COUNTY.' This is an oblique aerial view to the northeast taken from the northeast extremity of the canyon, showing, in the middle distance, the confluence of Chino Creek and the Santa Ana River, site of the future Prado Dam. File number written on negative: R & H 80 026. - Prado Dam, Santa Ana River near junction of State Highways 71 & 91, Corona, Riverside County, CA
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Origin of the Colorado River experimental flood in Grand Canyon
Andrews, E.D.; Pizzi, L.A.
2000-01-01
The Colorado River is one of the most highly regulated and extensively utilized rivers in the world. Total reservoir storage is approximately four times the mean annual runoff of ~17 x 109 m3 year -1. Reservoir storage and regulation have decreased annual peak discharges and hydroelectric power generation has increased daily flow variability. In recent years, the incidental impacts of this development have become apparent especially along the Colorado River through Grand Canyon National Park downstream from Glen Canyon Dam and caused widespread concern. Since the completion of Glen Canyon Dam, the number and size of sand bars, which are used by recreational river runners and form the habitat for native fishes, have decreased substantially. Following an extensive hydrological and geomorphic investigation, an experimental flood release from the Glen Canyon Dam was proposed to determine whether sand bars would be rebuilt by a relatively brief period of flow substantially greater than the normal operating regime. This proposed release, however, was constrained by the Law of the River, the body of law developed over 70 years to control and distribute Colorado River water, the needs of hydropower users and those dependent upon hydropower revenues, and the physical constraints of the dam itself. A compromise was reached following often difficult negotiations and an experimental flood to rebuild sand bars was released in 1996. This flood, and the process by which it came about, gives hope to resolving the difficult and pervasive problem of allocation of water resources among competing interests.The Colorado River is one of the most highly regulated and extensively utilized rivers in the world. Total reservoir storage is approximately four times the mean annual runoff of approximately 17??109 m3 year-1. Reservoir storage and regulation have decreased annual peak discharges and hydroelectric power generation has increased daily flow variability. In recent years, the
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Bookstrom, Arthur A.
2013-01-01
The Idaho cobalt belt (ICB) is a northwest-trending belt of cobalt (Co) +/- copper (Cu)-bearing deposits and prospects in the Salmon River Mountains of east-central Idaho, U.S.A. The ICB is about 55 km long and 10 km long in its central part, which contains multiple strata-bound ore zones in the Blackbird mine area. The Black Pine and Iron Creek Co-Cu prospects are southeast of Blackbird, and the Tinkers Pride, Bonanza Copper, Elk Creek, and Salmon Canyon Copper prospects are northwest of Blackbird.
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Ex post power economic analysis of record of decision operational restrictions at Glen Canyon Dam.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Veselka, T. D.; Poch, L. A.; Palmer, C. S.
On October 9, 1996, Bruce Babbitt, then-Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior signed the Record of Decision (ROD) on operating criteria for the Glen Canyon Dam (GCD). Criteria selected were based on the Modified Low Fluctuating Flow (MLFF) Alternative as described in the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam, Colorado River Storage Project, Arizona, Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) (Reclamation 1995). These restrictions reduced the operating flexibility of the hydroelectric power plant and therefore its economic value. The EIS provided impact information to support the ROD, including an analysis of operating criteria alternatives on power system economics. This exmore » post study reevaluates ROD power economic impacts and compares these results to the economic analysis performed prior (ex ante) to the ROD for the MLFF Alternative. On the basis of the methodology used in the ex ante analysis, anticipated annual economic impacts of the ROD were estimated to range from approximately $15.1 million to $44.2 million in terms of 1991 dollars ($1991). This ex post analysis incorporates historical events that took place between 1997 and 2005, including the evolution of power markets in the Western Electricity Coordinating Council as reflected in market prices for capacity and energy. Prompted by ROD operational restrictions, this analysis also incorporates a decision made by the Western Area Power Administration to modify commitments that it made to its customers. Simulated operations of GCD were based on the premise that hourly production patterns would maximize the economic value of the hydropower resource. On the basis of this assumption, it was estimated that economic impacts were on average $26.3 million in $1991, or $39 million in $2009.« less
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Overview of the Colorado River Canyon from the helicopter pad. ...
Overview of the Colorado River Canyon from the helicopter pad. View of the Nevada side where new bridge will cross canyon, view northwest - Hoover Dam, Spanning Colorado River at Route 93, Boulder City, Clark County, NV
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Grams, Paul E.
2013-01-01
Recent U.S. Geological Survey research is providing important insights into how best to monitor changes in the amount of tributary-derived sand stored on the bed of the Colorado River and in eddies in Marble Canyon, Arizona. Before the construction of Glen Canyon Dam and other dams upstream, sandbars in Glen, Marble, and Grand Canyons were replenished each year by sediment-rich floods. Sand input into the Colorado River is crucial to protecting endangered native fish, animals, and plants and cultural and recreational resources along the river in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park.
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View of the Colorado River Canyon showing lower portal road ...
View of the Colorado River Canyon showing lower portal road in background taken from the rim of Hoover Dam, view south - Hoover Dam, Spanning Colorado River at Route 93, Boulder City, Clark County, NV
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Planned flooding and Colorado River riparian trade-offs downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona
Stevens, Lawrence E.; Ayers, T.J.; Bennett, J.B.; Christensen, K.; Kearsley, M.J.C.; Meretsky, V.J.; Phillips, A. M.; Parnell, R.A.; Spence, J.; Sogge, M.K.; Springer, A.E.; Wegner, D.L.
2001-01-01
Regulated river restoration through planned flooding involves trade-offs between aquatic and terrestrial components, between relict pre-dam and novel post-dam resources and processes, and between management of individual resources and ecosystem characteristics. We review the terrestrial (wetland and riparian) impacts of a 1274 m3/s test flood conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in March/April 1996, which was designed to improve understanding of sediment transport and management downstream from Glen Canyon Dam in the Colorado River ecosystem. The test flood successfully restored sandbars throughout the river corridor and was timed to prevent direct impacts to species of concern. A total of 1275 endangered Kanab ambersnail (Oxyloma haydeni kanabensis) were translocated above the flood zone at Vaseys Paradise spring, and an estimated 10.7% of the total snail habitat and 7.7% of the total snail population were lost to the flood. The test flood scoured channel margin wetlands, including potential foraging habitats of endangered Southwestern Willow Flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus). It also buried ground-covering riparian vegetation under >1 m of fine sand but only slightly altered woody sandbar vegetation and some return-current channel marshes. Pre-flood control efforts and appropriate flood timing limited recruitment of four common nonnative perennial plant species. Slight impacts on ethnobotanical resources were detected >430 km downstream, but those plant assemblages recovered rapidly. Careful design of planned flood hydrograph shape and seasonal timing is required to mitigate terrestrial impacts during efforts to restore essential fluvial geomorphic and aquatic habitats in regulated river ecosystems.
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Mueller, Erich R.; Grams, Paul E.; Schmidt, John C.; Hazel, Joseph E.; Alexander, Jason S.; Kaplinski, Matt
2014-01-01
Prior to the construction of large dams on the Green and Colorado Rivers, annual floods aggraded sandbars in lateral flow-recirculation eddies with fine sediment scoured from the bed and delivered from upstream. Flows greater than normal dam operations may be used to mimic this process in an attempt to increase time-averaged sandbar size. These controlled floods may rebuild sandbars, but sediment deficit conditions downstream from the dams restrict the frequency that controlled floods produce beneficial results. Here, we integrate complimentary, long-term monitoring data sets from the Colorado River in Marble and Grand Canyons downstream from Glen Canyon dam and the Green River in the Canyon of Lodore downstream from Flaming Gorge dam. Since the mid-1990s, several controlled floods have occurred in these canyon rivers. These controlled floods scour fine sediment from the bed and build sandbars in eddies, thus increasing channel relief. These changes are short-lived, however, as interflood dam operations erode sandbars within several months to years. Controlled flood response and interflood changes in bed elevation are more variable in Marble Canyon and Grand Canyon, likely reflecting more variable fine sediment supply and stronger transience in channel bed sediment storage. Despite these differences, neither system shows a trend in fine-sediment storage during the period in which controlled floods were monitored. These results demonstrate that controlled floods build eddy sandbars and increase channel relief for short interflood periods, and this response may be typical in other dam-influenced canyon rivers. The degree to which these features persist depends on the frequency of controlled floods, but careful consideration of sediment supply is necessary to avoid increasing the long-term sediment deficit.
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Financial Analysis of Experimental Releases Conducted at Glen Canyon Dam during Water Year 2014
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Graziano, D. J.; Poch, L. A.; Veselka, T. D.
This report examines the financial implications of experimental flows conducted at the Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) in water year (WY) 2014. It is the sixth report in a series examining the financial implications of experimental flows conducted since the Record of Decision (ROD) was adopted in February 1997 (Reclamation 1996). A report released in January 2011 examined water years 1997 to 2005 (Veselka et al. 2011), a report released in August 2011 examined water years 2006 to 2010 (Poch et al. 2011), a report released June 2012 examined water year 2011 (Poch et al. 2012), a report released April 2013more » examined water year 2012 (Poch et al. 2013), and a report released June 2014 examined water year 2013 (Graziano et al. 2014).« less
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Ralston, Barbara E.
2011-01-01
In the spring and summer of 2000, a series of steady discharges of water from Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River were used to evaluate the effects of aquatic habitat stability and water temperatures on native fish growth and survival, with a special focus on the endangered humpback chub (Gila cypha), downstream from the dam in Grand Canyon. The steady releases were bracketed by peak powerplant releases in late-May and early-September. The duration and volume of releases from the dam varied between spring and summer. The intent of the experimental hydrograph was to mimic predam river discharge patterns by including a high, steady discharge in the spring and a low, steady discharge in the summer. The hydrologic experiment was called the Low Steady Summer Flow (LSSF) experiment because steady discharges of 226 m3/s dominated the hydrograph for 4 months from June through September 2000. The experimental hydrograph was developed in response to one of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Recommended and Prudent Alternatives (RPA) in its Biological Opinion of the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam Final Environmental Impact Statement. The RPA focused on the hypothesis that seasonally adjusted steady flows were dam operations that might benefit humpback chub more than the Record of Decision operations, known as Modified Low Fluctuating Flow (MLFF) operations. Condensed timelines between planning and implementation (2 months) of the experiment and the time required for logistics, purchasing, and contracting resulted in limited data collection during the high-release part of the experiment that occurred in spring. The LSSF experiment is the longest planned hydrograph that departed from the MLFF operations since Record of Decision operations began in 1996. As part of the experiment, several studies focused on the responses of physical properties related to environments that young-of-year (YOY) native fish might occupy (for example, measuring mainstem and shoreline water
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Malde, Harold E.; Cox, Allan
1971-01-01
. From that place the former Snake River canyon, also now concealed by lava, continued west to Bancroft Springs and thence along a route close to the present canyon to King Hill. To become entrenched in a canyon 500 feet deep, the Snake River downstream from Hagerman became progressively more incised while its upstream route was pushed south in several earlier canyons by intermittent lava flows. Distinctive gravel deposits help to establish the episodes of progressive canyon cutting and to determine the routes of ancestral drainage, including the former position of the Wood River. As canyon cutting continued, springs began to emerge where lavas had filled the earlier canyons. When the Snake River canyon eventually attained its approximate present depth, the Wendell Grade Basalt erupted near Shoshone and, as several tongues, spread west to the canyon rim opposite Hagerman. One tongue crossed the future route of the Wood River, and another covered an upland area of Sand Springs Basalt that had previously reached the canyon floor at Hagerman. The McKinney Basalt then erupted from McKinney Butte northeast of Bliss and spread southward as a subaerial flow, covering part of the Wendell Grade Basalt. It filled the ancestral Wood River canyon and the Snake River canyon of that time west of Bliss as far downstream as King Hill. The resulting dam of lava impounded a deep lake, which extended upstream in the canyon beyond Hagerman. Copious amounts of the McKinney spilled into this temporary lake and produced pillow lava. About 2 miles west of Bliss, pillow lava 500 feet thick completely fills the former canyon and is protected by rimrock of the subaerial McKinney Basalt. From Bliss, the pillow facies extends upstream as far as the McKinney rimrock - about 5 miles. Eruption of the McKinney Basalt diverted the Wood River to a course along the southeast edge of this lava flow. The temporary lake that was dammed by McKinney Basalt west of Bliss spilled along the sou
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Ivanov, J.; Miller, R.D.; Markiewicz, R.D.; Xia, J.
2008-01-01
We apply the P-wave refraction-tomography method to seismic data collected with a landstreamer. Refraction-tomography inversion solutions were determined using regularization parameters that provided the most realistic near-surface solutions that best matched the dipping layer structure of nearby outcrops. A reasonably well matched solution was obtained using an unusual set of optimal regularization parameters. In comparison, the use of conventional regularization parameters did not provide as realistic results. Thus, we consider that even if there is only qualitative a-priori information about a site (i.e., visual) - in the case of the East Canyon Dam, Utah - it might be possible to minimize the refraction nonuniqueness by estimating the most appropriate regularization parameters.
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Engineering and Ecological Aspects of Dam Removal-An Overview
2006-09-01
indicated. Figure 3. Teton Dam failure, Idaho, 1976 BENEFITS AND COSTS OF DAMS Dams have provided and continue to provide a diverse...ERDC TN-EMRRP-SR-80 1 Engineering and Ecological Aspects of Dam Removal—An Overview September 2006 By Jock Conyngham1, J. Craig Fischenich1...High ______________________________________________________________________ OVERVIEW Decommissioning and removing dams has
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Colorado River fish monitoring in Grand Canyon, Arizona; 2000 to 2009 summary
Makinster, Andrew S.; Persons, William R.; Avery, Luke A.; Bunch, Aaron J.
2010-01-01
Long-term fish monitoring in the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam is an essential component of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP). The GCDAMP is a federally authorized initiative to ensure that the primary mandate of the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992 to protect resources downstream from Glen Canyon Dam is met. The U.S. Geological Survey's Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center is responsible for the program's long-term fish monitoring, which is implemented in cooperation with the Arizona Game and Fish Department, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, SWCA Environmental Consultants, and others. Electrofishing and tagging protocols have been developed and implemented for standardized annual monitoring of Colorado River fishes since 2000. In 2009, sampling occurred throughout the river between Lees Ferry and Lake Mead for 38 nights over two trips. During the two trips, scientists captured 6,826 fish representing 11 species. Based on catch-per-unit-effort, salmonids (for example, rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and brown trout (Salmo trutta)) increased eightfold between 2006 and 2009. Flannelmouth sucker (Catostomus latipinnis) catch rates were twice as high in 2009 as in 2006. Humpback chub (Gila cypha) catches were low throughout the 10-year sampling period.
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Staff Ride Handbook and Atlas Battle of White Bird Canyon 17 June 1877
2014-01-01
departed Fort Lawpai, Idaho at about 20:00 hours on 15 June 1877. He pushed his men throughout the night down the Lewiston -Mount Idaho road. The overall...11) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-940804-01-9 (alk. paper) 1. White Bird Canyon, Battle of, Idaho , 1877. 2. Nez...two companies of US cavalry, to the Grangeville, Idaho area to protect settlers. Captain Perry arrived in Grangeville on 16 June and discovered that
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A paleolimnological investigation of historical environmental change in East Canyon Reservoir
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Higby Halseth, Deanna Renee
East Canyon Reservoir is located 32 km east of Salt Lake City, Utah, and serves as a resource for irrigation, culinary water, and recreation. This research used paleolimnology and historical records to investigate the impacts of multiple stressors, including land clearance, dam construction and enlargement, and climate warming on East Canyon Reservoir. Recently, blue green algal blooms, typically indicative of eutrophication, have been increasing at East Canyon Reservoir despite reductions of nutrients from point sources, so part of the impetus for this study was to understand the forcing mechanisms of these blooms. A multiproxy analysis of three sediment cores retrieved from the reservoir determined changes in nutrient concentrations and sediment composition over time. Percent organics, magnetic susceptibility, and diatom analyses of 210Pb dated cores were compared to measurements of temperature and precipitation as well as records of historical land use, which were determined using remote sensing. Percent organics and magnetic susceptibility showed changes related to dam construction and increased development. Fossil diatom assemblages indicated that East Canyon Reservoir had been eutrophic since origination; however, principal components analyses of the diatom data indicated that the canyon became more P-enriched following dam construction and increased development. Recent increases in Cyclotella diatoms indicate changes related to warming temperatures, and we speculate that this warming is also what is causing blue-green algal blooms to increase.
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Sand pulses and sand patches on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon
Grams, Paul E.; Buscombe, Daniel; Topping, David; Mueller, Erich R.
2017-01-01
Alluvial sandbars occur in lateral recirculation zones (eddies) along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park (Schmidt, 1990). Resource managers periodically release controlled floods from the upstream Glen Canyon Dam to rebuild these bars (Grams et al., 2015), which erode during fluctuating dam releases, and by hillslope runoff and wind deflation (Hazel et al., 2010). Because the dam blocks upstream sediment, episodic floods from tributaries provide the only supply to replace eroded sand; and much of this sand originates from a single tributary (Topping et al., 2000). Here, we present new evidence for the downstream translation of the sand component of these sediment inputs as discontinuous sand pulses. Improved understanding of the behaviour of these sand pulses may be used to adjust the timing, magnitude, and duration of controlled floods to maximize potential for deposition on sandbars in different segments of the 450 km-long Grand Canyon.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wagenbrenner, N. S.; Forthofer, J.; Gibson, C.; Lamb, B. K.
2017-12-01
Frequent strong gap winds were measured in a deep, steep, wildfire-prone river canyon of central Idaho, USA during July-September 2013. Analysis of archived surface pressure data indicate that the gap wind events were driven by regional scale surface pressure gradients. The events always occurred between 0400 and 1200 LT and typically lasted 3-4 hours. The timing makes these events particularly hazardous for wildland firefighting applications since the morning is typically a period of reduced fire activity and unsuspecting firefighters could be easily endangered by the onset of strong downcanyon winds. The gap wind events were not explicitly forecast by operational numerical weather prediction (NWP) models due to the small spatial scale of the canyon ( 1-2 km wide) compared to the horizontal resolution of operational NWP models (3 km or greater). Custom WRF simulations initialized with NARR data were run at 1 km horizontal resolution to assess whether higher resolution NWP could accurately simulate the observed gap winds. Here, we show that the 1 km WRF simulations captured many of the observed gap wind events, although the strength of the events was underpredicted. We also present evidence from these WRF simulations which suggests that the Salmon River Canyon is near the threshold of WRF-resolvable terrain features when the standard WRF coordinate system and discretization schemes are used. Finally, we show that the strength of the gap wind events can be predicted reasonably well as a function of the surface pressure gradient across the gap, which could be useful in the absence of high-resolution NWP. These are important findings for wildland firefighting applications in narrow gaps where routine forecasts may not provide warning for wind effects induced by high-resolution terrain features.
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Is there enough sand? Evaluating the fate of Grand Canyon sandbars
Wright, S.A.; Schmidt, J.C.; Meles, T.S.; Topping, D.J.; Rubin, D.M.
2008-01-01
Large dams have the potential to dramatically alter the flow regime, geomorphology, and aquatic ecosystem of downstream river reaches. Development of flow release regimes in order to meet multiple objectives is a challenge facing dam operators, resource managers, and scientists. Herein, we review previous work and present new analyses related to the effects of Glen Canyon Dam on the downstream reach of the Colorado River in Marble and Grand Canyons. The dam traps the entire incoming sediment load in Lake Powell and modulates the hydrologic regime by, for example, eliminating spring snowmelt floods, resulting in changes in the geomorphology of the river downstream. The primary geomorphic impact has been the erosion of sandbars along the banks of the river. Recognition of this impact has led to many scientific studies and a variety of experimental operations of Glen Canyon Dam with the goal of rebuilding the eroding sandbars. These efforts have thus far been generally unsuccessful and the question remains as to whether or not the dam can be operated such that sandbars can be rebuilt and maintained over extended periods with the existing sediment supply. We attempt to answer this question by evaluating a dam operation that may be considered a "best-case scenario" for rebuilding and maintaining eroded sandbars. Our analysis suggests that this best-case scenario may indeed have viability for rebuilding sandbars, and that the initial rate at which sandbars could be rebuilt is comparable to the rate at which sandbars have been eroded since dam construction. The question remains open as to the viability of operations that deviate from the best-case scenario that we have defined.
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Vernieu, William S.
2010-01-01
Under the direction of the Secretary of the Interior, the U.S. Geological Survey`s Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC) conducted a high-flow experiment (HFE) at Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) from March 4 through March 9, 2008. This experiment was conducted under enriched sediment conditions in the Colorado River within Grand Canyon and was designed to rebuild sandbars, aid endangered humpback chub (Gila cypha), and benefit various downstream resources, including rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), the aquatic food base, riparian vegetation, and archaeological sites. During the experiment, GCD discharge increased to a maximum of 1,160 m3/s and remained at that rate for 2.5 days by near-capacity operation of the hydroelectric powerplant at 736 m3/s, augmented by discharge from the river outlet works (ROW) at 424 m3/s. The ROW releases water from Lake Powell approximately 30 m below the powerplant penstock elevation and bypasses the powerplant turbines. During the HFE, the surface elevation of Lake Powell was reduced by 0.8 m. This report describes studies that were conducted before and after the experiment to determine the effects of the HFE on (1) the stratification in Lake Powell in the forebay immediately upstream of GCD and (2) the water quality of combined GCD releases and changes that occurred through the tailwater below the dam. The effects of the HFE to the water quality and stratigraphy in the water column of the GCD forebay and upstream locations in Lake Powell were minimal, compared to those during the beach/habitat-building flow experiment conducted in 1996, in which high releases of 1,273 m3/s were sustained for a 9-day period. However, during the 2008 HFE, there was evidence of increased advective transport of reservoir water at the penstock withdrawal depth and subsequent mixing of this withdrawal current with water above and below this depth. Reservoir hydrodynamics during the HFE period were largely being controlled by a winter inflow
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Multiyear Downstream Response to Dam Removal on the White Salmon River, WA
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wilcox, A. C.; O'Connor, J. E.; Major, J. J.
2017-12-01
The 2011 removal of the 38 m tall Condit Dam on the White Salmon River, Washington was one of the largest dam removals to date, in terms of both dam height and sediment release. We examined the multiyear geomorphic response to this event, through 2015, including in a bedrock-confined canyon and in a less-confined, backwater-influenced pool reach near the river's mouth, to the large, rapid influx of fine reservoir sediment produced by the breach and to subsequent sediment transfer in the free-flowing White Salmon River. In the canyon reach, aggraded sediments were rapidly eroded from riffles, returning them toward pre-breach bed elevations within weeks, but pool aggradation persisted for longer. The downstream, less-confined reach transformed from a deep pool to a narrower pool-riffle channel with alternate bars; multiyear observations showed persistence of bars and of this new and distinct morphology. This downstream reach marks a rare case in post-dam removal channel response; in most dam removals, channels have rapidly reverted toward pre-removal morphology, as in the canyon reach here. Comparison of the multiyear geomorphic evolution of the White Salmon River to other recent large dam removals in the U.S. allows evaluation of the relative influences of antecedent channel morphology, post-breach hydrology, and dam removal style, as well as providing a basis for predicting responses to future dam removals.
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128. COTTONWOOD CUT, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, SOUTH OF KIMBERLY, IDAHO; ...
128. COTTONWOOD CUT, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, SOUTH OF KIMBERLY, IDAHO; NORTH VIEW. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Evaluation of seepage and discharge uncertainty in the middle Snake River, southwestern Idaho
Wood, Molly S.; Williams, Marshall L.; Evetts, David M.; Vidmar, Peter J.
2014-01-01
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the State of Idaho, Idaho Power Company, and the Idaho Department of Water Resources, evaluated seasonal seepage gains and losses in selected reaches of the middle Snake River, Idaho, during November 2012 and July 2013, and uncertainty in measured and computed discharge at four Idaho Power Company streamgages. Results from this investigation will be used by resource managers in developing a protocol to calculate and report Adjusted Average Daily Flow at the Idaho Power Company streamgage on the Snake River below Swan Falls Dam, near Murphy, Idaho, which is the measurement point for distributing water to owners of hydropower and minimum flow water rights in the middle Snake River. The evaluated reaches of the Snake River were from King Hill to Murphy, Idaho, for the seepage studies and downstream of Lower Salmon Falls Dam to Murphy, Idaho, for evaluations of discharge uncertainty. Computed seepage was greater than cumulative measurement uncertainty for subreaches along the middle Snake River during November 2012, the non-irrigation season, but not during July 2013, the irrigation season. During the November 2012 seepage study, the subreach between King Hill and C J Strike Dam had a meaningful (greater than cumulative measurement uncertainty) seepage gain of 415 cubic feet per second (ft3/s), and the subreach between Loveridge Bridge and C J Strike Dam had a meaningful seepage gain of 217 ft3/s. The meaningful seepage gain measured in the November 2012 seepage study was expected on the basis of several small seeps and springs present along the subreach, regional groundwater table contour maps, and results of regional groundwater flow model simulations. Computed seepage along the subreach from C J Strike Dam to Murphy was less than cumulative measurement uncertainty during November 2012 and July 2013; therefore, seepage cannot be quantified with certainty along this subreach. For the uncertainty evaluation, average
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107. MURTAUGH LAKE, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, SOUTH OF MURTAUGH, IDAHO; ...
107. MURTAUGH LAKE, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, SOUTH OF MURTAUGH, IDAHO; WEST VIEW OF LAKE. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Debris flow deposition and reworking by the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, Arizona
Yanites, Brian J.; Webb, Robert H.; Griffiths, Peter G.; Magirl, Christopher S.
2006-01-01
Flow regulation by large dams affects downstream flow competence and channel maintenance. Debris flows from 740 tributaries in Grand Canyon, Arizona, transport coarse‐grained sediment onto debris fans adjacent to the Colorado River. These debris fans constrict the river to form rapids and are reworked during river flows that entrain particles and transport them downstream. Beginning in 1963, flood control operations of Glen Canyon Dam limited the potential for reworking of aggraded debris fans. We analyzed change in debris fans at the mouths of 75‐Mile and Monument Creeks using photogrammetry of aerial photography taken from 1965 to 2000 and supplemented with ground surveys performed from 1987 to 2005. Our results quantify the debris fan aggradation that resulted from debris flows from 1984 to 2003. Volume, area, and river constriction increased at both debris fans. Profiles of the two debris fans show that net aggradation occurred in the middle of debris fans at stages above maximum dam releases, and surface shape shifted from concave to convex. Dam releases above power plant capacity partially reworked both debris fans, although reworking removed much less sediment than what was added by debris flow deposition. Large dam releases would be required to create additional reworking to limit the rate of debris fan aggradation in Grand Canyon.
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105. MURTAUGH LAKE, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, SOUTH OF MURTAUGH, IDAHO; ...
105. MURTAUGH LAKE, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, SOUTH OF MURTAUGH, IDAHO; NORTHWEST VIEW OF LAKE AND HEADGATES. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Assessment of Native Salmonids Above Hells Canyon Dam, Idaho, 2001 Annual Report.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Meyer, Kevin A.; Lamansky, Jr., James A.
We investigated factors affecting the distribution and abundance of Yellowstone cutthroat trout (YCT), the abundance of all trout, and species richness in several drainages in the upper Snake River basin in Idaho. A total of 326 randomly selected sites were visited within the four study drainages, and of these, there was sufficient water to inventory fish and habitat in 56 of the sites in the Goose Creek drainage, 64 in the Raft River drainage, 54 in the Blackfoot River drainage, and 27 in the Willow Creek drainage. Fish were captured in 36, 55, 49, and 22 of the sites, respectively,more » and YCT were present at 17, 37, 32, and 13 of the sites, respectively. There was little consistency or strength in the models developed to predict YCT presence/absence and density, trout density, or species richness. Typically, the strongest models had the lowest sample sizes. In the Goose Creek drainage, sites with YCT were higher in elevation and lower in conductivity. In the Raft River drainage, trout cover was more abundant at sites with YCT than without YCT. In the Blackfoot River drainage, there was less fine substrate and more gravel substrate at sites with YCT than at sites without YCT. In the Willow Creek drainage, 70% of the sites located on public land contained YCT, but only 35% of private land contained YCT. The differences in variable importance between drainages suggests that factors that influence the distribution of YCT vary between drainages, and that for the most part the variables we measured had little influence on YCT distribution. n sites containing YCT, average cutthroat trout density was 0.11/m{sup 2}, 0.08/m{sup 2}, 0.10/m{sup 2}, and 0.08/m{sup 2} in the Goose Creek, Raft River, Blackfoot River, and Willow Creek drainages, respectively. In sites containing trout in general, average total trout density in these same drainages was 0.16/m{sup 2}, 0.15/m{sup 2}, 0.10/m{sup 2}, and 0.10/m{sup 2}. Models to predict YCT density, total trout density, and
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National Program of Inspection of Non-Federal Dams.
1982-05-01
actions to improve the .;,.fety of Federal dams . 3 B. PROGRAM REVITALIZATION Subsequent to the failure of the Teton Dam , near Newdale, Idaho, in June...development of hydrostatic heads sufficient to create in the area downstream of the dam sand boils that erode materials by the phenomenon known as " piping " and...Eh irmmhhhommlm mhhhhmmmmhhlo US Arm op National Program of Inspection of Non-Federal Dams Final Report to Congress The National Dam Inspection Act of
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-08-23
... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Project No. 12429-007] Clark Canyon... b. Project No.: 12429-007. c. Date Filed: May 31, 2012. d. Applicant: Clark Canyon Hydro, LLC . e. Name of Project: Clark Canyon Dam Hydroelectric Project. f. Location: When constructed, the project...
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State-and-transition prototype model of riparian vegetation downstream of Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona
Ralston, Barbara E.; Starfield, Anthony M.; Black, Ronald S.; Van Lonkhuyzen, Robert A.
2014-01-01
Facing an altered riparian plant community dominated by nonnative species, resource managers are increasingly interested in understanding how to manage and promote healthy riparian habitats in which native species dominate. For regulated rivers, managing flows is one tool resource managers consider to achieve these goals. Among many factors that can influence riparian community composition, hydrology is a primary forcing variable. Frame-based models, used successfully in grassland systems, provide an opportunity for stakeholders concerned with riparian systems to evaluate potential riparian vegetation responses to alternative flows. Frame-based, state-and-transition models of riparian vegetation for reattachment bars, separation bars, and the channel margin found on the Colorado River downstream of Glen Canyon Dam were constructed using information from the literature. Frame-based models can be simple spreadsheet models (created in Microsoft® Excel) or developed further with programming languages (for example, C-sharp). The models described here include seven community states and five dam operations that cause transitions between states. Each model divides operations into growing (April–September) and non-growing seasons (October–March) and incorporates upper and lower bar models, using stage elevation as a division. The inputs (operations) can be used by stakeholders to evaluate flows that may promote dynamic riparian vegetation states, or identify those flow options that may promote less desirable states (for example, Tamarisk [Tamarix sp.] temporarily flooded shrubland). This prototype model, although simple, can still elicit discussion about operational options and vegetation response.
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Grand Canyon riverbed sediment changes, experimental release of September 2000 - a sample data set
Wong, Florence L.; Anima, Roberto J.; Galanis, Peter; Codianne, Jennifer; Xia, Yu; Bucciarelli, Randy; Hamer, Michael
2003-01-01
An experimental water release from the Glen Canyon Dam into the Colorado River above Grand Canyon was conducted in September 2000 by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted sidescan sonar surveys between Glen Canyon Dam (mile -15) and Diamond Creek (mile 220), Arizona (mile designations after Stevens, 1998) to determine the sediment characteristics of the Colorado River bed before and after the release. The first survey (R3-00-GC, 28 Aug to 5 Sep 2000) was conducted before the release when the river was at its Low Summer Steady Flow (LSSF) of 8,000 cfs. The second survey (R4-00-GC, 10 to 18 Sep 2000) was conducted immediately after the September 2000 experimental release when the average daily flow was as high as 30,800 cfs as measured below Glen Canyon Dam (Figure 2). Riverbed sediment properties interpreted from the sidescan sonar images include sediment type and sandwaves; overall changes in these properties between the two surveys were calculated. Sidescan sonar data from the USGS surveys were processed for segments of the Colorado River from Glen Canyon Dam (mile -15) to Phantom Ranch (mile 87.7, Figure 3). The surveys targeted pools between rapids that are part of the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC http://www.gcmrc.gov/) physical sciences study. Maps interpreted from the sidescan sonar images show the distribution of sediment types (bedrock, boulders, pebbles or cobbles, and sand) and the extent of sandwaves for each of the pre- and post-flow surveys. The changes between the two surveys were calculated with spatial arithmetric and had properties of fining, coarsening, erosion, deposition, and the appearance or disappearance of sandwaves.
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Rosi-Marshall, Emma J.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Kincaid, Dustin W.; Cross, Wyatt F.; Kelly, Holly A.W.; Behn, Kathrine A.; White, Tyler; Hall, Robert O.; Baxter, Colden V.
2010-01-01
Glen Canyon Dam has dramatically altered the physical environment (especially discharge regime, water temperatures, and sediment inputs) of the Colorado River. High-flow experiments (HFE) that mimic one aspect of the natural hydrograph (floods) were implemented in 1996, 2004, and 2008. The primary goal of these experiments was to increase the size and total area of sandbar habitats that provide both camping sites for recreational users and create backwaters (areas of stagnant flow in the lee of return-current eddies) that may be important as rearing habitat for native fish. Experimental flows might also positively or negatively alter the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) sport fishery in the clear tailwater reach below Glen Canyon Dam, Ariz., and native fish populations in downstream reaches (for example, endangered humpback chub, Gila cypha) through changes in available food resources. We examined the short-term response of benthic macroinvertebrates to the March 2008 HFE at three sites [river mile 0 (RM 0, 15.7 miles downriver from the dam), RM 62, and RM 225] along the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam by sampling immediately before and then 1, 7, 14, and 30 days after the HFE. We selected these sites because of their importance to management; RM 0 has a valuable trout fishery, and RM 62 is the location of the largest population of the endangered humpback chub in the Grand Canyon. In addition to the short-term collection of samples, as part of parallel investigations, we collected 3 years of monthly (quarterly for RM 62) benthic macroinvertebrate samples that included 15 months of post-HFE data for all three sites, but processing of the samples is only complete for one site (RM 0). At RM 0, the HFE caused an immediate 1.75 g AFDM/m2 (expressed as grams ash-free dry mass, or AFDM) reduction of macroinvertebrate biomass that was driven by significant reductions in the biomass of the two dominant taxa in this reach-Potamopyrgus antipodarum (New
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Bridge 232, view looking east in Rock Creek Canyon at ...
Bridge 23-2, view looking east in Rock Creek Canyon at Milepost 23.23 - Camas Prairie Railroad, Second Subdivision, From Spalding in Nez Perce County, through Lewis County, to Grangeville in Idaho County, Spalding, Nez Perce County, ID
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Geologic map of the Glen Canyon Dam 30’ x 60’ quadrangle, Coconino County, northern Arizona
Billingsley, George H.; Priest, Susan S.
2013-01-01
The Glen Canyon Dam 30’ x 60’ quadrangle is characterized by nearly flat lying to gently dipping Paleozoic and Mesozoic sedimentary strata that overlie tilted Proterozoic strata or metasedimentary and igneous rocks similar to those exposed at the bottom of Grand Canyon southwest of the quadrangle. Mississippian to Permian rocks are exposed in the walls of Marble Canyon; Permian strata and minor outcrops of Triassic strata form the surface bedrock of House Rock Valley and Marble Plateau, southwestern quarter of the quadrangle. The Paleozoic strata exposed in Marble Canyon and Grand Canyon south of the map are likely present in the subsurface of the entire quadrangle but with unknown facies and thickness changes. The Mesozoic sedimentary rocks exposed along the Vermilion and Echo Cliffs once covered the entire quadrangle, but Cenozoic erosion has removed most of these rocks from House Rock Valley and Marble Plateau areas. Mesozoic strata remain over much of the northern and eastern portions of the quadrangle where resistant Jurassic sandstone units form prominent cliffs, escarpments, mesas, buttes, and much of the surface bedrock of the Paria, Kaibito, and Rainbow Plateaus. Jurassic rocks in the northeastern part of quadrangle are cut by a sub-Cretaceous regional unconformity that bevels the Entrada Sandstone and Morrison Formation from Cummings Mesa southward to White Mesa near Kaibito. Quaternary deposits, mainly eolian, mantle much of the Paria, Kaibito, and Rainbow Plateaus in the northern and northeastern portion of the quadrangle. Alluvial deposits are widely distributed over parts of House Rock Valley and Marble Plateau in the southwest quarter of the quadrangle. The east-dipping strata of the Echo Cliffs Monocline forms a general north-south structural boundary through the central part of the quadrangle, separating Marble and Paria Plateaus west of the monocline from the Kaibito Plateau east of the monocline. The Echo Cliffs Monocline continues north of
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Geology and geomorphology of the Lower Deschutes River Canyon, Oregon.
Robin A. Beebee; Jim E. O' Connor; Gordon E. Grant
2002-01-01
This field guide is designed for geologists floating the approximately 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the Deschutes River from the Pelton-Round Butte Dam Complex west of Madras to Maupin, Oregon. The first section of the guide is a geologic timeline tracing the formation of the units that compose the canyon walls and the incision of the present canyon. The second section...
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O'Connor, James E.; Duda, Jeff J.; Grant, Gordon E.
2015-01-01
Forty years ago, the demolition of large dams was mostly fiction, notably plotted in Edward Abbey's novel The Monkey Wrench Gang. Its 1975 publication roughly coincided with the end of large-dam construction in the United States. Since then, dams have been taken down in increasing numbers as they have filled with sediment, become unsafe or inefficient, or otherwise outlived their usefulness (1) (see the figure, panel A). Last year's removals of the 64-m-high Glines Canyon Dam and the 32-m-high Elwha Dam in northwestern Washington State were among the largest yet, releasing over 10 million cubic meters of stored sediment. Published studies conducted in conjunction with about 100 U.S. dam removals and at least 26 removals outside the United States are now providing detailed insights into how rivers respond (2, 3).
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Rodney Hunt supplies gates to Idaho Power's Swan Falls
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Not Available
1993-02-01
Rodney Hunt Co. shipped two 30-foot by 28-foot fabricated steel roller gates to Idaho Power Co.'s Swan Falls Dam Project, where they will be installed as draft tube gates. Rodney Hunt said the gates, each weighing approximately 55 tons, are the largest roller gates the company has manufactured. The company supplied the gates under the terms of a contract worth more than $500,000. The gates were ordered as part of Idaho Power's rehabilitation of Swan Falls Dam, which will double the power plant's capacity to 25 MW. New units will begin producing power in 1993, and the project will bemore » completed in 1994. Elsewhere on the Snake River, Idaho Power intends to increase the capacity of its Twin Falls project to 52 MW from 10 MW. Construction is scheduled to start in June 1993.« less
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-03-21
... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Project No. 12429-009] Clark Canyon...: 12429-009. c. Date Filed: January 28, 2013. d. Applicant: Northwest Power Services on behalf of Clark Canyon Hydro, LLC. e. Name of Project: Clark Canyon Dam Hydroelectric Project. f. Location: The Clark...
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A view over Rock Creek Canyon off Bridge 232 looking ...
A view over Rock Creek Canyon off Bridge 23-2 looking north at Milepost 23.26 - Camas Prairie Railroad, Second Subdivision, From Spalding in Nez Perce County, through Lewis County, to Grangeville in Idaho County, Spalding, Nez Perce County, ID
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122. MCMULLEN CREEK, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, SOUTH OF KIMBERLY, IDAHO; ...
122. MCMULLEN CREEK, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, SOUTH OF KIMBERLY, IDAHO; INLET SIDE OF THE CREEK, ENTRANCE INTO THE HIGH LINE CANAL, SOUTH VIEW. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Colorado River campsite monitoring, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 1998-2012
Kaplinski, Matt; Hazel, Joe; Parnell, Rod; Hadley, Daniel R.; Grams, Paul
2014-01-01
River rafting trips and hikers use sandbars along the Colorado River in Marble and Grand Canyons as campsites. The U.S. Geological Survey evaluated the effects of Glen Canyon Dam operations on campsite areas on sandbars along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park. Campsite area was measured annually from 1998 to 2012 at 37 study sites between Lees Ferry and Diamond Creek, Arizona. The primary purpose of this report is to present the methods and results of the project. Campsite area surveys were conducted using total station survey methods to outline the perimeter of camping area at each study site. Campsite area is defined as any region of smooth substrate (most commonly sand) with no more than an 8 degree slope and little or no vegetation. We used this definition, but relaxed the slope criteria to include steeper areas near boat mooring locations where campers typically establish their kitchens. The results show that campsite area decreased over the course of the study period, but at a rate that varied by elevation zone and by survey period. Time-series plots show that from 1998 to 2012, high stage-elevation (greater than the 25,000 ft3/s stage-elevation) campsite area decreased significantly, although there was no significant trend in low stage-elevation (15,000–20,000 ft3/s) campsite area. High stage-elevation campsite area increased after the 2004 and 2008 high flows, but decreased in the intervals between high flows. Although no overall trend was detected for low stage-elevation campsite areas, they did increase after high-volume dam releases equal to or greater than about 20,000 ft3/s. We conclude that dam operations have not met the management objectives of the Glen Canyon Adaptive Management program to increase the size of camping beaches in critical and non-critical reaches of the Colorado River between Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Mead.
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Korman, Josh; Martell, Steven J.D.; Walters, Carl J.; Makinster, Andrew S.; Coggins, Lewis G.; Yard, Michael D.; Persons, William R.
2012-01-01
We used an integrated assessment model to examine effects of flow from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, USA, on recruitment of nonnative rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in the Colorado River and to estimate downstream migration from Glen Canyon to Marble Canyon, a reach used by endangered native fish. Over a 20-year period, recruitment of rainbow trout in Glen Canyon increased with the annual flow volume and when hourly flow variation was reduced and after two of three controlled floods. The model predicted that approximately 16 000 trout·year–1 emigrated to Marble Canyon and that the majority of trout in this reach originate from Glen Canyon. For most models that were examined, over 70% of the variation in emigration rates was explained by variation in recruitment in Glen Canyon, suggesting that flow from the dam controls in large part the extent of potential negative interactions between rainbow trout and native fish. Controlled floods and steadier flows, which were originally aimed at partially restoring conditions before the dam (greater native fish abundance and larger sand bars), appear to have been more beneficial to nonnative rainbow trout than to native fish.
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Magoulas, V. E.
Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) was requested to evaluate the potential to receive and process the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) uranium (U) recovered from the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II) driver fuel through the Savannah River Site’s (SRS) H-Canyon as a way to disposition the material. INL recovers the uranium from the sodium bonded metallic fuel irradiated in the EBR-II reactor using an electrorefining process. There were two compositions of EBR-II driver fuel. The early generation fuel was U-5Fs, which consisted of 95% U metal alloyed with 5% noble metal elements “fissium” (2.5% molybdenum, 2.0% ruthenium, 0.3% rhodium, 0.1% palladium,more » and 0.1% zirconium), while the later generation was U-10Zr which was 90% U metal alloyed with 10% zirconium. A potential concern during the H-Canyon nitric acid dissolution process of the U metal containing zirconium (Zr) is the explosive behavior that has been reported for alloys of these materials. For this reason, this evaluation was focused on the ability to process the lower Zr content materials, the U-5Fs material.« less
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22. TWIN FALLS MAIN CANAL HEADWORKS WITH MILNER DAM IN ...
22. TWIN FALLS MAIN CANAL HEADWORKS WITH MILNER DAM IN DISTANCE; LOOKING EAST. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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23. TWIN FALLS MAIN CANAL HEADWORKS WITH MILNER DAM IN ...
23. TWIN FALLS MAIN CANAL HEADWORKS WITH MILNER DAM IN DISTANCE; LOOKING NORTHEAST. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Crow, R. S.; Karlstrom, K. E.; McIntosh, W. C.; Dunbar, N. W.; Peters, L.; Raucci, J.; Umhoefer, P. J.
2005-12-01
In western Grand Canyon, basalts flowed into the already existing canyon from at least 719 ka to present. These basalts provide a key for deciphering Quaternary rates of incision, neotectonic slip rates on the Toroweap and Hurricane faults, and the history of lava dams. Stratigraphy and/or inset relationships between basalt flows is exceedingly complex because of the multiple eruptions, extreme topography, long transport distance, and incomplete preservation. Correlation of flows using 40Ar/39Ar dating, LIDAR data, orthophotography, and geochemical analysis, as well as structural and geomorphic studies, lead to a working hypothesis for four major episodes of basaltic eruptive activity. From 719 to 484 Ma major volcanoes erupted near the Toroweap fault zone. The extent of the remnants and presence of 527 ka dikes indicates that cones where built within Grand Canyon during this phase. These flows had the longest outflow (719 ka flow at mile 246). At 349 to 296 ka flows seem to have entered the canyon at Whitmore Wash, north rim. The two remaining episodes, dated at 199-193 ka and 109-97 ka are interpreted to have cascaded into the canyon at and upstream from Whitmore Wash. LIDAR/orthophotography interpretation of the tops and bottoms of the flows and geochemical analysis of phenocrysts aid in correlation of undated remnants and reconstructing the shape of volcanic edifices. Flows dated from 720-450 ka include Prospect, Black Ledge, D-Dam, and Toroweap flows, thus Black Ledge flows are considerably older than previously thought. The 350 to 300 flows include Whitmore, Layered Diabase, Massive Diabase, and 177-mile flows. All the dated 200 and 100 ka flows have been called Grey Ledge flows, suggesting that the Grey Ledge represents two distinct events. Basalt data indicate an interaction of canyon incision and Quaternary fault slip. Bedrock incision rates are calculated using dated flows that overly bedrock straths. Rates vary across active faults indicating fault
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Grams, Paul E.; Buscombe, Daniel D.; Topping, David J.; Hazel, Joseph E.; Kaplinski, Matt
2015-01-01
The magnitude and pfattern of streamflow and sediment supply of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon (Figure 1) has been affected by the existence and operations of Glen Canyon Dam since filling of Lake Powell Reservoir began in March 1963. In the subsequent 30 years, fine sediment was scoured from the downstream channel (Topping et al., 2000; Grams et al., 2007), resulting in a decline in the number and size of sandbars in the eastern half of Grand Canyon National Park (Wright et al., 2005; Schmidt et al., 2004). The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP) administered by the U.S. Department of Interior oversees efforts to manage the Colorado River ecosystem downstream from Glen Canyon Dam. One of the goals of the GCDAMP is to maintain and increase the number and size of sandbars in this context of a limited sand supply. Management actions to benefit sandbars have included curtailment of daily streamflow fluctuations, which occur for hydropower generation, and implementation of controlled floods, also called high-flow experiments.Studies of controlled floods, defined as intentional releases that exceed the maximum discharge capacity of the Glen Canyon Dam powerplant, implemented between 1996 and 2008, have demonstrated that these events cause increases in sandbar size throughout Marble and Grand Canyons (Hazel et al., 2010; Schmidt and Grams, 2011; Mueller et al., 2014), although the magnitude of response is spatially variable (Hazel et al., 1999; 2010). Controlled floods may build some sandbars at the expense of erosion of sand from other, upstream, sandbars (Schmidt, 1999). To increase the frequency and effectiveness of sandbar building, the U.S. Department of Interior adopted a “high-flow experimental protocol” to implement controlled floods regularly under conditions of enriched sand supply (U.S. Department of Interior, 2012). Because the supply of sand available to build sandbars has been substantially reduced by Glen Canyon Dam (Topping et al
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2. SNAKE RIVER VALLEY IRRIGATION DISTRICT DAM, PHOTOGRAPHIC COPY OF ...
2. SNAKE RIVER VALLEY IRRIGATION DISTRICT DAM, PHOTOGRAPHIC COPY OF DRAWING, PLAN, SHEET 5 OF 5, 1924 (on file at the Idaho State Office of Water Resources, Boise, Idaho) - Snake River Valley Irrigation District, East Side of Snake River (River Mile 796), Shelley, Bingham County, ID
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Late Pleistocene landslide-dammed lakes along the Rio Grande, White Rock Canyon, New Mexico
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Reneau, S.L.; Dethier, D.P.
1996-11-01
Massive slump complexes composed of Pliocene basaltic rocks and underlying Miocene and Pliocene sediments flank the Rio Grande along 16 km of northern White Rock Canyon, New Mexico. The toe area of at least one slump complex was active in the late Pleistocene, damming the Rio Grande at least four times during the period from 18 to 12 {sup 14}C ka and impounding lakes that extended 10-20 km upriver. Stratigraphic relationships and radiocarbon age constraints indicate that three separate lakes formed between 13.7 and 12.4 {sup 14}C ka. The age and dimensions of the ca. 12.4 ka lake are bestmore » constrained; it had an estimated maximum depth of {approx}30 m, a length of {approx}13 km, a surface area of {approx}2.7 km{sup 2}, and an initial volume of {approx}2.5 x 10{sup 7} m{sup 3}. The youngest landslide-dammed lakes formed during a period of significantly wetter regional climate, strongly suggesting that climate changes were responsible for reactivation of the slump complexes. We are not certain about the exact triggering mechanisms for these landslides, but they probably involved removal of lateral support due to erosion of the slope base by the Rio Grande during periods of exceptionally high flood discharge or rapid incision; increased pore pressures associated with higher water tables; higher seepage forces at sites of ground-water discharge; or some combination of these processes. Seismic shaking could also have contributed to triggering of some of the landslides, particularly if aided by wet antecedent conditions. 54 refs., 19 figs., 3 tabs.« less
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3. VIEW OF DIABLO CANYON LOOKING DOWNSTREAM FROM THE VALVE ...
3. VIEW OF DIABLO CANYON LOOKING DOWNSTREAM FROM THE VALVE HOUSE AT ELEVATION 1044, 1989. - Skagit Power Development, Diablo Dam, On Skagit River, 6.9 miles upstream from Newhalem, Newhalem, Whatcom County, WA
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Collins, Brian D.; Corbett, Skye C.; Sankey, Joel B.; Fairley, Helen C.
2014-01-01
Along the Colorado River corridor between Glen Canyon Dam and Lees Ferry, Arizona, located some 25 km downstream from the dam, archaeological sites dating from 8,000 years before present through the modern era are located within and on top of fluvial and alluvial terraces of the prehistorically undammed river. These terraces are known to have undergone significant erosion and retreat since emplacement of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963. Land managers and policy makers associated with managing the flow of the Colorado River are interested in understanding how the operations of Glen Canyon Dam have affected the archeological sites associated with these terraces and how dam-controlled flows currently interact with other landscape-shaping processes. In 2012, the U.S. Geological Survey initiated a research project in Glen Canyon to study the types and causes of erosion of the terraces. This report provides the first step towards this understanding by presenting comparative analyses on several types of high-resolution topographic data (airborne lidar, terrestrial lidar, and airborne photogrammetry) that can be used in the future to document and analyze changes to terrace-based archaeological sites. Herein, we present topographic and geomorphologic data of four archaeological sites within a 14 km segment of Glen Canyon using each of the three data sources. In addition to comparing each method’s suitability for adequately representing the topography of the sites, we also analyze the data within each site’s context and describe the geomorphological processes responsible for erosion. Our results show that each method has its own strengths and weaknesses, and that terrestrial and airborne lidar are essentially interchangeable for many important topographic characterization and monitoring purposes. However, whereas terrestrial lidar provides enhanced capacity for feature recognition and gully morphology delineation, airborne methods (whether by way of laser or optical sensors) are
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View of the Colorado River Canyon form the Nevada side ...
View of the Colorado River Canyon form the Nevada side showing the Nevada rim towers and portions of US 93, view south - Hoover Dam, Spanning Colorado River at Route 93, Boulder City, Clark County, NV
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View of Nevada side of Colorado River Canyon showing US ...
View of Nevada side of Colorado River Canyon showing US 93 in foreground, transmission towers and static towers in background, view west - Hoover Dam, Spanning Colorado River at Route 93, Boulder City, Clark County, NV
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Hart, R.J.; Sherman, K.M.
1996-01-01
The physical and chemical characteristics of Lake Powell have a direct effect on the quality of water below Glen Canyon Dam. Understanding the physical and chemical characteristics of the lake and outflows from the dam is essential in order to effectively manage the operation of the dam. During August 1990 to September 1991, physical and chemical measurements were made and water samples were collected in the forebay of Lake Powell and at the outflows (draft tubes) of Glen Canyon Dam to document the physical and chemical characteristics of water entering the Colorado River. A persistent chemocline in the forebay of Lake Powell fluctuated seasonally during the study. Thermal stratification began in mid-April and persisted into late October. Spatial variation of specific conductance, pH, water temperature, and dissolved-oxygen concentration in the forebay was negligible. Sodium and sulfate were the dominant ions. Major ions, nutrients, and metals generally increased in concentration with depth in the forebay. Concentrations of dissolved nitrogen (as nitrite plus nitrate) in the forebay ranged from less than 0.02 to 0.58 milligrams per liter. Strontium and lithium were the most abundant metals. Dissolved organic carbon ranged from about 2.6 to 4.9 milligrams per. liter with larger concentrations generally occurring in the epilimnion. No diel variations of chemical constituents were observed. Vertical-attenuation coefficients of light penetration in the forebay ranged from 0.058 to 0.080 microeinsteins per meter squared per second, and the euphotic depth ranged from about 82 to 113 feet. Generally, the physical and chemical characteristics of outflows through the draft tubes of Glen Canyon Dam were similar to the physical and chemical characteristics of the water at penstock depth and deeper depths. Specific conductance ranged from 803 to 1,090 microsiemens per centimeter, and pH values ranged from about 7.2 to 8.0. Water temperatures measured in the outflows ranged
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Side-scan sonar imaging of the Colorado River, Grand Canyon
Anima, Roberto; Wong, Florence L.; Hogg, David; Galanis, Peter
2007-01-01
This paper presents data collection methods and side-scan sonar data collected along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon in August and September of 2000. The purpose of the data collection effort was to image the distribution of sand between Glen Canyon Dam and river mile 87.4 before and after the 31,600 cfs flow of September 6-8. The side-scan sonar imaging focused on pools between rapids but included smaller rapids where possible.
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View of Nevada side of Colorado River Canyon showing US ...
View of Nevada side of Colorado River Canyon showing US 93, Visitor Center parking lot, transmission lines, and static towers in background, view west - Hoover Dam, Spanning Colorado River at Route 93, Boulder City, Clark County, NV
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View of Nevada side of Colorado River Canyon taken from ...
View of Nevada side of Colorado River Canyon taken from Lower Portal Road looking up towards area where new bridge will be located, view northwest - Hoover Dam, Spanning Colorado River at Route 93, Boulder City, Clark County, NV
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View of Arizona side of Colorado River Canyon taken from ...
View of Arizona side of Colorado River Canyon taken from Lower Portal Road looking up towards area where new bridge will be located, view northeast - Hoover Dam, Spanning Colorado River at Route 93, Boulder City, Clark County, NV
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Little Goose Lock and Dam Removable Spillway Weir
2007-08-01
Washington , Idaho Little Goose o i Lower w t i e s LIeG Harbor Granite BonnevilleW L••oh Dma•= SDam John Day S’°~Lwer1 Monumental __ •_]McNary Dam le Dam...passage route for 115 kcfs. 18 NG-1 1 Assemble at Little Goose or Lewiston rather than Portland 19 NG-12 Lower the pool elevation during construction to
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Ralston, Barbara E.
2010-01-01
Riparian plant communities exhibit various levels of diversity and richness. These communities are affected by flooding and are vulnerable to colonization by nonnative species. Since 1996, a series of three high-flow experiments (HFE), or water releases designed to mimic natural seasonal flooding, have been conducted at Glen Canyon Dam, Ariz., primarily to determine the effectiveness of using high flows to conserve sediment, a limited resource. These experiments also provide opportunities to examine the susceptibility of riparian plant communities to nonnative species invasions. The third and most recent HFE was conducted from March 5 to 9, 2008, and scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey's Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center examined the effects of high flows on riparian vegetation as part of the overall experiment. Total plant species richness, nonnative species richness, percent plant cover, percent organic matter, and total carbon measured from sediment samples were compared for Grand Canyon riparian vegetation zones immediately following the HFE and 6 months later. These comparisons were used to determine if susceptibility to nonnative species establishment varied among riparian vegetation zones and if the timing of the HFE affected nonnative plant establishment success. The 2008 HFE primarily buried vegetation rather than scouring it. Percent nonnative cover did not differ among riparian vegetation zones; however, in the river corridor affected by Glen Canyon Dam operations, nonnative species richness showed significant variation. For example, species richness was significantly greater immediately after and 6 months following the HFE in the hydrologic zone farthest away from the shoreline, the area that represents the oldest riparian zone within the post-dam riparian area. In areas closer to the river channel, tamarisk (Tamarix ramosissima X chinensis) seedling establishment occurred (<2 percent cover) in 2008 but not to the extent reported in
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Rocklage, Stephen J.; Kellar, Dale S.
2005-07-01
The Nez Perce Tribe, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, conducted monitoring and evaluation studies on Lyons Ferry Hatchery reared yearling fall Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha that were acclimated and released at three Fall Chinook Acclimation Project (FCAP) sites upstream of Lower Granite Dam along with yearlings released on-station from Lyons Ferry Hatchery in 1999. This was the fourth year of a long-term project to supplement natural spawning populations of Snake River stock fall Chinook salmon upstream of Lower Granite Dam. The 453,117 yearlings released from the Fall Chinook Acclimationmore » Project facilities not only slightly exceeded the 450,000 fish quota, but a second release of 76,386 yearlings (hereafter called Surplus) were acclimated at the Big Canyon facility and released about two weeks after the primary releases. We use Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag technology to monitor the primary performance measures of survival to mainstem dams and migration timing. We also monitor size, condition and tag/mark retention at release. We released 9,941 PIT tagged yearlings from Pittsburg Landing, 9,583 from Big Canyon, 2,511 Big Canyon Surplus and 2,494 from Captain John Rapids. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife released 983 PIT tagged yearlings from Lyons Ferry Hatchery. Fish health sampling indicated that, overall, bacterial kidney disease levels could be considered relatively low and did not appear to increase after transport to the acclimation facilities. Compared to prior years, Quantitative Health Assessment Indices were relatively low at Pittsburg Landing and Lyons Ferry Hatchery and relatively high at Big Canyon and Captain John Rapids. Mean fork lengths (95% confidence interval) of the release groups ranged from 147.4 mm (146.7-148.1 mm) at Captain John Rapids to 163.7 mm (163.3-164.1 mm) at Pittsburg Landing. Mean condition factors ranged from 1.04 at
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Brown, K. M.; Fritzinger, C.; Wharton, E.
2004-12-01
The Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center measures the effects of Glen Canyon Dam operations on the resources along the Colorado River from Glen Canyon Dam to Lake Mead in support of the Grand Canyon Adaptive Management Program. Control points are integral for geo-referencing the myriad of data collected in the Grand Canyon including aerial photography, topographic and bathymetric data used for classification and change-detection analysis of physical, biologic and cultural resources. The survey department has compiled a list of 870 control points installed by various organizations needing to establish a consistent reference for data collected at field sites along the 240 mile stretch of Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. This list is the foundation for the Control Point Database established primarily for researchers, to locate control points and independently geo-reference collected field data. The database has the potential to be a valuable mapping tool for assisting researchers to easily locate a control point and reduce the occurrance of unknowingly installing new control points within close proximity of an existing control point. The database is missing photographs and accurate site description information. Current site descriptions do not accurately define the location of the point but refer to the project that used the point, or some other interesting fact associated with the point. The Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC) resolved this problem by turning the data collection effort into an educational exercise for the participants of the Grand Canyon Youth organization. Grand Canyon Youth is a non-profit organization providing experiential education for middle and high school aged youth. GCMRC and the Grand Canyon Youth formed a partnership where GCMRC provided the logistical support, equipment, and training to conduct the field work, and the Grand Canyon Youth provided the time and personnel to complete the field work. Two data
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Grand Canyon Humpback Chub Population Improving
Andersen, Matthew E.
2007-01-01
The humpback chub (Gila cypha) is a long-lived, freshwater fish found only in the Colorado River Basin. Physical adaptations-large adult body size, large predorsal hump, and small eyes-appear to have helped humpback chub evolve in the historically turbulent Colorado River. A variety of factors, including habitat alterations and the introduction of nonnative fishes, likely prompted the decline of native Colorado River fishes. Declining numbers propelled the humpback chub onto the Federal list of endangered species in 1967, and the species is today protected under the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Only six populations of humpback chub are currently known to exist, five in the Colorado River Basin above Lees Ferry, Ariz., and one in Grand Canyon, Ariz. The U.S. Geological Survey's Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center oversees monitoring and research activities for the Grand Canyon population under the auspices of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP). Analysis of data collected through 2006 suggests that the number of adult (age 4+ years) humpback chub in Grand Canyon increased to approximately 6,000 fish in 2006, following an approximate 40-50 percent decline between 1989 and 2001. Increasing numbers of adult fish appear to be the result of steadily increasing numbers of juvenile fish reaching adulthood beginning in the mid- to late-1990s and continuing through at least 2002.
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Melis, Theodore S.; Pine, William E.; Korman, Josh; Yard, Michael D.; Jain, Shaleen; Pulwarty, Roger S.; Miller, Kathleen; Hamlet, Alan F.; Kenney, Douglas S.; Redmond, Kelly T.
2016-01-01
Adaptive management of Glen Canyon Dam is improving downstream resources of the Colorado River in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park. The Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (AMP), a federal advisory committee of 25 members with diverse special interests tasked to advise the U.S. Department of the Interior), was established in 1997 in response to the 1992 Grand Canyon Protection Act. Adaptive management assumes that ecosystem responses to management policies are inherently complex and unpredictable, but that understanding and management can be improved through monitoring. Best known for its high-flow experiments intended to benefit physical and biological resources by simulating one aspect of pre-dam conditions—floods, the AMP promotes collaboration among tribal, recreation, hydropower, environmental, water and other natural resource management interests. Monitoring has shown that high flow experiments move limited new tributary sand inputs below the dam from the bottom of the Colorado River to shorelines; rebuilding eroded sandbars that support camping areas and other natural and cultural resources. Spring-timed high flows have also been shown to stimulate aquatic productivity by disturbing the river bed below the dam in Glen Canyon. Understanding about how nonnative tailwater rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), and downstream endangered humpback chub (Gila cypha) respond to dam operations has also increased, but this learning has mostly posed “surprise” adaptation opportunities to managers. Since reoperation of the dam to Modified Low Fluctuating Flows in 1996, rainbow trout now benefit from more stable daily flows and high spring releases, but possibly at a risk to humpback chub and other native fishes downstream. In contrast, humpback chub have so far proven robust to all flows, and native fish have increased under the combination of warmer river temperatures associated with reduced storage in Lake Powell, and a
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Ross, Rob; Grams, Paul E.
2013-01-01
Construction and operation of Glen Canyon Dam has dramatically impacted the flow of the Colorado River through Glen, Marble, and Grand Canyons. Extremes in both streamflow and water temperature have been suppressed by controlled releases from the dam. Trapping of sediment in Lake Powell, the reservoir formed by Glen Canyon Dam, has also dramatically reduced the supply of suspended sediment entering the system. These changes have altered the riverine ecosystem and the habitat of native species, including fish such as the endangered humpback chub (Gila cypha). Most native fish are adapted to seasonally warm water, and the continuous relatively cold water released by the dam is one of the factors that is believed to limit humpback chub growth and survival. While average mainstem temperatures in the Colorado River are well documented, there is limited understanding of temperatures in the nearshore environments that fish typically occupy. Four nearshore geomorphic unit types were studied between the confluence of the Colorado and Little Colorado Rivers and Lava Canyon in the summer and fall of 2010, for study periods of 10 to 27 days. Five to seven sites were studied during each interval. Persistent thermal gradients greater than the 0.2 °C accuracy of the instruments were not observed in any of the sampled shoreline environments. Temperature gradients between the shoreline and mainstem on the order of 4 °C, believed to be important to the habitat-seeking behavior of native or nonnative fishes, were not detected.
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Draut, Amy E.; Rubin, David M.
2008-01-01
Since the closure of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963, the natural hydrologic and sedimentary systems along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon reach have changed substantially (see, for example, Andrews, 1986; Johnson and Carothers, 1987; Webb and others, 1999b; Rubin and others, 2002; Topping and others, 2003; Wright and others, 2005; Hazel and others, 2006b). The dam has reduced the fluvial sediment supply at the upstream boundary of Grand Canyon National Park by about 95 percent. Regulation of river discharge by dam operations has important implications for the storage and redistribution of sediment in the Colorado River corridor. In the absence of floods, sediment is not deposited at elevations that regularly received sediment before dam closure. Riparian vegetation has colonized areas at lower elevations than in predam time when annual floods removed young vegetation (Turner and Karpiscak, 1980). Together, these factors have caused a systemwide decrease in the size and number of subaerially exposed fluvial sand deposits since the 1960s, punctuated by episodic aggradation during the exceptional high-flow intervals in 1983-84, 1996, and 2004 and by sediment input from occasional tributary floods (Beus and others, 1985; Schmidt and Graf, 1987; Kearsley and others, 1994; Hazel and others, 1999; Schmidt and others, 2004; Wright and others, 2005). When the Bureau of Reclamation sponsored the creation of the Glen Canyon Environmental Studies (GCES) research initiative in 1982, research objectives included physical and biologic resources, whereas the effects of dam operations on cultural resources were not addressed (Fairley and others, 1994; Fairley, 2003). In the early 1980s, it was widely believed that because few archeologic sites were preserved within the river's annual-flood zone, cultural features would not be greatly affected by dam operations. Recent studies, however, indicate that alterations in the flow and sediment load of the Colorado River by Glen Canyon Dam
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Webb, Robert H.; Melis, Theodore S.; Wise, Thomas W.; Elliott, John G.
1996-01-01
Lava Falls Rapid is the most formidable reach of whitewater on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon and is one of the most famous rapids in the world. Although the rapid was once thought to be controlled by the remnants of lava dams of Pleistocene age, Lava Falls was created and is maintained by frequent debris flows from Prospect Canyon. We used 232 historical photographs, of which 121 were replicated, and 14C and 3He dating methods to reconstruct the ages and, in some cases, the magnitudes of late Holocene debris flows. We quantified the interaction between Prospect Canyon debris flows and the Colorado River using image processing of the historical photographs. The highest and oldest debris-flow deposits on the debris fan yielded a 3He date of 2.9?0.6 ka (950 BC), which indicates predominately late Holocene aggradation of one of the largest debris fans in Grand Canyon. The deposit, which has a 25-m escarpment caused by river reworking, crossed the Colorado River and raised its base level by 30 m for an indeterminate, although probably short, period. We mapped depositional surfaces of 6 debris flows that occurred after 950 BC. The most recent prehistoric debris flow occurred no more than 500 years ago (AD 1434). From April 1872 to July 1939, no debris flows occurred in Prospect Canyon. Debris flows in 1939, 1954, 1955, 1963, 1966, and 1995 constricted the Colorado River between 35 and 80 percent and completely changed the pattern of flow through the rapid. The debris flows had discharges estimated between about 290 and 1,000 m3/s and transported boulders as heavy as 30 Mg. The recurrence interval of these debris flows, calculated from the volume of the aggraded debris fan, ranged from 35 to 200 yrs. The 1939 debris flow in Prospect Canyon appears to have been the largest debris flow in Grand Canyon during the last 125 years. Debris flows in Prospect Canyon are initiated by streamflow pouring over a 325-m waterfall onto unconsolidated colluvium, a process called the
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Goulet, C. T.; LaGory, K. E.; Environmental Science Division
2009-10-05
Glen Canyon Dam is a hydroelectric facility located on the Colorado River in Arizona that is operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) for multiple purposes including water storage, flood control, power generation, recreation, and enhancement of fish and wildlife. Glen Canyon Dam operations have been managed for the last several years to improve conditions for the humpback chub (Gila cypha) and other ecosystem components. An extensive amount of literature has been produced on the humpback chub. We developed this annotated bibliography to assist managers and researchers in the Grand Canyon as they perform assessments, refine management strategies, andmore » develop new studies to examine the factors affecting humpback chub. The U.S. Geological Survey recently created a multispecies bibliography (including references on the humpback chub) entitled Bibliography of Native Colorado River Big Fishes (available at www.fort.usgs.gov/Products/data/COFishBib). That bibliography, while quite extensive and broader in scope than ours, is not annotated, and, therefore, does not provide any of the information in the original literature. In developing this annotated bibliography, we have attempted to assemble abstracts from relevant published literature. We present here abstracts taken unmodified from individual reports and articles except where noted. The bibliography spans references from 1976 to 2009 and is organized in five broad topical areas, including: (1) biology, (2) ecology, (3) impacts of dam operations, (4) other impacts, and (5) conservation and management, and includes twenty subcategories. Within each subcategory, we present abstracts alphabetically by author and chronologically by year. We present relevant articles not specific to either the humpback chub or Glen Canyon Dam, but cited in other included reports, under the Supporting Articles subcategory. We provide all citations in alphabetical order in Section 7.« less
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Barton, Gary J.
2004-01-01
Many local, State, and Federal agencies have concerns over the declining population of white sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus) in the Kootenai River and the possible effects of the closure and subsequent operation of Libby Dam in 1972. In 1994, the Kootenai River white sturgeon was listed as an Endangered Species. A year-long field study was conducted in cooperation with the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho along a 21.7-kilometer reach of the Kootenai River including the white sturgeon spawning reach near Bonners Ferry, Idaho, approximately 111 to 129 kilometers below Libby Dam. During the field study, data were collected in order to map the channel substrate in the white sturgeon spawning reach. These data include seismic subbottom profiles at 18 cross sections of the river and sediment cores taken at or near the seismic cross sections. The effect that Libby Dam has on the Kootenai River white sturgeon spawning substrate was analyzed in terms of changes in suspended-sediment transport, aggradation and degradation of channel bed, and changes in the particle size of bed material with depth below the riverbed. The annual suspended-sediment load leaving the Kootenai River white sturgeon spawning reach decreased dramatically after the closure of Libby Dam in 1972: mean annual pre-Libby Dam load during 1966–71 was 1,743,900 metric tons, and the dam-era load during 1973–83 was 287,500 metric tons. The amount of sand-size particles in three suspended-sediment samples collected at Copeland, Idaho, 159 kilometers below Libby Dam, during spring and early summer high flows after the closure of Libby Dam is less than in four samples collected during the pre-Libby Dam era. The supply of sand to the spawning reach is currently less due to the reduction of high flows and a loss of 70 percent of the basin after the closure of Libby Dam. The river's reduced capacity to transport sand out of the spawning reach is compensated to an unknown extent by a reduced load of sand entering the
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Geologic factors pertinent to the proposed A. J. Wiley Hydroelectric Project No. 2845, Bliss, Idaho
Malde, Harold E.
1981-01-01
The A.J. Wiley Hydroelectric Project is a proposal by the Idaho Power Company to develop hydroelectricity near Bliss, Idaho, by building a dam on the Snake River (fig. 1). The proposed dam would impound a narrow reservoir as deep as 85 feet in a free-flowing reach of the river that extends from the upper reach of water impounded by the Bliss Dam to the foot of the Lower Salmon Falls Dam, nearly 8 miles farther upstream. The proposed dam would be built in three sections: a spillway section and a powerhouse (intake) section to be constructed of concrete in the right-handed part, and an embankment section to be constructed as a zoned-fill of selected earth materials in the left-hand part. (Right and left are to be understood in the sense of looking downstream.) In August, 1979, the Idaho Power Company was granted a 3-year permit (Project No. 2845) by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to make site investigations and environmental studies in the project area. A year later, on August 26, 1980, the company applied to FERC for a license to construct the project. On October 8, 1980, as explained in a letter by William W. Lindsay, Director of the Office of Electric Power Regulation, the company was given 90 days to correct certain deficiencies in the application. Because several of the deficiencies identified by Mr. Lindsay pertain to geologic aspects of the project, his letter is attached to this report as Appendix A. Hereafter in this report, the deficiencies listed by Mr. Lindsay are identified by the numerical entries in his letter. The Idaho Power Company is referred to as the applicant.
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Temporary Restoration of Bull Trout Passage at Albeni Falls Dam, 2008 Progress Report.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Bellgraph, Brian J.
2009-03-31
The goal of this project is to provide temporary upstream passage of bull trout around Albeni Falls Dam on the Pend Oreille River, Idaho. Our specific objectives are to capture fish downstream of Albeni Falls Dam, tag them with combination acoustic and radio transmitters, release them upstream of Albeni Falls Dam, and determine if genetic information on tagged fish can be used to accurately establish where fish are located during the spawning season. In 2007, radio receiving stations were installed at several locations throughout the Pend Oreille River watershed to detect movements of adult bull trout; however, no bull troutmore » were tagged during that year. In 2008, four bull trout were captured downstream of Albeni Falls Dam, implanted with transmitters, and released upstream of the dam at Priest River, Idaho. The most-likely natal tributaries of bull trout assigned using genetic analyses were Grouse Creek (N = 2); a tributary of the Pack River, Lightning Creek (N = 1); and Rattle Creek (N = 1), a tributary of Lightning Creek. All four bull trout migrated upstream from the release site in Priest River, Idaho, were detected at monitoring stations near Dover, Idaho, and were presumed to reside in Lake Pend Oreille from spring until fall 2008. The transmitter of one bull trout with a genetic assignment to Grouse Creek was found in Grouse Creek in October 2008; however, the fish was not found. The bull trout assigned to Rattle Creek was detected in the Clark Fork River downstream from Cabinet Gorge Dam (approximately 13 km from the mouth of Lightning Creek) in September but was not detected entering Lightning Creek. The remaining two bull trout were not detected in 2008 after detection at the Dover receiving stations. This report details the progress by work element in the 2008 statement of work, including data analyses of fish movements, and expands on the information reported in the quarterly Pisces status reports.« less
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Standardized methods for Grand Canyon fisheries research 2015
Persons, William R.; Ward, David L.; Avery, Luke A.
2013-01-01
This document presents protocols and guidelines to persons sampling fishes in the Grand Canyon, to help ensure consistency in fish handling, fish tagging, and data collection among different projects and organizations. Most such research and monitoring projects are conducted under the general umbrella of the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program and include studies by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), National Park Service (NPS), the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD), various universities, and private contractors. This document is intended to provide guidance to fieldworkers regarding protocols that may vary from year to year depending on specific projects and objectives. We also provide herein documentation of standard methods used in the Grand Canyon that can be cited in scientific publications, as well as a summary of changes in protocols since the document was first created in 2002.
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Hoyt, William Glenn
1925-01-01
Thousands of people are familiar with that part of Snake River where it flows for more than 300 miles in a general westward course across the plains of southern Idaho, but few have traversed the river where it flows northward and for 200 miles forms the boundary between Idaho and Oregon and for 30 miles the boundary between Idaho and Washington. Below the mining town of Homestead, Oreg., which is the end of a branch line of the Oregon Short Line Railroad, Snake River finds its way through the mountain ranges that seem to block its way to Columbia River in a canyon which, though not so well known, so majestic, nor so kaleidoscopic in color, is in some respects worthy of comparison with the Grand Canyon of the Colorado, for at some places it is deeper and narrower than the Grand Canyon at El Tovar. The Snake, unlike the Colorado, can be reached at many points through the valleys of tributary streams, and the early prospectors no doubt thoroughly explored all parts of the canyon. To traverse the river between Homestead, Oreg., and Lewiston, Idaho, is, however, a difficult undertaking and there are only a few records of boat journeys through the entire stretch. It has long been known that this portion of Snake River contains large potential water powers, but until recently no detailed surveys or examinations covering the entire stretch of the river had been made to determine their location or extent. A railroad has been proposed between Homestead and Lewiston which would provide a direct connection between the railroad systems of northern and southern Idaho. One function of the Geological Survey is to determine the possible interface between transportation routes on land and potential water-power development, and the information set forth in this paper has a bearing on that problem.
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Long-term monitoring of sandbars on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon using remote sensing
Ross, Robert P.; Grams, Paul E.
2015-01-01
Closure of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963 dramatically changed discharge and sediment supply to the downstream Colorado River in Marble and Grand Canyons. Magnitudes of seasonal flow variation have been suppressed, while daily fluctuations have increased because of hydropower generation. Lake Powell, the upstream reservoir, traps all sediment, leaving the Paria and Little Colorado Rivers as the main suppliers of fine sediment to the system below Glen Canyon Dam. The reduction in sediment supply, along with changes in discharge, have resulted in finesediment deficit (Topping et al., 2000), leading to a decrease in the size and number of alluvial sandbars (Schmidt and Graf, 1990; Schmidt et al., 2004). However, the understanding of these important spatial and temporal changes in sandbars located along the banks of the river have been limited to infrequent measurements mostly made by direct visitation and topographic surveying (Hazel et al., 2010). Aerial photographs are the only data available from which it is possible to evaluate changes in alluvial deposits at a large number of sites and compare recent conditions with those that existed prior to the initiation of ground-based monitoring in the early 1990s. Previous studies have evaluated the effects of Glen Canyon Dam on sandbars by analysis of comprehensive maps of surficial geology that are based on seven sets of aerial imagery taken between 1935 and 1996 for selected reaches in the first 120 km downstream from Lees Ferry, Arizona (Figure 1). These studies showed that the area of exposed sand in eddy-deposition zones was less in the post-dam period than in the pre-dam period (Leschin and Schmidt, 1995; Schmidt et al., 1999b; Sondossi, 2001, Sondossi and Schmidt, 2001, Schmidt et al., 2004). In this study, we extend these analyses to encompass a 74-year period by including maps of sand deposits visible in aerial imagery taken in 2002, 2005, and 2009 for the same reaches that were mapped in the earlier studies. Results
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Rocklage, Stephen J.; Kellar, Dale S.
2005-07-01
The Nez Perce Tribe, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, conducted monitoring and evaluation studies on Lyons Ferry Hatchery reared yearling fall Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha that were acclimated and released at three Fall Chinook Acclimation Project sites upstream of Lower Granite Dam along with yearlings released on-station from Lyons Ferry Hatchery in 2001. This was the sixth year of a long-term project to supplement natural spawning populations of Snake River stock fall Chinook salmon upstream of Lower Granite Dam. The 318,932 yearlings released from the Fall Chinook Acclimation Projectmore » facilities were short of the 450,000 fish quota. We use Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag technology to monitor the primary performance measures of survival to mainstem dams and migration timing. We also monitor size, condition and tag/mark retention at release. We released 7,503 PIT tagged yearlings from Pittsburg Landing, 7,499 from Big Canyon and 2,518 from Captain John Rapids. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife released 991 PIT tagged yearlings from Lyons Ferry Hatchery. Fish health sampling indicated that, overall, bacterial kidney disease levels could be considered relatively low. Compared to prior years, Quantitative Health Assessment Indices were relatively low at Big Canyon and Captain John Rapids and about average at Pittsburg Landing and Lyons Ferry Hatchery. Mean fork lengths (95% confidence interval) of the PIT tagged groups ranged from 155.4 mm (154.7-156.1 mm) at Captain John Rapids to 171.6 mm (170.7-172.5 mm) at Lyons Ferry Hatchery. Mean condition factors ranged from 1.02 at Lyons Ferry Hatchery to 1.16 at Big Canyon and Captain John Rapids. Estimated survival (95% confidence interval) of PIT tagged yearlings from release to Lower Granite Dam ranged from 74.4% (73.2-75.5%) for Big Canyon to 85.2% (83.5-87.0%) for Captain John Rapids. Estimated survival from
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19. Photocopy of a photographca. 1923showing the Anyox Dam in ...
19. Photocopy of a photograph--ca. 1923--showing the Anyox Dam in British Columbia, Canada, just prior to completion of final arching. A sudden storm filled the reservoir and water began pouring over the uncompleted arch-ring; the dam was unhurt by the unexpected deluge and Eastwood used this photo as evidence of the great strength of his designs. Courtesy Mr. Charles Allan Whitney.20. DISTANT HELICOPTER VIEW TO SOUTHEAST UP LITTLE ROCK CREEK CANYON, WITH DAM AND RESERVOIR AT RIGHT CENTER. PALMDALE-LITTLEROCK DITCH, MARKED BY DENSE VEGETATION, CROSSES ROAD AT LOWER CENTER. - Little Rock Creek Dam, Little Rock Creek, Littlerock, Los Angeles County, CA
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Canyon formation constraints on the discharge of catastrophic outburst floods of Earth and Mars
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lapotre, Mathieu G. A.; Lamb, Michael P.; Williams, Rebecca M. E.
2016-07-01
Catastrophic outburst floods carved amphitheater-headed canyons on Earth and Mars, and the steep headwalls of these canyons suggest that some formed by upstream headwall propagation through waterfall erosion processes. Because topography evolves in concert with water flow during canyon erosion, we suggest that bedrock canyon morphology preserves hydraulic information about canyon-forming floods. In particular, we propose that for a canyon to form with a roughly uniform width by upstream headwall retreat, erosion must occur around the canyon head, but not along the sidewalls, such that canyon width is related to flood discharge. We develop a new theory for bedrock canyon formation by megafloods based on flow convergence of large outburst floods toward a horseshoe-shaped waterfall. The model is developed for waterfall erosion by rock toppling, a candidate erosion mechanism in well fractured rock, like columnar basalt. We apply the model to 14 terrestrial (Channeled Scablands, Washington; Snake River Plain, Idaho; and Ásbyrgi canyon, Iceland) and nine Martian (near Ares Vallis and Echus Chasma) bedrock canyons and show that predicted flood discharges are nearly 3 orders of magnitude less than previously estimated, and predicted flood durations are longer than previously estimated, from less than a day to a few months. Results also show a positive correlation between flood discharge per unit width and canyon width, which supports our hypothesis that canyon width is set in part by flood discharge. Despite lower discharges than previously estimated, the flood volumes remain large enough for individual outburst floods to have perturbed the global hydrology of Mars.
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Ground-water resources of the Sevier River basin between Yuba Dam and Leamington Canyon, Utah
Bjorklund, Louis Jay; Robinson, Gerald B.
1968-01-01
The area investigated is a segment of the Sevier River basin, Utah, comprising about 900 square miles and including a 19-mile reach of the Sevier River between Yuba Dam and Leamington Canyon. The larger valleys in the area are southern Juab, Round, and Scipio Valleys. The smaller valleys are Mills, Little, Dog, and Tinctic Wash Valleys.The geology of parts of Scipio, Little, and Mills Valleys and parts of the surrounding highlands was mapped and studied to explain the occurrence of numerous sinkholes in the thre valleys and to show their relation to the large springs in Mills Valley. The sinkholes, which are formed in the alluvium, are alined along faults, which penetrate both the alluvium and the underlying bedrock, and they have been formed by collapse of solution cavities in the underlying bedrock. The bedrock is mostly sandy limestone beds of the upper part of the North Horn Formation and of the Flagstaff Limestone. The numerous faults traversing Scipio Valley in a north-northeasterly direction trend directly toward Molter and Blue Springs in Mills Valley. One fault, which can be traced directly between the springs, probably is the principal channelway for the ground water moving from Scipio and Little Valleys to the springs.
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Effective mitigation of debris flows at Lemon Dam, La Plata County, Colorado
deWolfe, V.G.; Santi, P.M.; Ey, J.; Gartner, J.E.
2008-01-01
To reduce the hazards from debris flows in drainage basins burned by wildfire, erosion control measures such as construction of check dams, installation of log erosion barriers (LEBs), and spreading of straw mulch and seed are common practice. After the 2002 Missionary Ridge Fire in southwest Colorado, these measures were implemented at Knight Canyon above Lemon Dam to protect the intake structures of the dam from being filled with sediment. Hillslope erosion protection measures included LEBs at concentrations of 220-620/ha (200-600% of typical densities), straw mulch was hand spread at concentrations up to 5.6??metric tons/hectare (125% of typical densities), and seeds were hand spread at 67-84??kg/ha (150% of typical values). The mulch was carefully crimped into the soil to keep it in place. In addition, 13 check dams and 3 debris racks were installed in the main drainage channel of the basin. The technical literature shows that each mitigation method working alone, or improperly constructed or applied, was inconsistent in its ability to reduce erosion and sedimentation. At Lemon Dam, however, these methods were effective in virtually eliminating sedimentation into the reservoir, which can be attributed to a number of factors: the density of application of each mitigation method, the enhancement of methods working in concert, the quality of installation, and rehabilitation of mitigation features to extend their useful life. The check dams effectively trapped the sediment mobilized during rainstorms, and only a few cubic meters of debris traveled downchannel, where it was intercepted by debris racks. Using a debris volume-prediction model developed for use in burned basins in the Western U.S., recorded rainfall events following the Missionary Ridge Fire should have produced a debris flow of approximately 10,000??m3 at Knight Canyon. The mitigation measures, therefore, reduced the debris volume by several orders of magnitude. For comparison, rainstorm
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Effective mitigation of debris flows at Lemon Dam, La Plata County, Colorado
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
deWolfe, Victor G.; Santi, Paul M.; Ey, J.; Gartner, Joseph E.
2008-04-01
To reduce the hazards from debris flows in drainage basins burned by wildfire, erosion control measures such as construction of check dams, installation of log erosion barriers (LEBs), and spreading of straw mulch and seed are common practice. After the 2002 Missionary Ridge Fire in southwest Colorado, these measures were implemented at Knight Canyon above Lemon Dam to protect the intake structures of the dam from being filled with sediment. Hillslope erosion protection measures included LEBs at concentrations of 220-620/ha (200-600% of typical densities), straw mulch was hand spread at concentrations up to 5.6 metric tons/hectare (125% of typical densities), and seeds were hand spread at 67-84 kg/ha (150% of typical values). The mulch was carefully crimped into the soil to keep it in place. In addition, 13 check dams and 3 debris racks were installed in the main drainage channel of the basin. The technical literature shows that each mitigation method working alone, or improperly constructed or applied, was inconsistent in its ability to reduce erosion and sedimentation. At Lemon Dam, however, these methods were effective in virtually eliminating sedimentation into the reservoir, which can be attributed to a number of factors: the density of application of each mitigation method, the enhancement of methods working in concert, the quality of installation, and rehabilitation of mitigation features to extend their useful life. The check dams effectively trapped the sediment mobilized during rainstorms, and only a few cubic meters of debris traveled downchannel, where it was intercepted by debris racks. Using a debris volume-prediction model developed for use in burned basins in the Western U.S., recorded rainfall events following the Missionary Ridge Fire should have produced a debris flow of approximately 10,000 m 3 at Knight Canyon. The mitigation measures, therefore, reduced the debris volume by several orders of magnitude. For comparison, rainstorm-induced debris
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Hazel, Joseph E.; Grams, Paul E.; Schmidt, John C.; Kaplinski, Matt
2010-01-01
A 60-hour release of water at 1,203 cubic meters per second (m3/s) from Glen Canyon Dam in March 2008 provided an opportunity to analyze channel-margin response at discharge levels above the normal, diurnally fluctuating releases for hydropower plant operations. We compare measurements at sandbars and associated campsites along the mainstem Colorado River, downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, at 57 locations in Marble and Grand Canyons. Sandbar and main-channel response to the 2008 high-flow experiment (2008 HFE) was documented by measuring bar and bed topography at the study sites before and after the controlled flood and twice more in the following 6 months to examine the persistence of flood-formed deposits. The 2008 HFE caused widespread deposition at elevations above the stage equivalent to a flow rate of 227 m3/s and caused an increase in the area and volume of the high-elevation parts of sandbars, thereby increasing the size of campsite areas. In this study, we differentiate between four response styles, depending on how sediment was distributed throughout each study site. Then, we present the longitudinal pattern relevant to the different response styles and place the site responses in context with two previous high-release experiments conducted in 1996 and 2004. We find that (1) nearly every measured sandbar aggraded above the 227-m3/s water-surface elevation, resulting in sandbars as large or larger than occurred following previous high flows; (2) reaches closest to Glen Canyon Dam were characterized by a greater percentage of sites that incurred net erosion, although the total sand volume in all sediment-flux monitoring reaches was greater following the 2008 HFE than following previous high flows; and (3) longitudinal differences in topographic response in eddies and in the channel suggest a greater and more evenly distributed sediment supply than existed during previous controlled floods from Glen Canyon Dam.
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Colorado River fish monitoring in Grand Canyon, Arizona; 2002–14 humpback chub aggregations
Persons, William R.; Van Haverbeke, David R.; Dodrill, Michael J.
2017-01-31
The humpback chub (Gila cypha) is an endangered cyprinid species endemic to the Colorado River. The largest remaining population of the species spawns and rears in the Little Colorado River in Grand Canyon. Construction and operation of Glen Canyon Dam has altered the main-stem Colorado River in Glen and Grand Canyons. Cold, clear water releases from the dam result in a river that is generally unsuitable for successful humpback chub reproduction. During the early 1990s, nine locations within the main-stem Colorado River were identified as humpback chub aggregations—areas with a consistent and disjunct group of fish with no significant exchange of individuals with other aggregations. We monitored main-stem Colorado River aggregations of humpback chub in Grand Canyon during 2010 to 2014 and compared our results to previous investigations. Relative abundance, as described by catch per unit effort (fish per hour) of adult humpback chub at most main-stem aggregations, generally increased from the 1990s to 2014. In addition, distribution of humpback chub in the main-stem Colorado River has increased since the 1990s. Movement of humpback chub between the Little Colorado River and other aggregations likely adds fish to those aggregations. There is clear evidence of reproduction near the 30-Mile aggregation, and reproduction at Middle Granite Gorge and downstream seems likely based on catches of gravid fish and captures of very young fish, especially during relatively warm water releases from Glen Canyon Dam, 2004 to 2011. Humpback chub relative abundance at Shinumo and Havasu Creek inflows increased following translocations of young humpback chub starting in 2009. In light of this information, we modify the original nine aggregations, combining two previously separate aggregations and dropping two locations to form six distinct aggregations of humpback chub. Trends in humpback chub abundance at main-stem aggregations, relative to management actions (for example
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Jain, S.; Topping, D. J.; Melis, T. S.
2014-12-01
Planning and decision processes in the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP) strive to balance numerous, often competing, objectives, such as, water supply, hydropower generation, low flow maintenance, sandbars, recreational trout angling, endangered native fish, whitewater rafting, and other sociocultural resources of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and Grand Canyon National Park. In this context, use of monitored and predictive information on warm-season Paria River floods (JUL-OCT, at point-to-regional scales) has been identified as lead information for a new 10-year long controlled flooding experiment (termed the High-Flow Experiment Protocol) intended to determine management options for rebuilding and maintaining sandbars below Glen Canyon Dam; an adaptive strategy that can potentially facilitate improved planning and dam operations. In this work, we focus on a key concern identified by the GCDAMP, related to the timing and volume of warm season tributary sand input from the Paria River into the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park. The Little Colorado River is an important secondary source of sand inputs to Grand Canyon, but its lower segment is also critical spawning habitat for the endangered humpback chub. Fish biologists have reported increased abundance of chub juveniles in this key tributary in summers following cool-season flooding (DEC-FEB), but little is known about chub spawning substrates and behavior or the role that flood frequency in this tributary may play in native fish population dynamics in Grand Canyon. Episodic and intraseasonal variations (with links to equatorial and sub-tropical Pacific sea surface temperature variability) in southwest hydroclimatology are investigated to understand the magnitude, timing and spatial scales of warm- and cool-season floods from these two important tributaries of the semi-arid Colorado Plateau. Coupled variations of floods (magnitude and timing) from these rivers are also
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76. Photographic copy of historic photo, ca. 1935, (original print ...
76. Photographic copy of historic photo, ca. 1935, (original print filed in Record Group 115, National Archives, Washington, D.C.). CCC ENROLLEES PLACING ROCK RIPRAP ON UPSTREAM FACE OF DEER FLAT DAM TO PREVENT EROSION OF EARTH FILL BY WIND AND WAVE ACTION-BIOSE FEDERAL RECLAMATION PROJECT-IDAHO. - Boise Project, Deer Flat Embankments, Lake Lowell, Nampa, Canyon County, ID
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76 FR 24516 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-05-02
... Adaptive Management Program (AMP) was implemented as a result of the Record of Decision on the Operation of... Grand Canyon Protection Act (Pub. L. 102-575) of 1992. The AMP includes a Federal advisory committee... administrative and resource issues pertaining to the AMP. To view a copy of the agenda and documents related to...
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77 FR 22801 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-04-17
... Adaptive Management Program (AMP) was implemented as a result of the Record of Decision on the Operation of... Grand Canyon Protection Act (Pub. L. 102-575) of 1992. The AMP includes a Federal advisory committee... related to the above meeting, please visit Reclamation's Web site at: http://www.usbr.gov/uc/rm/amp/amwg...
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Vegetation Description, Rare Plant Inventory, and Vegetation Monitoring for Craig Mountain, Idaho.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Mancuso, Michael; Moseley, Robert
The Craig Mountain Wildlife Mitigation Area was purchased by Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) as partial mitigation for wildlife losses incurred with the inundation of Dworshak Reservoir on the North Fork Clearwater River. Upon completion of the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) process, it is proposed that title to mitigation lands will be given to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG). Craig Mountain is located at the northern end of the Hells Canyon Ecosystem. It encompasses the plateau and steep canyon slopes extending from the confluence of the Snake and Salmon rivers, northward to near Waha, south of Lewiston,more » Idaho. The forested summit of Craig Mountain is characterized by gently rolling terrain. The highlands dramatically break into the canyons of the Snake and Salmon rivers at approximately the 4,700 foot contour. The highly dissected canyons are dominated by grassland slopes containing a mosaic of shrubfield, riparian, and woodland habitats. During the 1993 and 1994 field seasons, wildlife, habitat/vegetation, timber, and other resources were systematically inventoried at Craig Mountain to provide Fish and Game managers with information needed to draft an ecologically-based management plan. The results of the habitat/vegetation portion of the inventory are contained in this report. The responsibilities for the Craig Mountain project included: (1) vegetation data collection, and vegetation classification, to help produce a GIS-generated Craig Mountain vegetation map, (2) to determine the distribution and abundance of rare plants populations and make recommendations concerning their management, and (3) to establish a vegetation monitoring program to evaluate the effects of Fish and Game management actions, and to assess progress towards meeting habitat mitigation goals.« less
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Collins, Brian D.; Corbett, Skye C.; Fairley, Helen C.; Minasian, Diane L.; Kayen, Robert; Dealy, Timothy P.; Bedford, David R.
2012-01-01
Human occupation in Grand Canyon, Arizona, dates from at least 11,000 years before present to the modern era. For most of this period, the only evidence of human occupation in this iconic landscape is provided by archeological sites. Because of the dynamic nature of this environment, many archeological sites are subject to relatively rapid topographic change. Quantifying the extent, magnitude, and cause of such change is important for monitoring and managing these archeological sites. Such quantification is necessary to help inform the continuing debate on whether and how controlled releases from Glen Canyon Dam, located immediately upstream of Grand Canyon National Park, are affecting site erosion rates, artifact transport, and archeological resource preservation along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. Although long-term topographic change resulting from a variety of natural processes is inherent in the Grand Canyon region, continued erosion of archeological sites threatens both the archeological resources and our future ability to study evidence of past cultural habitation. Thus, this subject is of considerable interest to National Park Service managers and other stakeholders in the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program. Understanding the causes and effects of archeological site erosion requires a knowledge of several factors, including the location, timing, and magnitude of the changes occurring in relation to archeological resources, the rates of change, and the relative contribution of potential causes. These potential causes include sediment depletion associated with managed flows from Glen Canyon Dam, site-specific weather and overland flow patterns, visitor impacts, and long-term regional climate change. To obtain this information, highly accurate, spatially specific data are needed from sites undergoing change. Using terrestrial lidar techniques, and building upon three previous surveys of archeological sites performed in 2006 and 2007, we
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Rocklage, Stephen J.; Kellar, Dale S.
2005-07-01
The Nez Perce Tribe, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, conducted monitoring and evaluation studies on Lyons Ferry Hatchery reared yearling fall Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha that were acclimated and released at three Fall Chinook Acclimation Project sites upstream of Lower Granite Dam along with yearlings released on-station from Lyons Ferry Hatchery in 2000. This was the fifth year of a long-term project to supplement natural spawning populations of Snake River stock fall Chinook salmon upstream of Lower Granite Dam. The 397,339 yearlings released from the Fall Chinook Acclimation Projectmore » facilities were short of the 450,000 fish quota. We use Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag technology to monitor the primary performance measures of survival to mainstem dams and migration timing. We also monitor size, condition and tag/mark retention at release. We released 7,477 PIT tagged yearlings from Pittsburg Landing, 7,421 from Big Canyon and 2,488 from Captain John Rapids. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife released 980 PIT tagged yearlings from Lyons Ferry Hatchery. Fish health sampling indicated that, overall, bacterial kidney disease levels could be considered relatively low. Compared to prior years, Quantitative Health Assessment Indices were relatively low at Big Canyon and Captain John Rapids and about average at Pittsburg Landing and Lyons Ferry Hatchery. Mean fork lengths (95% confidence interval) of the PIT tagged groups ranged from 157.7 mm (157.3-158.1 mm) at Big Canyon to 172.9 mm (172.2-173.6 mm) at Captain John Rapids. Mean condition factors ranged from 1.06 at Captain John Rapids and Lyons Ferry Hatchery to 1.12 at Big Canyon. Estimated survival (95% confidence interval) of PIT tagged yearlings from release to Lower Granite Dam ranged from 87.0% (84.7-89.4%) for Pittsburg Landing to 95.2% (91.5-98.9%) for Captain John Rapids. Estimated survival from
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Young, H.W.
1984-01-01
The Hagerman fauna area on the western slope of the Snake River canyon in south-central Idaho is one of the most important locations of upper Pliocene fossils in the world. The fossil beds are distributed vertically through a 500-foot stratigraphic section of the Glenns Ferry Formation. Accelerated soil movement caused by surface-water runoff from irrigated farmlands on the plateau above the canyon and discharge from springs and seeps along the slope of the canyon is eroding the fossil beds. Source of the springs and seeps is a perched aquifer, which is probably recharged by seepage losses from two irrigation canals that head near the canyon rim. Annual canal losses are about 1,900 acre-feet. Annual discharge from springs and seeps is about 420 acre-feet. Corrective measures that could be taken to stabilize the soil movement and preserve the fauna area include: (1) Lining or treating the canals, (2) eliminating the practice of flushing irrigation systems, (3) constructing road berms and cross dips, and (4) establishing an uncultivated strip of land between irrigated farmlands and the canyon rim. (USGS)
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Reconstructing Sediment Supply, Transport and Deposition Behind the Elwha River Dams
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Beveridge, C.
2017-12-01
The Elwha River watershed in Olympic National Park of Washington State, USA is predominantly a steep, mountainous landscape where dominant geomorphic processes include landslides, debris flows and gullying. The river is characterized by substantial variability of channel morphology and fluvial processes, and alternates between narrow bedrock canyons and wider alluvial reaches for much of its length. Literature suggests that the Elwha watershed is topographically and tectonically in steady state. The removal of the two massive hydropower dams along the river in 2013 marked the largest dam removal in history. Over the century long lifespan of the dams, approximately 21 million cubic meters of sediment was impounded behind them. Long term erosion rates documented in this region and reservoir sedimentation data give unprecedented opportunities to test watershed sediment yield models and examine dominant processes that control sediment yield over human time scales. In this study, we aim to reconstruct sediment supply, transport and deposition behind the Glines Canyon Dam (most upstream dam) over its lifespan using a watershed modeling approach. We developed alternative models of varying complexity for sediment production and transport at the network scale driven by hydrologic forcing. We simulate sediment supply and transport in tributaries upstream of the dam. The modeled sediment supply and transport dynamics are based on calibrated formulae (e.g., bedload transport is simulated using Wilcock-Crowe 2003 with modification based on observed bedload transport in the Elwha River). Observational data that aid in our approach include DEM, channel morphology, meteorology, and streamflow and sediment (bedload and suspended load) discharge. We aim to demonstrate how the observed sediment yield behind the dams was influenced by upstream transport supply and capacity limitations, thereby demonstrating the scale effects of flow and sediment transport processes in the Elwha River
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Quaternary geology and geomorphology of the lower Deschutes River Canyon, Oregon.
Jim E. O' Connor; Janet H. Curran; Robin A. Beebee; Gordon E. Grant; Andrei Sarna-Wojcicki
2003-01-01
The morphology of the Deschutes River canyon downstream of the Pelton-Round Butte dam complex is the product of the regional geologic history, the composition of the geologic units that compose the valley walls, and Quaternary processes and events. Geologic units within the valley walls and regional deformation patterns control overall valley morphology. Valley bottom...
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Vernieu, William S.; Anderson, Craig R.
2013-01-01
Water releases from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, are the primary determinant of streamflow, sediment transport, water quality, and aquatic and riparian habitat availability in the Colorado River downstream of the dam in Grand Canyon. The presence and operation of the dam have transformed the seasonally warm Colorado River into a consistently cold river because of hypolimnetic, or deep-water, releases from the penstock withdrawal structures on the dam. These releases have substantially altered the thermal regime of the downstream riverine environment. This, in turn, has affected the biota of the river corridor, particularly native and nonnative fish communities and the aquatic food web. In the spring and summer of 2000, a Low Steady Summer Flow experiment was conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Bureau of Reclamation to evaluate the effects of the experimental flow on physical and biological resources of the Colorado River ecosystem downstream from Glen Canyon Dam to Lake Mead on the Arizona-Nevada border. This report describes the water temperatures collected during the experimental flow from 14 nearshore sites in the river corridor in Grand Canyon to assess the effects of steady releases on the thermal dynamics of nearshore environments. These nearshore areas are characterized by low-velocity flows with some degree of isolation from the higher velocity flows in the main channel and are hypothesized to be important rearing environments for young native fish. Water-temperature measurements were made at 14 sites, ranging from backwater to open-channel environments. Warming during daylight hours, relative to main-channel temperatures, was measured at all sites in relation to the amount of isolation from the main-channel current. Boat traffic, amount of direct solar radiation, and degree of isolation from the main-channel current appear to be the primary factors affecting the differential warming of the nearshore environment.
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Rocklage, Stephen J.
The Nez Perce Tribe, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, conducted monitoring and evaluation studies on Lyons Ferry Hatchery (Snake River stock) yearling fall chinook salmon that were acclimated and released at three Fall Chinook Acclimation Project sites upstream of Lower Granite Dam along with yearlings released on-station from Lyons Ferry Hatchery in 1998. The three fall chinook acclimation facilities are operated by the Nez Perce Tribe and located at Pittsburg Landing and Captain John Rapids on the Snake River and at Big Canyon Creek on the Clearwater River. Yearlingsmore » at the Big Canyon facility consisted of two size classes that are referred to in this report as 9.5 fish per pound (fpp) and 30 fpp. The Big Canyon 9.5 fpp were comparable to the yearlings at Pittsburg Landing, Captain John Rapids and Lyons Ferry Hatchery. A total of 9,942 yearlings were PIT tagged and released at Pittsburg Landing. PIT tagged yearlings had a mean fork length of 159.9 mm and mean condition factor of 1.19. Of the 9,942 PIT tagged fish released, a total of 6,836 unique tags were detected at mainstem Snake and Columbia River dams (Lower Granite, Little Goose, Lower Monumental and McNary). A total of 4,926 9.5 fpp and 2,532 30 fpp yearlings were PIT tagged and released at Big Canyon. PIT tagged 9.5 fpp yearlings had a mean fork length of 156.9 mm and mean condition factor of 1.13. PIT tagged 30 fpp yearlings had a mean fork length of 113.1 mm and mean condition factor of 1.18. Of the 4,926 PIT tagged 9.5 fpp yearlings released, a total of 3,042 unique tags were detected at mainstem Snake and Columbia River dams. Of the 2,532 PIT tagged 30 fpp yearlings released, a total of 1,130 unique tags were detected at mainstem Snake and Columbia River dams. A total of 1,253 yearlings were PIT tagged and released at Captain John Rapids. PIT tagged yearlings had a mean fork length of 147.5 mm and mean condition factor of 1
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Ross, Robert P.; Vernieu, William S.
2013-01-01
Since the completion of Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona, in 1963, downstream water temperatures in the main channel of the Colorado River in Glen, Marble, and Grand Canyons are much colder in summer. This has negatively affected humpback chub (Gila cypha) and other native fish adapted to seasonally warm water, reducing main-channel spawning activity and impeding the growth and development of larval and juvenile fish. Recently published studies by U.S. Geological Survey scientists found that under certain conditions some isolated nearshore environments in Grand Canyon allow water to become separated from the main-channel current and to warm, providing refuge areas for the development of larval and juvenile fish.
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Protiva, Frank R.; Ralston, Barbara E.; Stone, Dennis M.; Kohl, Keith A.; Yard, Michael D.; Haden, G. Allen
2010-01-01
Water velocity and temperature are physical variables that affect the growth and survivorship of young-of-year (YOY) fishes. The Little Colorado River, a tributary to the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, is an important spawning ground and warmwater refuge for the endangered humpback chub (Gila cypha) from the colder mainstem Colorado River that is regulated by Glen Canyon Dam. The confluence area of the Little Colorado River and the Colorado River is a site where YOY humpback chub (size 30-90 mm) emerging from the Little Colorado River experience both colder temperatures and higher velocities associated with higher mainstem discharge. We used detailed surveying and mapping techniques in combination with YOY velocity and temperature preferenda (determined from field and lab studies) to compare the areal extent of available habitat for young fishes at the confluence area under four mainstem discharges (227, 368, 504, and 878 m3/s). Comparisons revealed that the areal extent of low-velocity, warm water at the confluence decreased when discharges exceeded 368 m3/s. Furthermore, mainstem fluctuations, depending on the rate of upramp, can affect velocity and temperature dynamics in the confluence area within several hours. The amount of daily fluctuations in discharge can result in the loss of approximately 1.8 hectares of habitat favorable to YOY humpback chub. Consequently, flow fluctuations and the accompanying changes in velocity and temperature at the confluence may diminish the recruitment potential of humpback chub that spawn in the tributary stream. This study illustrates the utility of multiple georeferenced data sources to provide critical information related to the influence of the timing and magnitude of discharge from Glen Canyon Dam on potential rearing environment at the confluence area of the Little Colorado River.
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Elwha River dam removal-Rebirth of a river
Duda, Jeffrey J.; Warrick, Jonathan A.; Magirl, Christopher S.
2011-01-01
After years of planning for the largest project of its kind, the Department of the Interior will begin removal of two dams on the Elwha River, Washington, in September 2011. For nearly 100 years, the Elwha and Glines Canyon Dams have disrupted natural processes, trapping sediment in the reservoirs and blocking fish migrations, which changed the ecology of the river downstream of the dams. All five Pacific salmon species and steelhead-historically present in large numbers-are locally extirpated or persist in critically low numbers. Upstream of the dams, more than 145 kilometers of pristine habitat, protected inside Olympic National Park, awaits the return of salmon populations. As the dams are removed during a 2-3 year project, some of the 19 million cubic meters of entrapped sediment will be carried downstream by the river in the largest controlled release of sediment into a river and marine waters in history. Understanding the changes to the river and coastal habitats, the fate of sediments, and the salmon recolonization of the Elwha River wilderness will provide useful information for society as future dam removals are considered.
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Impact of debris dams on hyporheic interaction along a semi-arid stream
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lautz, Laura K.; Siegel, Donald I.; Bauer, Robert L.
2006-01-01
Hyporheic exchange increases the potential for solute retention in streams by slowing downstream transport and increasing solute contact with the substrate. Hyporheic exchange may be a major mechanism to remove nutrients in semi-arid watersheds, where livestock have damaged stream riparian zones and contributed nutrients to stream channels. Debris dams, such as beaver dams and anthropogenic log dams, may increase hyporheic interactions by slowing stream water velocity, increasing flow complexity and diverting water to the subsurface.Here, we report the results of chloride tracer injection experiments done to evaluate hyporheic interaction along a 320 m reach of Red Canyon Creek, a second order stream in the semi-arid Wind River Range of Wyoming. The study site is part of a rangeland watershed managed by The Nature Conservancy of Wyoming, and used as a hydrologic field site by the University of Missouri Branson Geologic Field Station. The creek reach we investigated has debris dams and tight meanders that hypothetically should enhance hyporheic interaction. Breakthrough curves of chloride measured during the field experiment were modelled with OTIS-P, a one-dimensional, surface-water, solute-transport model from which we extracted the storage exchange rate and cross-sectional area of the storage zone As for hyporheic exchange. Along gaining reaches of the stream reach, short-term hyporheic interactions associated with debris dams were comparable to those associated with severe meanders. In contrast, along the non-gaining reach, stream water was diverted to the subsurface by debris dams and captured by large-scale near-stream flow paths. Overall, hyporheic exchange rates along Red Canyon Creek during snowmelt recession equal or exceed exchange rates observed during baseflow at other streams.
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Fish Passage Assessment: Big Canyon Creek Watershed, Technical Report 2004.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Christian, Richard
2004-02-01
This report presents the results of the fish passage assessment as outlined as part of the Protect and Restore the Big Canyon Creek Watershed project as detailed in the CY2003 Statement of Work (SOW). As part of the Northwest Power Planning Council's Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Program (FWP), this project is one of Bonneville Power Administration's (BPA) many efforts at off-site mitigation for damage to salmon and steelhead runs, their migration, and wildlife habitat caused by the construction and operation of federal hydroelectric dams on the Columbia River and its tributaries. The proposed restoration activities within the Big Canyonmore » Creek watershed follow the watershed restoration approach mandated by the Fisheries and Watershed Program. Nez Perce Tribal Fisheries/Watershed Program vision focuses on protecting, restoring, and enhancing watersheds and treaty resources within the ceded territory of the Nez Perce Tribe under the Treaty of 1855 with the United States Federal Government. The program uses a holistic approach, which encompasses entire watersheds, ridge top to ridge top, emphasizing all cultural aspects. We strive toward maximizing historic ecosystem productive health, for the restoration of anadromous and resident fish populations. The Nez Perce Tribal Fisheries/Watershed Program (NPTFWP) sponsors the Protect and Restore the Big Canyon Creek Watershed project. The NPTFWP has the authority to allocate funds under the provisions set forth in their contract with BPA. In the state of Idaho vast numbers of relatively small obstructions, such as road culverts, block thousands of miles of habitat suitable for a variety of fish species. To date, most agencies and land managers have not had sufficient, quantifiable data to adequately address these barrier sites. The ultimate objective of this comprehensive inventory and assessment was to identify all barrier crossings within the watershed. The barriers were then prioritized according to the amount
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Mullins, William H.
1998-01-01
Agricultural land and water use, wastewater treatment facility discharges, land development, road construction, urban runoff, confined-animal feeding operations, reservoir operations, and river channelization affect the water quality and biotic integrity of the lower Boise River between Lucky Peak Dam and the river's mouth at Parma, Idaho. During May 1994 through February 1997, 4 sites on the Boise River, 12 tributary/drain sites, and 3 wastewater treatment facilities were sampled at various intervals during the irrigation (high-flow) and post-irrigation (low-flow) seasons to determine sources, concentrations, and relative loads of nutrients and suspended sediment. Discharge entering the Boise River from the 12 tributary/drain sites and 3 wastewater treatment facilities was measured to determine the nutrient loads being contributed from each source. Total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and suspended sediment concentrations and loads tended to increase in a downstream direction along the Boise River. Among the 15 sources of discharge to the Boise River, 3 southside tributary/drains and the West Boise wastewater treatment facility contributed the largest loads of total nitrogen; the median daily load was more than 2,000 pounds per day. The West Boise wastewater treatment facility contributed the largest median daily load of total phosphorus (810 pounds per day); Dixie Drain contributed the largest median daily load of suspended sediment (26.4 tons per day). Nitrogen-to-phosphorus ratios at the four Boise River sites indicated that phosphorus could be limiting algal growth at the Diversion Dam site, whereas nitrogen could be limiting algal growth at the Glenwood and Middleton sites during some parts of the year. Algal growth in the Boise River near Parma did not appear to be nutrient limited. Because of the complexity of the plumbing system in the lower Boise River (numerous diversions and inflow points), accurate comparisons between discharge and nutrient loads entering
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Mercury and selenium accumulation in the Colorado River food web, Grand Canyon, USA.
Walters, David M; Rosi-Marshall, Emma; Kennedy, Theodore A; Cross, Wyatt F; Baxter, Colden V
2015-10-01
Mercury (Hg) and selenium (Se) biomagnify in aquatic food webs and are toxic to fish and wildlife. The authors measured Hg and Se in organic matter, invertebrates, and fishes in the Colorado River food web at sites spanning 387 river km downstream of Glen Canyon Dam (AZ, USA). Concentrations were relatively high among sites compared with other large rivers (mean wet wt for 6 fishes was 0.17-1.59 μg g(-1) Hg and 1.35-2.65 μg g(-1) Se), but consistent longitudinal patterns in Hg or Se concentrations relative to the dam were lacking. Mercury increased (slope = 0.147) with δ(15) N, a metric of trophic position, indicating biomagnification similar to that observed in other freshwater systems. Organisms regularly exceeded exposure risk thresholds for wildlife and humans (6-100% and 56-100% of samples for Hg and Se, respectfully, among risk thresholds). In the Colorado River, Grand Canyon, Hg and Se concentrations pose exposure risks for fish, wildlife, and humans, and the findings of the present study add to a growing body of evidence showing that remote ecosystems are vulnerable to long-range transport and subsequent bioaccumulation of contaminants. Management of exposure risks in Grand Canyon will remain a challenge, as sources and transport mechanisms of Hg and Se extend far beyond park boundaries. © 2015 SETAC.
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Owyhee River intracanyon lava flows: does the river give a dam?
Ely, Lisa L.; Brossy, Cooper C.; House, P. Kyle; Safran, Elizabeth B.; O'Connor, Jim E.; Champion, Duane E.; Fenton, Cassandra R.; Bondre, Ninad R.; Orem, Caitlin A.; Grant, Gordon E.; Henry, Christopher D.; Turrin, Brent D.
2013-01-01
Rivers carved into uplifted plateaus are commonly disrupted by discrete events from the surrounding landscape, such as lava flows or large mass movements. These disruptions are independent of slope, basin area, or channel discharge, and can dominate aspects of valley morphology and channel behavior for many kilometers. We document and assess the effects of one type of disruptive event, lava dams, on river valley morphology and incision rates at a variety of time scales, using examples from the Owyhee River in southeastern Oregon. Six sets of basaltic lava flows entered and dammed the river canyon during two periods in the late Cenozoic ca. 2 Ma–780 ka and 250–70 ka. The dams are strongly asymmetric, with steep, blunt escarpments facing up valley and long, low slopes down valley. None of the dams shows evidence of catastrophic failure; all blocked the river and diverted water over or around the dam crest. The net effect of the dams was therefore to inhibit rather than promote incision. Once incision resumed, most of the intracanyon flows were incised relatively rapidly and therefore did not exert a lasting impact on the river valley profile over time scales >106 yr. The net long-term incision rate from the time of the oldest documented lava dam, the Bogus Rim lava dam (≤1.7 Ma), to present was 0.18 mm/yr, but incision rates through or around individual lava dams were up to an order of magnitude greater. At least three lava dams (Bogus Rim, Saddle Butte, and West Crater) show evidence that incision initiated only after the impounded lakes filled completely with sediment and there was gravel transport across the dams. The most recent lava dam, formed by the West Crater lava flow around 70 ka, persisted for at least 25 k.y. before incision began, and the dam was largely removed within another 35 k.y. The time scale over which the lava dams inhibit incision is therefore directly affected by both the volume of lava forming the dam and the time required for sediment
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76 FR 584 - Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program Work Group (AMWG)
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-01-05
... 2010 expenditures, (2) updates on High Flow Experimental Protocol and the Non-native Fish Control... Group (AMWG) AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior. ACTION: Notice of public meeting. SUMMARY: The... committee, the Adaptive Management Work Group (AMWG), a technical work group (TWG), a Grand Canyon...
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Korman, Josh; Kaplinski, Matthew; Melis, Theodore S.
2010-01-01
High-flow experiments (HFEs) from Glen Canyon Dam are primarily intended to conserve fine sediment and improve habitat conditions for native fish in the Colorado River as it flows through Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. These experimental flows also have the potential to affect the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) population in the Lees Ferry tailwater reach immediately below the dam, which supports a highly valued recreational fishery and likely influences the abundance of rainbow trout in Grand Canyon. Understanding how flow regimes affect the survival and growth of juvenile rainbow trout is critical to interpreting trends in adult abundance. This study reports on the effects of HFEs in 2004 and 2008 on early life stages of rainbow trout in the Lees Ferry reach on the basis of monthly sampling of redds (egg nests) and the abundance of the age-0 trout (fertilization to about 1 to 2 months from emergence) and their growth during a 7-year period between 2003 and 2009. Multiple lines of evidence indicate that the March 2008 HFE resulted in a large increase in early survival rates of age-0 trout because of an improvement in habitat conditions. A stock-recruitment analysis demonstrated that age-0 abundance in July 2008 was more than fourfold higher than expected, given the number of viable eggs that produced these fish. A hatch-date analysis showed that early survival rates were much higher for cohorts that hatched about 1 month after the 2008 HFE (about April 15, 2008) relative to those fish that hatched before this date. These cohorts, fertilized after the 2008 HFE, would have emerged into a benthic invertebrate community that had recovered, and was possibly enhanced by, the HFE. Interannual differences in growth of age-0 trout, determined on the basis of otolith microstructure, support this hypothesis. Growth rates in the summer and fall of 2008 (0.44 mm/day) were virtually the same as in 2006 (0.46 mm/day), the highest recorded during 6 years, even though
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Griffiths, Ronald E.; Topping, David J.; Anderson, Robert S.; Hancock, Gregory S.; Melis, Theodore S.
2014-01-01
Management of sediment in rivers downstream from dams requires knowledge of both the sediment supply and downstream sediment transport. In some dam-regulated rivers, the amount of sediment supplied by easily measured major tributaries may overwhelm the amount of sediment supplied by the more difficult to measure lesser tributaries. In this first class of rivers, managers need only know the amount of sediment supplied by these major tributaries. However, in other regulated rivers, the cumulative amount of sediment supplied by the lesser tributaries may approach the total supplied by the major tributaries. The Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon has been hypothesized to be one such river. If this is correct, then management of sediment in the Colorado River in the part of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area downstream from the dam and in Grand Canyon National Park may require knowledge of the sediment supply from all tributaries. Although two major tributaries, the Paria and Little Colorado Rivers, are well documented as the largest two suppliers of sediment to the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam, the contributions of sediment supplied by the ephemeral lesser tributaries of the Colorado River in the lowermost Glen Canyon, and Marble and Grand Canyons are much less constrained. Previous studies have estimated amounts of sediment supplied by these tributaries ranging from very little to almost as much as the amount supplied by the Paria River. Because none of these previous studies relied on direct measurement of sediment transport in any of the ephemeral tributaries in Glen, Marble, or Grand Canyons, there may be significant errors in the magnitudes of sediment supplies estimated during these studies. To reduce the uncertainty in the sediment supply by better constraining the sediment yield of the ephemeral lesser tributaries, the U.S. Geological Survey Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center established eight sediment-monitoring gaging
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Geologic Hazards Associated With a Proposed Dam on the Yarlung-Tsangpo River in SE Tibet
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zeitler, P. K.; Meltzer, A. S.; Hallet, B.; Kidd, W. S.; Koons, P. O.
2007-12-01
For a decade anecdotes and media reports have been circulating about a proposed dam on the Yarlung- Tsangpo River in SE Tibet. The proposed site is in the deep canyon of the Yarlung-Tsangpo where the river leaves the Tibetan Plateau across an immense knickpoint, falling ~2000 m along an irregular U-shaped reach ~100 km in length. The fundamental purpose of the dam is generation of ~40,000 MW of hydropower, to be used in diverting a portion of the impounded river to water-starved regions of northern China. Offsetting benefits that would accrue from improved water supply in the north, debate has centered on the water-flow and sediment-flux impacts that would be felt downstream in the Brahmaputra system in northeastern India and Bangladesh, as well as the impact of a dam and large lake on the pristine, ecologically and ethnographically diverse area around the Yarlung-Tsangpo canyon, an area of great significance to Tibetan Buddhists. We have been examining the geodynamic evolution of eastern Tibet, and have gathered considerable geophysical and geological data on the knickpoint region. The knickpoint traverses the Namche Barwa-Gyala Peri massif, one of the most geologically active regions on Earth. In this region, very rapid bedrock exhumation at rates of 7 mm/yr or more has exposed granites as young as 1 Ma, and these rates have been ongoing for at least the past 3 m.y. Detrital-dating evidence shows that these high rates continue at present and that erosion within the massif contributes fully 50% of the suspended-sediment load in the Yarlung-Tsangpo at the point where it enters the Brahmaputra (this would be about 100 Mt/yr derived from the massif). The steep slopes in the massif fail by pervasive landsliding and suggest a steady-state topography where the high erosion rates are balanced by equivalent rates of rock uplift accommodated by numerous active structures. At a more regional scale, GPS results show that steep three-dimensional velocity gradients exist
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Veselka, T. D.; Poch, L. A.; Palmer, C. S.
2010-04-21
Because of concerns about the impact that Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) operations were having on downstream ecosystems and endangered species, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) conducted an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on dam operations (DOE 1996). New operating rules and management goals for GCD that had been specified in the Record of Decision (ROD) (Reclamation 1996) were adopted in February 1997. In addition to issuing new operating criteria, the ROD mandated experimental releases for the purpose of conducting scientific studies. This paper examines the financial implications of the experimental flows that were conducted at the GCD from 1997 to 2005.more » An experimental release may have either a positive or negative impact on the financial value of energy production. This study estimates the financial costs of experimental releases, identifies the main factors that contribute to these costs, and compares the interdependencies among these factors. An integrated set of tools was used to compute the financial impacts of the experimental releases by simulating the operation of the GCD under two scenarios, namely, (1) a baseline scenario that assumes operations comply with the ROD operating criteria and experimental releases that actually took place during the study period, and (2) a ''without experiments'' scenario that is identical to the baseline scenario of operations that comply with the GCD ROD, except it assumes that experimental releases did not occur. The Generation and Transmission Maximization (GTMax) model was the main simulation tool used to dispatch GCD and other hydropower plants that comprise the Salt Lake City Area Integrated Projects (SLCA/IP). Extensive data sets and historical information on SLCA/IP power plant characteristics, hydrologic conditions, and Western Area Power Administration's (Western's) power purchase prices were used for the simulation. In addition to estimating the financial impact of experimental releases, the GTMax
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The Black Canyon of the Gunnison: Today and Yesterday
Hansen, Wallace R.
1965-01-01
Since the early visit of Captain John William Gunnison in the middle of the last century, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison has stirred mixed apprehension and wonder in the hearts of its viewers. It ranks high among the more awesome gorges of North America. Many great western canyons are as well remembered for their brightly colored walls as for their airy depths. Not so the Black Canyon. Though it is assuredly not black, the dark-gray tones of its walls and the hazy shadows of its gloomy depths join together to make its name well deserved. Its name conveys an impression, not a picture. After the first emotional impact of the canyon, the same questions come to the minds of most reflective viewers and in about the following order: How deep is the Black Canyon, how wide, how does it compare with other canyons, what are the rocks, how did it form, and how long did it take? Several western canyons exceed the Black Canyon in overall size. Some are longer; some are deeper; some are narrower; and a few have walls as steep. But no other canyon in North American combines the depth, narrowness, sheerness, and somber countenance of the Black Canyon. In many places the Black Canyon is as deep as it is wide. Between The Narrows and Chasm View in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument (fig. 15) it is much deeper than wide. Average depth in the monument is about 2,000 feet, ranging from a maximum of about 2,700 feet, north of Warner Point (which also is the greatest depth anywhere in the canyon), to a minimum of about 1,750 feet at The Narrows. The stretch of canyon between Pulpit Rock and Chasm View, including The Narrows, though the shallowest in the monument, is also the narrowest, has some of the steepest walls, and is, therefore, among the most impressive segments of the canyon (fig. 3). Profiles of several well-known western canyons are shown in figure 1. Deepest of these by far is Hells Canyon of the Snake, on the Idaho-Oregon border. Clearly, it dwarfs the
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Mercury and selenium accumulation in the Colorado River food web, Grand Canyon, USA
Walters, David M.; E.J. Rosi-Marshall,; Kennedy, Theodore A.; W.F. Cross,; C.V. Baxter,
2015-01-01
Mercury (Hg) and selenium (Se) biomagnify in aquatic food webs and are toxic to fish and wildlife. The authors measured Hg and Se in organic matter, invertebrates, and fishes in the Colorado River food web at sites spanning 387 river km downstream of Glen Canyon Dam (AZ, USA). Concentrations were relatively high among sites compared with other large rivers (mean wet wt for 6 fishes was 0.17–1.59 μg g–1 Hg and 1.35–2.65 μg g–1 Se), but consistent longitudinal patterns in Hg or Se concentrations relative to the dam were lacking. Mercury increased (slope = 0.147) with δ15N, a metric of trophic position, indicating biomagnification similar to that observed in other freshwater systems. Organisms regularly exceeded exposure risk thresholds for wildlife and humans (6–100% and 56–100% of samples for Hg and Se, respectfully, among risk thresholds). In the Colorado River, Grand Canyon, Hg and Se concentrations pose exposure risks for fish, wildlife, and humans, and the findings of the present study add to a growing body of evidence showing that remote ecosystems are vulnerable to long-range transport and subsequent bioaccumulation of contaminants. Management of exposure risks in Grand Canyon will remain a challenge, as sources and transport mechanisms of Hg and Se extend far beyond park boundaries. Environ Toxicol Chem2015;9999:1–10
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Rocklage, Stephen J.
The Nez Perce Tribe, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, conducted monitoring and evaluation studies on Lyons Ferry Hatchery reared yearling fall Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha that were acclimated and released at three Fall Chinook Acclimation Project (FCAP) sites upstream of Lower Granite Dam in 2003. This was the eighth year of a long-term project to supplement natural spawning populations of Snake River stock fall Chinook salmon upstream of Lower Granite Dam. The 437,633 yearlings released from the Fall Chinook Acclimation Project facilities were short of the 450,000 fish quota.more » We use Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag technology to monitor the primary performance measures of survival to mainstem dams and migration timing. We also monitor size, condition and tag/mark retention at release. We released 7,492 PIT tagged yearlings from Pittsburg Landing, 7,494 from Big Canyon and 2,497 from Captain John Rapids. Fish health sampling indicated that, overall, bacterial kidney disease levels at the acclimation facilities could be considered medium with 37-83% of the fish sampled rating medium to very high. Mean fork lengths (95% confidence interval) of the PIT tagged groups ranged from 153.7 mm (153.2-154.2 mm) at Captain John Rapids to 164.2 mm (163.9-164.5 mm) at Pittsburg Landing. Mean condition factors ranged from 1.06 at Lyons Ferry Hatchery to 1.22 at Captain John Rapids. Estimated survival (95% confidence interval) of PIT tagged yearlings from release to Lower Granite Dam ranged from 83.1% (80.7-85.5%) for Big Canyon to 91.7% (87.7-95.7%) for Captain John Rapids. Estimated survival from release to McNary Dam ranged from 59.9% (54.6-65.2%) for Big Canyon to 69.4% (60.5-78.4%) for Captain John Rapids. Median migration rates to Lower Granite Dam, based on all observations of PIT tagged yearlings from the FCAP facilities, ranged from 5.8 river kilometers per day (rkm/d) for
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Cochnauer, Tim; Claire, Christopher
2009-05-07
Pacific lamprey Lampetra tridentata have received little attention in fishery science until recently, even though abundance has declined significantly along with other anadromous fish species in Idaho. Pacific lamprey in Idaho have to navigate over eight lower Snake River and Columbia River hydroelectric facilities for migration downstream as juveniles to the Pacific Ocean and again as adults migrating upstream to their freshwater spawning grounds in Idaho. The number of adult Pacific lamprey annually entering the Snake River basin at Ice Harbor Dam has declined from an average of over 18,000 during 1962-1969 to fewer than 600 during 1998-2006. Based onmore » potential accessible streams and adult escapement over Lower Granite Dam on the lower Snake River, we estimate that no more than 200 Pacific lamprey adult spawners annually utilize the Clearwater River drainage in Idaho for spawning. We utilized electrofishing in 2000-2006 to capture, enumerate, and obtain biological information regarding rearing Pacific lamprey ammocoetes and macropthalmia to determine the distribution and status of the species in the Clearwater River drainage, Idaho. Present distribution in the Clearwater River drainage is limited to the lower sections of the Lochsa and Selway rivers, the Middle Fork Clearwater River, the mainstem Clearwater River, the South Fork Clearwater River, and the lower 7.5 km of the Red River. In 2006, younger age classes were absent from the Red River.« less
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Collins, Brian D.; Minasian, Diane L.; Kayen, Robert
2009-01-01
Topographic change of archeological sites within the Colorado River corridor of Grand Canyon National Park (GCNP) is a subject of interest to National Park Service managers and other stakeholders in the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program. Although long-term topographic change resulting from a variety of natural processes is typical in the Grand Canyon region, a continuing debate exists on whether and how controlled releases from Glen Canyon Dam, located immediately upstream of GCNP, are impacting rates of site erosion, artifact transport, and the preservation of archeological resources. Continued erosion of archeological sites threatens both the archeological resources and our future ability to study evidence of past cultural habitation. Understanding the causes and effects of archaeological site erosion requires a knowledge of several factors including the location and magnitude of the changes occurring in relation to archeological resources, the rate of the changes, and the relative contribution of several potential causes, including sediment depletion associated with managed flows from Glen Canyon Dam, site-specific weather patterns, visitor impacts, and long-term climate change. To obtain this information, highly accurate, spatially specific data are needed from sites undergoing change. Using terrestrial lidar data collection techniques and novel TIN- and GRID-based change-detection post-processing methods, we analyzed topographic data for nine archeological sites. The data were collected using three separate data collection efforts spanning 16 months (May 2006 to September 2007). Our results documented positive evidence of erosion, deposition, or both at six of the nine sites investigated during this time interval. In addition, we observed possible signs of change at two of the other sites. Erosion was concentrated in established gully drainages and averaged 12 cm to 17 cm in depth with maximum depths of 50 cm. Deposition was concentrated at specific
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Melis, Theodre S.; Webb, Robert H.; ,
1993-01-01
Debris flows are recurrent sediment-transport processes in 525 tributaries of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. Arizona. Initiated by slope failures in bedrock and (or) colluvium during intense rainfall, Grand Canyon debris flows are high-magnitude, short-duration floods. Debris flows in these tributaries transport very large boulders into the river where they accumulate on debris fans and form rapids. The frequency of debris flows range from less than 1 per century to 10 or more per century in these tributaries. Before regulation by Glen Canyon Dam in 1963, high-magnitude floods on the Colorado River reworked debris fans by eroding all particles except large boulders. Because flow regulation has substantially decreased the river's competence, debris flows occurring after 1963 have increased accumulation of finer-grained sediments on debris fans and in rapids.
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Erosional threshold for the formation of bedrock canyons carved by megafloods on Earth and Mars
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lamb, Michael P.; Lapotre, Mathieu G. A.; Larsen, Isaac J.; Williams, Rebecca M. E.
2017-04-01
Enormous canyons have been carved into the surfaces of Earth and Mars by catastrophic outbursts of water. On Mars, these bedrock canyons, known as the planetary-scale outflow channels, are the most important indicator of large volumes of flowing water in the planet's history. Despite their importance and now decades of observations of canyon morphology, we lack a basic understanding of how the canyons formed, which limits our ability to reconstruct flood discharge, duration, and water volume. In this presentation I will summarize recent work - using mechanistic numerical models and field observations of similar landforms on Earth - that suggests that bedrock canyons carved by megafloods may rapidly evolve to a size and shape in which boundary shear stress just exceeds that required to entrain fractured blocks of rock. Recent advances in theory for plucking, sliding and toppling of fractured rock allow for quantitative constraints on erosion thresholds. Coupling these erosional constraints with 2-D hydrodynamic models at waterfalls shows that cataracts in basalt, which are common in megaflood terrain, evolve to a threshold state such that canyon width accurately reflects flood discharge. The erosional threshold hypothesis also is consistent with the formation of gravel bars in the Channeled Scablands of the Missoula Floods, USA, and with observations of a small flood-carved canyon from a dam overflow event in 2002 in Texas. Together, these studies suggest that canyons progressively erode in concert with megaflooding, such that flood waters never fully filled the final canyon relief, implying smaller flood discharges and longer durations than models that assume near canyon-filling floods routed over modern topography.
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Melis, T.S.; Webb, R.H.; Griffiths, P.G.; Wise, T.J.
1995-01-01
Debris flows occur in 529 tributaries of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon between Lees Ferry and Diamond Creek, Arizona (river miles 0 to 225). An episodic type of flash flood, debris flows transport poorly-sorted sediment ranging in size from clay to boulders into the Colorado River. Debris flows create and maintain debris fans and the hundreds of associated riffles and rapids that control the geomorphic framework of the Colorado River downstream from Glen Canyon Dam. Between 1984 and 1994, debris flows created 4 new rapids and enlarged 17 existing rapids and riffles. Debris flows in Grand Canyon are initiated by slope failures that occur during intense rainfall. Three of these mechanisms of slope failure are documented. Failures in weathered bedrock, particularly in the Hermit Shale and Supai Group, have initiated many historic debris flows in Grand Canyon. A second mechanism, termed the fire-hose effect, occurs when runoff pours over cliffs onto unconsolidated colluvial wedges, triggering a failure. A third initiation mechanism occurs when intense precipitation causes failures in colluvium overlying bedrock. Multiple source areas and extreme topographic relief in Grand Canyon commonly result in combinations of these three initiation mechanisms. Interpretation of 1,107 historical photographs spanning 120 years, supplemented with aerial photography made between 1935 and 1994, yielded information on the frequency of debris flows in 168 of the 529 tributaries (32 percent) of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. Of the 168 tributaries, 96 contain evidence of debris flows that have occurred since 1872, whereas 72 tributaries have not had a debris flow during the last century. The oldest debris flow we have documented in Grand Canyon occurred 5,400 years ago in an unnamed tributary at river mile 63.3-R. Our results indicate that the frequency of debris flows ranges from one every 10 to 15 years in certain eastern tributaries, to less than one per century in other
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Davis, Philip A.
2012-01-01
Airborne digital-image data were collected for the Arizona part of the Colorado River ecosystem below Glen Canyon Dam in 2009. These four-band image data are similar in wavelength band (blue, green, red, and near infrared) and spatial resolution (20 centimeters) to image collections of the river corridor in 2002 and 2005. These periodic image collections are used by the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center (GCMRC) of the U.S. Geological Survey to monitor the effects of Glen Canyon Dam operations on the downstream ecosystem. The 2009 collection used the latest model of the Leica ADS40 airborne digital sensor (the SH52), which uses a single optic for all four bands and collects and stores band radiance in 12-bits, unlike the image sensors that GCMRC used in 2002 and 2005. This study examined the performance of the SH52 sensor, on the basis of the collected image data, and determined that the SH52 sensor provided superior data relative to the previously employed sensors (that is, an early ADS40 model and Zeiss Imaging's Digital Mapping Camera) in terms of band-image registration, dynamic range, saturation, linearity to ground reflectance, and noise level. The 2009 image data were provided as orthorectified segments of each flightline to constrain the size of the image files; each river segment was covered by 5 to 6 overlapping, linear flightlines. Most flightline images for each river segment had some surface-smear defects and some river segments had cloud shadows, but these two conditions did not generally coincide in the majority of the overlapping flightlines for a particular river segment. Therefore, the final image mosaic for the 450-kilometer (km)-long river corridor required careful selection and editing of numerous flightline segments (a total of 513 segments, each 3.2 km long) to minimize surface defects and cloud shadows. The final image mosaic has a total of only 3 km of surface defects. The final image mosaic for the western end of the corridor has
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Veselka, T. D.; Poch, L. A.; Palmer, C. S.
2011-01-11
Because of concerns about the impact that Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) operations were having on downstream ecosystems and endangered species, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) conducted an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on dam operations (DOE 1996). New operating rules and management goals for GCD that had been specified in the Record of Decision (ROD) (Reclamation 1996) were adopted in February 1997. In addition to issuing new operating criteria, the ROD mandated experimental releases for the purpose of conducting scientific studies. This paper examines the financial implications of the experimental flows that were conducted at the GCD from 1997 to 2005.more » An experimental release may have either a positive or negative impact on the financial value of energy production. This study estimates the financial costs of experimental releases, identifies the main factors that contribute to these costs, and compares the interdependencies among these factors. An integrated set of tools was used to compute the financial impacts of the experimental releases by simulating the operation of the GCD under two scenarios, namely, (1) a baseline scenario that assumes operations comply with the ROD operating criteria and experimental releases that actually took place during the study period, and (2) a 'without experiments' scenario that is identical to the baseline scenario of operations that comply with the GCD ROD, except it assumes that experimental releases did not occur. The Generation and Transmission Maximization (GTMax) model was the main simulation tool used to dispatch GCD and other hydropower plants that comprise the Salt Lake City Area Integrated Projects (SLCA/IP). Extensive data sets and historical information on SLCA/IP power plant characteristics, hydrologic conditions, and Western Area Power Administration's (Western's) power purchase prices were used for the simulation. In addition to estimating the financial impact of experimental releases, the GTMax
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Poch, L. A.; Veselka, T. D.; Palmer, C. S.
2011-08-22
Because of concerns about the impact that Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) operations were having on downstream ecosystems and endangered species, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) conducted an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on dam operations (DOE 1996). New operating rules and management goals for GCD that had been specified in the Record of Decision (ROD) (Reclamation 1996) were adopted in February 1997. In addition to issuing new operating criteria, the ROD mandated experimental releases for the purpose of conducting scientific studies. A report released in January 2011 examined the financial implications of the experimental flows that were conducted at the GCDmore » from 1997 to 2005. This report continues the analysis and examines the financial implications of the experimental flows conducted at the GCD from 2006 to 2010. An experimental release may have either a positive or negative impact on the financial value of energy production. This study estimates the financial costs of experimental releases, identifies the main factors that contribute to these costs, and compares the interdependencies among these factors. An integrated set of tools was used to compute the financial impacts of the experimental releases by simulating the operation of the GCD under two scenarios, namely, (1) a baseline scenario that assumes both that operations comply with the ROD operating criteria and the experimental releases that actually took place during the study period, and (2) a 'without experiments' scenario that is identical to the baseline scenario of operations that comply with the GCD ROD, except it assumes that experimental releases did not occur. The Generation and Transmission Maximization (GTMax) model was the main simulation tool used to dispatch GCD and other hydropower plants that comprise the Salt Lake City Area Integrated Projects (SLCA/IP). Extensive data sets and historical information on SLCA/IP powerplant characteristics, hydrologic conditions, and Western
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Kjelstrom, L.C.
1995-01-01
Many individual springs and groups of springs discharge water from volcanic rocks that form the north canyon wall of the Snake River between Milner Dam and King Hill. Previous estimates of annual mean discharge from these springs have been used to understand the hydrology of the eastern part of the Snake River Plain. Four methods that were used in previous studies or developed to estimate annual mean discharge since 1902 were (1) water-budget analysis of the Snake River; (2) correlation of water-budget estimates with discharge from 10 index springs; (3) determination of the combined discharge from individual springs or groups of springs by using annual discharge measurements of 8 springs, gaging-station records of 4 springs and 3 sites on the Malad River, and regression equations developed from 5 of the measured springs; and (4) a single regression equation that correlates gaging-station records of 2 springs with historical water-budget estimates. Comparisons made among the four methods of estimating annual mean spring discharges from 1951 to 1959 and 1963 to 1980 indicated that differences were about equivalent to a measurement error of 2 to 3 percent. The method that best demonstrates the response of annual mean spring discharge to changes in ground-water recharge and discharge is method 3, which combines the measurements and regression estimates of discharge from individual springs.
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4. DARK CANYON SIPHON VIEW ACROSS DARK CANYON AT ...
4. DARK CANYON SIPHON - VIEW ACROSS DARK CANYON AT LOCATION OF SIPHON. VIEW TO NORTHWEST - Carlsbad Irrigation District, Dark Canyon Siphon, On Main Canal, 1 mile South of Carlsbad, Carlsbad, Eddy County, NM
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Water-quality conditions near the confluence of the Snake and Boise Rivers, Canyon County, Idaho
Wood, Molly S.; Etheridge, Alexandra
2011-01-01
Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) have been established under authority of the Federal Clean Water Act for the Snake River-Hells Canyon reach, on the border of Idaho and Oregon, to improve water quality and preserve beneficial uses such as public consumption, recreation, and aquatic habitat. The TMDL sets targets for seasonal average and annual maximum concentrations of chlorophyll-a at 14 and 30 micrograms per liter, respectively. To attain these conditions, the maximum total phosphorus concentration at the mouth of the Boise River in Idaho, a tributary to the Snake River, has been set at 0.07 milligrams per liter. However, interactions among chlorophyll-a, nutrients, and other key water-quality parameters that may affect beneficial uses in the Snake and Boise Rivers are unknown. In addition, contributions of nutrients and chlorophyll-a loads from the Boise River to the Snake River have not been fully characterized. To evaluate seasonal trends and relations among nutrients and other water-quality parameters in the Boise and Snake Rivers, a comprehensive monitoring program was conducted near their confluence in water years (WY) 2009 and 2010. The study also provided information on the relative contribution of nutrient and sediment loads from the Boise River to the Snake River, which has an effect on water-quality conditions in downstream reservoirs. State and site-specific water-quality standards, in addition to those that relate to the Snake River-Hells Canyon TMDL, have been established to protect beneficial uses in both rivers. Measured water-quality conditions in WY2009 and WY2010 exceeded these targets at one or more sites for the following constituents: water temperature, total phosphorus concentrations, total phosphorus loads, dissolved oxygen concentration, pH, and chlorophyll-a concentrations (WY2009 only). All measured total phosphorus concentrations in the Boise River near Parma exceeded the seasonal target of 0.07 milligram per liter. Data collected
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Rapid water quality change in the Elwha River estuary complex during dam removal
Foley, Melissa M.; Duda, Jeffrey J.; Beirne, Matthew M.; Paradis, Rebecca; Ritchie, Andrew; Warrick, Jonathan A.
2015-01-01
Dam removal in the United States is increasing as a result of structural concerns, sedimentation of reservoirs, and declining riverine ecosystem conditions. The removal of the 32 m Elwha and 64 m Glines Canyon dams from the Elwha River in Washington, U.S.A., was the largest dam removal project in North American history. During the 3 yr of dam removal—from September 2011 to August 2014—more than ten million cubic meters of sediment was eroded from the former reservoirs, transported downstream, and deposited throughout the lower river, river delta, and nearshore waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Water quality data collected in the estuary complex at the mouth of the Elwha River document how conditions in the estuary changed as a result of sediment deposition over the 3 yr the dams were removed. Rapid and large-scale changes in estuary conditions—including salinity, depth, and turbidity—occurred 1 yr into the dam removal process. Tidal propagation into the estuary ceased following a large sediment deposition event that began in October 2013, resulting in decreased salinity, and increased depth and turbidity in the estuary complex. These changes have persisted in the system through dam removal, significantly altering the structure and functioning of the Elwha River estuary ecosystem.
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Financial analysis of experimental releases conducted at Glen Canyon Dam during water year 2011
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Poch, L. A.; Veselka, T. D.; Palmer, C. S.
2012-07-16
This report examines the financial implications of experimental flows conducted at the Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) in water year 2011. It is the third report in a series examining financial implications of experimental flows conducted since the Record of Decision (ROD) was adopted in February 1997 (Reclamation 1996). A report released in January 2011 examined water years 1997 to 2005 (Veselka et al. 2011), and a report released in August 2011 examined water years 2006 to 2010 (Poch et al. 2011). An experimental release may have either a positive or negative impact on the financial value of energy production. Thismore » study estimates the financial costs of experimental releases, identifies the main factors that contribute to these costs, and compares the interdependencies among these factors. An integrated set of tools was used to compute the financial impacts of the experimental releases by simulating the operation of the GCD under two scenarios, namely, (1) a baseline scenario that assumes both that operations comply with the ROD operating criteria and the experimental releases that actually took place during the study period, and (2) a 'without experiments' scenario that is identical to the baseline scenario of operations that comply with the GCD ROD, except it assumes that experimental releases did not occur. The Generation and Transmission Maximization (GTMax) model was the main simulation tool used to dispatch GCD and other hydropower plants that comprise the Salt Lake City Area Integrated Projects (SLCA/IP). Extensive data sets and historical information on SLCA/IP powerplant characteristics, hydrologic conditions, and Western Area Power Administration's (Western's) power purchase prices were used for the simulation. In addition to estimating the financial impact of experimental releases, the GTMax model was also used to gain insights into the interplay among ROD operating criteria, exceptions that were made to criteria to accommodate the experimental releases
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Gartner, J.W.; Ganju, N.K.
2007-01-01
Discharge measurements were made by acoustic Doppler current profiler at two locations on the Colorado River during the 2004 controlled flood from Glen Canyon Dam, Arizona. Measurement hardware and software have constantly improved from the 1980s such that discharge measurements by acoustic profiling instruments are now routinely made over a wide range of hydrologic conditions. However, measurements made with instruments deployed from moving boats require reliable boat velocity data for accurate measurements of discharge. This is normally accomplished by using special acoustic bottom track pings that sense instrument motion over bottom. While this method is suitable for most conditions, high current flows that produce downstream bed sediment movement create a condition known as moving bed that will bias velocities and discharge to lower than actual values. When this situation exists, one solution is to determine boat velocity with satellite positioning information. Another solution is to use a lower frequency instrument. Discharge measurements made during the 2004 Glen Canyon controlled flood were subject to moving-bed conditions and frequent loss of bottom track. Due to site conditions and equipment availability, the measurements were conducted without benefit of external positioning information or lower frequency instruments. This paper documents and evaluates several techniques used to correct the resulting underestimated discharge measurements. One technique produces discharge values in good agreement with estimates from numerical model and measured hydrographs during the flood. ?? 2007, by the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, Inc.
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Cashion, W.B.; Kilburn, J.E.; Barton, H.N.
1990-09-01
This paper reports on the Desolation Canyon, Turtle Canyon, and Floy Canyon Wilderness Study Areas which include 242,000 acres, 33,690 acres, and 23,140 acres. Coal deposits underlie all three study areas. Coal zones in the Blackhawk and Nelsen formations have identified bituminous coal resources of 22 million short tons in the Desolation Canyon Study Area, 6.3 million short tons in the Turtle Canyon Study Area, and 45 million short tons in the Floy Canyon Study Area. In-place inferred oil shale resources are estimated to contain 60 million barrels in the northern part of the Desolation Canyon area. Minor occurrences ofmore » uranium have been found in the southeastern part of the Desolation Canyon area and in the western part of the Floy Canyon area. Mineral resource potential for the study areas is estimated to be for coal, high for all areas, for oil and gas, high for the northern tract of the Desolation Canyon area and moderate for all other tracts, for bituminous sandstone, high for the northern part of the Desolation Canyon area, and low for all other tracts, for oil shale, low in all areas, for uranium, moderate for the Floy Canyon area and the southeastern part of the Desolation Canyon area and low for the remainder of the areas, for metals other than uranium, bentonite, zeolites, and geothermal energy, low in all areas, and for coal-bed methane unknown in all three areas.« less
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Beasley, Chris; Tabor, R.A.; Kinzer, Ryan
2003-04-01
This report summarizes brood year 1999 juvenile production and emigration data and adult return information for 2000 for streams studied by the Nez Perce Tribe for the cooperative Idaho Salmon Supplementation Studies in Idaho Rivers (ISS) project. In order to provide inclusive juvenile data for brood year 1999, we include data on parr, presmolt, smolt and yearling captures. Therefore, our reporting period includes juvenile data collected from April 2000 through June 2001 for parr, presmolts, and smolts and through June 2002 for brood year 1999 yearling emigrants. Data presented in this report include; fish outplant data for treatment streams, snorkelmore » and screw trap estimates of juvenile fish abundance, juvenile emigration profiles, juvenile survival estimates to Lower Granite Dam (LGJ), redd counts, and carcass data. There were no brood year 1999 treatments in Legendary Bear or Fishing Creek. As in previous years, snorkeling methods provided highly variable population estimates. Alternatively, rotary screw traps operated in Lake Creek and the Secesh River provided more precise estimates of juvenile abundance by life history type. Juvenile fish emigration in Lake Creek and the Secesh River peaked during July and August. Juveniles produced in this watershed emigrated primarily at age zero, and apparently reared in downstream habitats before detection as age one or older fish at the Snake and Columbia River dams. Over the course of the ISS study, PIT tag data suggest that smolts typically exhibit the highest relative survival to Lower Granite Dam (LGJ) compared to presmolts and parr, although we observed the opposite trend for brood year 1999 juvenile emigrants from the Secesh River. SURPH2 survival estimates for brood year 1999 Lake Creek parr, presmolt, and smolt PIT tag groups to (LGJ) were 27%, 39%, and 49% respectively, and 14%, 12%, and 5% for the Secesh River. In 2000, we counted 41 redds in Legendary Bear Creek, 4 in Fishing Creek, 5 in Slate Creek
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Morehead, M. D.; Wilson, T.; Butler, M.; Seal, N.
2012-12-01
Sediment depletion downstream of large dams causes long-term geomorphic change along a river reach. Short- and long-term, natural and human-altered discharge patterns cause additional geomorphic change. Annual high-resolution, topobathymetry data are being collected on sandbars to track patterns of geomorphic and volumetric change through time. The sandbars are located along the Hells Canyon reach of the Snake River on the Oregon/Idaho border. The bars are downstream of a number of dams that have cut off the upstream source of sand to the Hells Canyon reach. We are combining LiDAR data for above water areas, multibeam SONAR data for below water areas and RTK-GPS data for the water/land interface and densely vegetated areas. Idaho Power has installed and surveyed a control point network to allow accurate positioning of the data and aligning of the various data sets. Data densities are a few points per square meter with the RTK-GPS, tens of points per square meter with the SONAR, and up to hundreds of points per square meter with the ground-based LiDAR. Automated and manual methods are being used to clean the point cloud data. A number of techniques are being used to convert the point clouds to grids, typically utilizing a unique technique for each data type (GPS, LiDAR, and SONAR). Surface roughness data are being used to determine the edges of the sand region, especially in the underwater area where we do not have visual confirmation of the boundary. After the different data types are gridded, they are combined to create seamless surfaces which are then analyzed. The morphologies of the central crest and the back channel of the sandbars are changing between years. In years with higher than average spring flows, the central crest of the sandbars increases in elevation and the back channels deepen. In years with moderate and low spring flows, the height of the crests decline and the back channels fill in. The flattening of the sandbars is attributed to natural
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Bretz, Justin K.; Olson, Jill M.
2003-03-01
In 2002 the Idaho Fisheries Resource Office continued working as a cooperator on the Salmon Supplementation Studies in Idaho Rivers (ISS) project on Pete King and Clear creeks. Data relating to supplementation treatment releases, juvenile sampling, juvenile PIT tagging, broodstock spawning and rearing, spawning ground surveys, and snorkel surveys were used to evaluate the project data points and augment past data. Supplementation treatments included the release of 51,329 left ventral-clipped smolts into Clear Creek (750 were PIT tagged), and 12,000 unmarked coded-wire tagged parr into Pete King Creek (998 were PIT tagged). Using juvenile collection methods, Idaho Fisheries Resource Officemore » staff PIT tagged and released 579 naturally produced spring chinook juveniles in Clear Creek, and 54 on Pete King Creek, for minimum survival estimates to Lower Granite Dam. For Clear Creek, minimum survival estimates to Lower Granite Dam of hatchery produced supplementation and naturally produced PIT tagged smolts, were 36.0%, and 53.1%, respectively. For Pete King Creek, minimum survival estimates to Lower Granite Dam, of hatchery produced supplementation smolts and naturally produced smolts PIT tagged as parr and presmolts, were 18.8%, and 8.3%, respectively. Adults collected for broodstock in 2002 represented the final adult broodstock group collected for the ISS project. Twenty-six ventral clipped, and 28 natural adult spring chinook were transported above the weir. Monitoring and evaluation of spawning success was continued on Clear and Pete King creeks. A total of 69 redds were counted and 79 carcasses were recovered on Clear Creek. Two redds were observed and no carcasses were collected on Pete King Creek.« less
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Melis, T. S.; Topping, D. J.; Rubin, D. M.; Agrawal, Y. C.
2002-12-01
Intensive monitoring of suspended-sediment in the Colorado River ecosystem below Glen Canyon Dam is a priority for environmental management. Historically, the program has been logistically complicated, costly and limited in spatial and temporal resolution. These elements have contributed to relatively large uncertainties in mass-balance estimates of sediment export. To improve mass-balance estimates, the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center is field testing new and existing technologies to develop a continuous suspended-sediment transport protocol. A recent innovation includes use of optical forward-scattering instruments, LISST, in combination with programmable pumping samplers. The LISST-100 (Laser In-Situ Scattering and Transmissometry) is both a particle-size analyzer (size range 2.5 to 500 microns) and a transmissometer capable of measuring variable concentrations, depending on particle size. A second innovation, the LISST-25X, is a recently developed variation of the instrumentation that allows sand to be measured separately from finer particles. This is achieved by use of shaped focal plane detectors that compute 2 distinct weighted sums of angular scattering by suspended particles. The LISST-25X currently collects volume-concentration and grain size (Sauter-mean-diameter) data for suspended particles at four sites below the dam. Unit values are derived by averaging 1000 individual measurements every 15-minutes (sampling about 1.1 liters of water per hour). The volume-to-mass conversion is made once average particle density has been gravimetrically determined through conventional methods. During high-concentration conditions, laser-transmission values (T) can fall outside of the user-defined minimal threshold (20
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Ralston, Barbara E.; Davis, Philip A.; Weber, Robert M.; Rundall, Jill M.
2008-01-01
A vegetation database of the riparian vegetation located within the Colorado River ecosystem (CRE), a subsection of the Colorado River between Glen Canyon Dam and the western boundary of Grand Canyon National Park, was constructed using four-band image mosaics acquired in May 2002. A digital line scanner was flown over the Colorado River corridor in Arizona by ISTAR Americas, using a Leica ADS-40 digital camera to acquire a digital surface model and four-band image mosaics (blue, green, red, and near-infrared) for vegetation mapping. The primary objective of this mapping project was to develop a digital inventory map of vegetation to enable patch- and landscape-scale change detection, and to establish randomized sampling points for ground surveys of terrestrial fauna (principally, but not exclusively, birds). The vegetation base map was constructed through a combination of ground surveys to identify vegetation classes, image processing, and automated supervised classification procedures. Analysis of the imagery and subsequent supervised classification involved multiple steps to evaluate band quality, band ratios, and vegetation texture and density. Identification of vegetation classes involved collection of cover data throughout the river corridor and subsequent analysis using two-way indicator species analysis (TWINSPAN). Vegetation was classified into six vegetation classes, following the National Vegetation Classification Standard, based on cover dominance. This analysis indicated that total area covered by all vegetation within the CRE was 3,346 ha. Considering the six vegetation classes, the sparse shrub (SS) class accounted for the greatest amount of vegetation (627 ha) followed by Pluchea (PLSE) and Tamarix (TARA) at 494 and 366 ha, respectively. The wetland (WTLD) and Prosopis-Acacia (PRGL) classes both had similar areal cover values (227 and 213 ha, respectively). Baccharis-Salix (BAXX) was the least represented at 94 ha. Accuracy assessment of the
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Arantegui, A.; Corella, J. P.; Loizeau, J. L.; Anselmetti, F. S.; Girardclos, S.
2012-04-01
Deltas are very sensitive environments and highly vulnerable to variations in water discharge and the amount of suspended sediment load provided by the delta-forming currents. Human activities in the watershed, such as building of dams and irrigation ditches, or river bed deviations, may affect the discharge regime and sediment input, thus affecting delta growth. Underwater currents create deeply incised canyons cutting into the delta lobes. Understanding the sedimentary processes in these subaquatic canyons is crucial to reconstruct the fluvial evolution and human impact on deltaic environments and to carry out a geological risk assessment related to mass movements, which may affect underwater structures and civil infractructure. Recently acquired high-resolution multibeam bathymetry on the Rhone Delta in Lake Geneva (Sastre et al. 2010) revealed the complexity of the underwater morphology formed by active and inactive canyons first described by Forel (1892). In order to unravel the sedimentary processes and sedimentary evolution in these canyons, 27 sediment cores were retrieved in the distal part of each canyon and in the canyon floor/levee complex of the active canyon. Geophysical, sedimentological, geochemical and radiometric dating techniques were applied to analyse these cores. Preliminary data show that only the canyon originating at the current river mouth is active nowadays, while the others remain inactive since engineering works in the watershed occurred, confirming Sastre et al. (2010). However, alternating hemipelagic and turbiditic deposits on the easternmost canyons, evidence underflow processes during the last decades as well. Two canyons, which are located close to the Rhone river mouth, correspond to particularly interesting deeply incised crevasse channels formed when the underwater current broke through the outer bend of a meander in the proximal northern levee. In these canyons, turbidites occur in the sediment record indicating ongoing
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Geologic framework of thermal springs, Black Canyon, Nevada and Arizona
Beard, L. Sue; Anderson, Zachary W.; Felger, Tracey J.; Seixas, Gustav B.
2014-01-01
Thermal springs in Black Canyon of the Colorado River, downstream of Hoover Dam, are important recreational, ecological, and scenic features of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. This report presents the results from a U.S. Geological Survey study of the geologic framework of the springs. The study was conducted in cooperation with the National Park Service and funded by both the National Park Service and National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program of the U.S. Geological Survey. The report has two parts: A, a 1:48,000-scale geologic map created from existing geologic maps and augmented by new geologic mapping and geochronology; and B, an interpretive report that presents results based on a collection of fault kinematic data near springs within Black Canyon and construction of 1:100,000-scale geologic cross sections that extend across the western Lake Mead region. Exposures in Black Canyon are mostly of Miocene volcanic rocks, underlain by crystalline basement composed of Miocene plutonic rocks or Proterozoic metamorphic rocks. The rocks are variably tilted and highly faulted. Faults strike northwest to northeast and include normal and strike-slip faults. Spring discharge occurs along faults intruded by dacite dikes and plugs; weeping walls and seeps extend away from the faults in highly fractured rock or relatively porous volcanic breccias, or both. Results of kinematic analysis of fault data collected along tributaries to the Colorado River indicate two episodes of deformation, consistent with earlier studies. The earlier episode formed during east-northeast-directed extension, and the later during east-southeast-directed extension. At the northern end of the study area, pre-existing fault blocks that formed during the first episode were rotated counterclockwise along the left-lateral Lake Mead Fault System. The resulting fault pattern forms a complex arrangement that provides both barriers and pathways for groundwater movement within and around Black
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Hydro-geomorphology of the middle Elwha River, Washington, following dam removal
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Morgan, J. A.; Nelson, P. A.; Brogan, D. J.
2017-12-01
Dam removal is an increasingly common river restoration practice, which can produce dramatic increases in sediment supply to downstream reaches. There remains, however, considerable uncertainty in how mesoscale morphological units (e.g., riffles and pools) respond to the flow and sediment supply changes associated with dam removal. The recent removal of Glines Canyon Dam on the Elwha River in Washington State provides a natural setting to explore how increased sediment supply due to dam removal may affect downstream reaches. Here, we present observations and surveys documenting how a 1 km reach, located approximately 5 km downstream of the former dam site, has evolved following dam removal. Annual topographic/bathymetric surveys were conducted in 2014-2016 using RTK-GNSS methods, and these surveys were coupled with airborne lidar to create continuous surface maps of the valley bottom. Differencing the elevation models reveals channel widening and migration due to lateral bank retreat and bar aggradation. Analysis of aerial imagery dating back to 1939 suggests that rates of both widening and meander migration have increased following dam removal. We also used results from depth-averaged hydrodynamic modeling with a fuzzy c-means clustering approach to delineate riffle and pool units; this analysis suggests that both riffles and pools stayed relatively consistent from 2014-2015, while both areas decreased from 2015 to 2016. Without any considerable changes to the hydrologic regime these higher rates of change are implied to be the result of the increased sediment supply. Our results, which indicate an increased dynamism due directly to the amplified sediment supply, have the potential to further inform river managers and restoration specialists who oversee projects related to changing sediment regimes.
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Grams, Paul E.; Tusso, Robert B.; Buscombe, Daniel
2018-02-27
Automated camera systems deployed at 43 remote locations along the Colorado River corridor in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, are used to document sandbar erosion and deposition that are associated with the operations of Glen Canyon Dam. The camera systems, which can operate independently for a year or more, consist of a digital camera triggered by a separate data controller, both of which are powered by an external battery and solar panel. Analysis of images for categorical changes in sandbar size show deposition at 50 percent or more of monitoring sites during controlled flood releases done in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2016. The images also depict erosion of sandbars and show that erosion rates were highest in the first 3 months following each controlled flood. Erosion rates were highest in 2015, the year of highest annual dam release volume. Comparison of the categorical estimates of sandbar change agree with sandbar change (erosion or deposition) measured by topographic surveys in 76 percent of cases evaluated. A semiautomated method for quantifying changes in sandbar area from the remote-camera images by rectifying the oblique images and segmenting the sandbar from the rest of the image is presented. Calculation of sandbar area by this method agrees with sandbar area determined by topographic survey within approximately 8 percent and allows quantification of sandbar area monthly (or more frequently).
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Duda, Jeffrey J.; Warrick, Jonathan A.; Magirl, Christopher S.; Duda, Jeffrey J.; Warrick, Jonathan A.; Magirl, Christopher S.
2011-01-01
Characterizing the physical and biological characteristics of the lower Elwha River, its estuary, and adjacent nearshore habitats prior to dam removal is essential to monitor changes to these areas during and following the historic dam-removal project set to begin in September 2011. Based on the size of the two hydroelectric projects and the amount of sediment that will be released, the Elwha River in Washington State will be home to the largest river restoration through dam removal attempted in the United States. Built in 1912 and 1927, respectively, the Elwha and Glines Canyon Dams have altered key physical and biological characteristics of the Elwha River. Once abundant salmon populations, consisting of all five species of Pacific salmon, are restricted to the lower 7.8 river kilometers downstream of Elwha Dam and are currently in low numbers. Dam removal will reopen access to more than 140 km of mainstem, flood plain, and tributary habitat, most of which is protected within Olympic National Park. The high capture rate of river-borne sediments by the two reservoirs has changed the geomorphology of the riverbed downstream of the dams. Mobilization and downstream transport of these accumulated reservoir sediments during and following dam removal will significantly change downstream river reaches, the estuary complex, and the nearshore environment. To introduce the more detailed studies that follow in this report, we summarize many of the key aspects of the Elwha River ecosystem including a regional and historical context for this unprecedented project.
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Hazel, Joseph E.; Kaplinski, Matt; Parnell, Rod; Kohl, Keith; Topping, David J.
2007-01-01
This report presents stage-discharge relations for 47 discrete locations along the Colorado River, downstream from Glen Canyon Dam. Predicting the river stage that results from changes in flow regime is important for many studies investigating the effects of dam operations on resources in and along the Colorado River. The empirically based stage-discharge relations were developed from water-surface elevation data surveyed at known discharges at all 47 locations. The rating curves accurately predict stage at each location for discharges between 141 cubic meters per second and 1,274 cubic meters per second. The coefficient of determination (R2) of the fit to the data ranged from 0.993 to 1.00. Given the various contributing errors to the method, a conservative error estimate of ?0.05 m was assigned to the rating curves.
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Origin of Florida Canyon and the role of spring sapping on the formation of submarine box canyons
Paull, Charles K.; Spiess, Fred N.; Curray, Joseph R.; Twichell, David C.
1990-01-01
Florida Canyon, one of a series of major submarine canyons on the southwestern edge of the Florida Platform, was surveyed using GLORIA, SeaBeam, and Deep-Tow technologies, and it was directly observed during three DSRV Alvin dives. Florida Canyon exhibits two distinct morphologies: a broad V-shaped upper canyon and a deeply entrenched, flat-floored, U-shaped lower canyon. The flat- floored lower canyon extends 20 km into the Florida Platform from the abyssal Gulf. The lower canyon ends abruptly at an ∼3 km in diameter semicircular headwall that rises 750 m with a >60° slope angle to the foot of the upper canyon. The sides of the lower canyon are less steep than its headwall and are characterized by straight faces that occur along preferred orientations and indicate a strong joint control. The upper canyon is characterized by a gently sloping, straight V-shaped central valley cut into a broad terrace. The flat floor of the upper canyon continues as terraces along the upper walls of the lower canyon. On the flanks of the upper canyon, there are five >50-m-deep, >0.5-km-wide, closed sink-hole-like depressions which indicate subsurface dissolution within the platform. The origin of the lower canyon is difficult to explain with traditional models of submarine canyon formation by external physical processes. The movement of ground water, probably with high salinities and reduced compounds along regional joints, may have focused the corrosive force of submarine spring sapping at the head of the lower canyon to produce the canyon's present shape.
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Kennedy, T.A.; Ralston, B.E.
2012-01-01
Dams and associated river regulation have led to the expansion of riparian vegetation, especially nonnative species, along downstream ecosystems. Nonnative saltcedar is one of the dominant riparian plants along virtually every major river system in the arid western United States, but allochthonous inputs have never been quantified along a segment of a large river that is dominated by saltcedar. We developed a novel method for estimating direct allochthonous inputs along the 387km-long reach of the Colorado River downstream of Glen Canyon Dam that utilized a GIS vegetation map developed from aerial photographs, empirical and literature-derived litter production data for the dominant vegetation types, and virtual shorelines of annual peak discharge (566m 3s -1 stage elevation). Using this method, we estimate that direct allochthonous inputs from riparian vegetation for the entire reach studied total 186metric tonsyear -1, which represents mean inputs of 470gAFDMm -1year -1 of shoreline or 5.17gAFDMm -2year -1 of river surface. These values are comparable to allochthonous inputs for other large rivers and systems that also have sparse riparian vegetation. Nonnative saltcedar represents a significant component of annual allochthonous inputs (36% of total direct inputs) in the Colorado River. We also estimated direct allochthonous inputs for 46.8km of the Colorado River prior to closure of Glen Canyon Dam using a vegetation map that was developed from historical photographs. Regulation has led to significant increases in riparian vegetation (270-319% increase in cover, depending on stage elevation), but annual allochthonous inputs appear unaffected by regulation because of the lower flood peaks on the post-dam river. Published in 2010 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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Effects of a test flood on fishes of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, Arizona
Valdez, R.A.; Hoffnagle, T.L.; McIvor, C.C.; McKinney, T.; Leibfried, W.C.
2001-01-01
A beach/habitat-building flow (i.e., test flood) of 1274 m3/s, released from Glen Canyon Dam down the Colorado River through Grand Canyon, had little effect on distribution, abundance, or movement of native fishes, and only short-term effects on densities of some nonnative species Shoreline and backwater catch rates of native fishes, including juvenile humpback chub (Gila cypha), flannelmouth suckers (Catostomus latipinnis), and bluehead suckers (C. discobolus), and all ages of speckled dace (Rhinichthys osculus), were not significantly different before and after the flood. Annual spring spawning migrations of flannelmouth suckers into the Paria River and endangered humpback chub into the Little Colorado River (LCR) took place during and after the flood, indicating no impediment to fish migrations. Pre-spawning adults staged in large slack water pools formed at the mouths of these tributaries during the flood. Net movement and habitat used by nine radio-tagged adult humpback chub during the flood were not significantly different from prior observations. Diet composition of adult humpback chub varied, but total biomass did not differ significantly before, during, and after the flood, indicating opportunistic feeding for a larger array of available food items displaced by the flood. Numbers of nonnative rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) <152 mm total length decreased by ???8% in electrofishing samples from the dam tailwaters (0-25 km downstream of the dam) during the flood. Increased catch rates in the vicinity of the LCR (125 km downstream of the dam) and Hell's Hollow (314 km downstream of the dam) suggest that these young trout were displaced downstream by the flood, although displacement distance was unknown since some fish could have originated from local populations associated with intervening tributaries. Abundance, catch rate, body condition, and diet of adult rainbow trout in the dam tailwaters were not significantly affected by the flood, and the flood
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Moran, Michael J.; Wilson, Jon W.; Beard, L. Sue
2015-11-03
Several major faults, including the Salt Cedar Fault and the Palm Tree Fault, play an important role in the movement of groundwater. Groundwater may move along these faults and discharge where faults intersect volcanic breccias or fractured rock. Vertical movement of groundwater along faults is suggested as a mechanism for the introduction of heat energy present in groundwater from many of the springs. Groundwater altitudes in the study area indicate a potential for flow from Eldorado Valley to Black Canyon although current interpretations of the geology of this area do not favor such flow. If groundwater from Eldorado Valley discharges at springs in Black Canyon then the development of groundwater resources in Eldorado Valley could result in a decrease in discharge from the springs. Geology and structure indicate that it is not likely that groundwater can move between Detrital Valley and Black Canyon. Thus, the development of groundwater resources in Detrital Valley may not result in a decrease in discharge from springs in Black Canyon.
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Mullins, William H.
1999-01-01
The lower Boise River, between Lucky Peak Dam and the mouth of the river near Parma, Idaho, is adversely affected by various land- and water-use activities. To assess the biotic integrity of the river and the effects of environmental perturbations on aquatic community structure, and to provide a baseline from which to identify future changes in habitat conditions, biological data were collected from October 1995 through January 1998 and evaluated using protocols developed for the U.S. Geological Survey National Water-Quality Assessment Program. Aquatic biological communities were sampled according to the following schedule: epilithic periphyton were collected in October 1995, October 1996, and August 1997; benthic macroinvertebrates were collected in October 1995, 1996, and 1997; and fish were collected in December 1996 and August 1997. Qualitative measurements of instream and riparian habitat indicated an overall decrease in instream habitat quality in a downstream direction. Embeddedness was high at all sites but was lower at the Eckert Road site than at the downstream sites near Middleton and Parma. Silt/sand substrate increased from 17 percent at the Eckert Road site to 49 percent near the mouth of the river. The Eckert Road site had a mix of geomorphic channel units (pool/riffle/run), whereas the Middleton and Parma sites were dominated by runs with very little pool or riffle habitat. Epilithic periphyton chlorophyll-a and ashfree dry weight values tended to increase downstream to the Middleton site and decrease from Middleton to the downstream sites near Caldwell and near Parma. Benthic index of biotic integrity (B-IBI) scores for macroinvertebrates collected in 1995, 1996, and 1997 were highest at the Eckert Road site and decreased at sites downstream. IBI scores for fish collected in 1996 were similar at the Glenwood Bridge and Middleton sites (17 and 16, respectively) and were indicative of a low to moderate level of disturbance. In contrast, the IBI score
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Nez Perce Tribe Resources Management Staff,
rates of early life stages by modifying flows in the HCR, reducing mortality imposed by the catch and release fishery, augmenting natural production through translocation or hatchery releases, and assessing detrimental effects of contaminants on reproductive potential. These proposed actions were evaluated by assessing their relative potential to affect population growth rate and by determining the feasibility of their execution, including a realistic timeframe (short-term, mid-term, long-term) for their implementation and evaluation. A multi-pronged approach for management was decided upon whereby various actions will be implemented and evaluated under different timeframes. Priority management actions include: Action I- Produce juvenile white sturgeon in a hatchery and release into the management area; Action G- Collect juvenile white sturgeon from other populations in the Snake or Columbia rivers and release them into the management area; and Action D- Restore white sturgeon passage upriver and downriver at Lower Snake and Idaho Power dams. An integral part of this approach is the continual monitoring of performance measures to assess the progressive response of the population to implemented actions, to evaluate the actions efficacy toward achieving objectives, and to refine and redirect strategies if warranted.« less
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kasprak, A.; Buscombe, D.; Caster, J.; Grams, P. E.; Sankey, J. B.
2016-12-01
Sediment connectivity is a vital component of the eco-geomorphic function of river systems, and the pathways of sediment transfer in river valleys often shift in response to channel disturbance and development. Along the Colorado River downstream of Glen Canyon Dam (completed in 1963), flow alteration for hydropower generation has increased baseflows while reducing the magnitude of regularly-occurring floods, and vegetation has subsequently colonized many channel-margin surfaces. In this dryland, canyon-bound river system, aeolian transport has historically been a vital component of sediment connectivity, yet the relative roles of altered hydrology and vegetation on the extent of sand available for windblown transport are unknown. Here we use a fusion of high-resolution spatial datasets including channel bathymetry and bed classification derived from single- and multibeam echosounding and total station surveys, exposed sand mapping and vegetation classification from multispectral imagery, in concert with a 94 year discharge record and one-dimensional hydraulic modeling to quantify changes in sand availability along a 48 km reach of the Colorado River. We find that hydrologic alteration alone has reduced areal sand availability by approximately 15% when comparing the pre- and post-dam flow records, while vegetation encroachment has had an even greater effect. More than half of the total sand area in the study reach is located at low flow stages below 226 m3/s, meaning that small reductions in baseflow discharge have the potential to expose large quantities of sand, and we subsequently explore the relative effect of alternative flow regimes on sand exposure during the postdam period. The ability to quantify and explore the efficacy of river management strategies on large-scale sediment connectivity has the potential to inform eco-geomorphic management of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon and other regulated rivers worldwide.
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Elwha River dam removal: A major opportunity for salmon and steelhead recolonization
Pess, George R.; Brenkman, Samuel J.; Winans, Gary A.; McHenry, Michael L.; Duda, Jeffrey J.; Beechie, Timothy J.
2010-01-01
In this in-depth paper, authors George R. Pess, Gary A. Winans and Timothy J. Beechie of the NOAA Fisheries, Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle, Samuel J. Brenkman of the National Park Service, Olympic National Park, Michael L. McHenry of the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe and Jeffrey J. Duda of the U.S. Geological Survey, Western Fisheries Research Center in Seattle, provide an historical overview of the Elwha River system, and its native anadromous fish runs and the prospect of their recolonization after the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams are removed.
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Seasonal and spatial patterns of growth of rainbow trout in the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, AZ
Yard, Micheal D.; Korman, Josh; Walters, Carl J.; Kennedy, T.A.
2016-01-01
Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) have been purposely introduced in many regulated rivers, with inadvertent consequences on native fishes. We describe how trout growth rates and condition could be influencing trout population dynamics in a 130 km section of the Colorado River below Glen Canyon Dam based on a large-scale mark–recapture program where ∼8000 rainbow trout were recaptured over a 3-year period (2012–2014). There were strong temporal and spatial variations in growth in both length and weight as predicted from von Bertalanffy and bioenergetic models, respectively. There was more evidence for seasonal variation in the growth coefficient and annual variation in the asymptotic length. Bioenergetic models showed more variability for growth in weight across seasons and years than across reaches. These patterns were consistent with strong seasonal variation in invertebrate drift and effects of turbidity on foraging efficiency. Highest growth rates and relative condition occurred in downstream reaches with lower trout densities. Results indicate that reduction in rainbow trout abundance in Glen Canyon will likely increase trout size in the tailwater fishery and may reduce downstream dispersal into Grand Canyon.
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Preliminary geologic map of Black Canyon and surrounding region, Nevada and Arizona
Felger, Tracey J.; Beard, L. Sue; Anderson, Zachary W.; Fleck, Robert J.; Wooden, Joseph L.; Seixas, Gustav B.
2014-01-01
Thermal springs in Black Canyon of the Colorado River, downstream of Hoover Dam, are important recreational, ecological, and scenic features of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. This report presents the results from a U.S. Geological Survey study of the geologic framework of the springs. The study was conducted in cooperation with the National Park Service and funded by both the National Park Service and National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program of the U.S. Geological Survey. The report has two parts: A, a 1:48,000-scale geologic map created from existing geologic maps and augmented by new geologic mapping and geochronology; and B, an interpretive report that presents results based on a collection of fault kinematic data near springs within Black Canyon and construction of 1:100,000-scale geologic cross sections that extend across the western Lake Mead region. Exposures in Black Canyon are mostly of Miocene volcanic rocks, underlain by crystalline basement composed of Miocene plutonic rocks or Proterozoic metamorphic rocks. The rocks are variably tilted and highly faulted. Faults strike northwest to northeast and include normal and strike-slip faults. Spring discharge occurs along faults intruded by dacite dikes and plugs; weeping walls and seeps extend away from the faults in highly fractured rock or relatively porous volcanic breccias, or both. Results of kinematic analysis of fault data collected along tributaries to the Colorado River indicate two episodes of deformation, consistent with earlier studies. The earlier episode formed during east-northeast-directed extension, and the later during east-southeast-directed extension. At the northern end of the study area, pre-existing fault blocks that formed during the first episode were rotated counterclockwise along the left-lateral Lake Mead Fault System. The resulting fault pattern forms a complex arrangement that provides both barriers and pathways for groundwater movement within and around Black
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Causey, J. Douglas; Moyle, Phillip R.
2001-01-01
This report provides a description of data and processes used to produce a spatial database that delineates mining-related features in areas of historic and active phosphate mining in the core of the southeastern Idaho phosphate resource area. The data have varying degrees of accuracy and attribution detail. Classification of areas by type of mining-related activity at active mines is generally detailed; however, the spatial coverage does not differentiate mining-related surface disturbance features at many of the closed or inactive mines. Nineteen phosphate mine sites are included in the study. A total of 5,728 hc (14,154 ac), or more than 57 km2 (22 mi2), of phosphate mining-related surface disturbance are documented in the spatial coverage of the core of the southeast Idaho phosphate resource area. The study includes 4 active phosphate mines—Dry Valley, Enoch Valley, Rasmussen Ridge, and Smoky Canyon—and 15 historic phosphate mines—Ballard, Champ, Conda, Diamond Gulch, Gay, Georgetown Canyon, Henry, Home Canyon, Lanes Creek, Maybe Canyon, Mountain Fuel, Trail Canyon, Rattlesnake Canyon, Waterloo, and Wooley Valley. Spatial data on the inactive historic mines is relatively up-to-date; however, spatially described areas for active mines are based on digital maps prepared in early 1999. The inactive Gay mine has the largest total area of disturbance: 1,917 hc (4,736 ac) or about 19 km2 (7.4 mi2). It encompasses over three times the disturbance area of the next largest mine, the Conda mine with 607 hc (1,504 ac), and it is nearly four times the area of the Smoky Canyon mine, the largest of the active mines with 497 hc (1,228 ac). The wide range of phosphate mining-related surface disturbance features (approximately 80) were reduced to 13 types or features used in this study—adit and pit, backfilled mine pit, facilities, mine pit, ore stockpile, railroad, road, sediment catchment, tailings or tailings pond, topsoil stockpile, water reservoir, and disturbed
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Czuba, Christiana R.; Randle, Timothy J.; Bountry, Jennifer A.; Magirl, Christopher S.; Czuba, Jonathan A.; Curran, Christopher A.; Konrad, Christopher P.; Duda, Jeffrey J.; Warrick, Jonathan A.; Magirl, Christopher S.
2011-01-01
During and after the planned incremental removal of two large, century-old concrete dams between 2011 and 2014, the sediment-transport regime in the lower Elwha River of western Washington will initially spike above background levels and then return to pre-dam conditions some years after complete dam removal. Measurements indicate the upper reaches of the steep-gradient Elwha River, draining the northeast section of the Olympic Mountains, carries between an estimated 120,000 and 290,000 cubic meters of sediment annually. This large load has deposited an estimated 19 million cubic meters of sediment within the two reservoirs formed by the Elwha and Glines Canyon Dams. It is anticipated that from 7 to 8 million cubic meters of this trapped sediment will mobilize and transport downstream during and after dam decommissioning, restoring the downstream sections of the sediment-starved river and nearshore marine environments. Downstream transport of sediment from the dam sites will have significant effects on channel morphology, water quality, and aquatic habitat during and after dam removal. Sediment concentrations are expected to be between 200 and 1,000 milligrams per liter during and just after dam removal and could rise to as much as 50,000 milligrams per liter during high flows. Downstream sedimentation in the river channel and flood plain will be potentially large, particularly in the lower Elwha River, an alluvial reach with a wide flood plain. Overall aggradation could be as much as one to several meters. Not all reservoir sediment, however, will be released to the river. Some material will remain on hill slopes and flood plains within the drained reservoirs in quantities that will depend on the hydrology, precipitation, and mechanics of the incising channel. Eventually, vegetation will stabilize this remaining reservoir sediment, and the overall sediment load in the restored river will return to pre-dam levels.
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Coastal habitat and biological community response to dam removal on the Elwha River
Foley, Melissa M.; Warrick, Jonathan A.; Ritchie, Andrew C.; Stevens, Andrew; Shafroth, Patrick B.; Duda, Jeff; Beirne, Matthew M.; Paradis, Rebecca; Gelfenbaum, Guy R.; McCoy, Randall; Cubley, Erin S.
2017-01-01
Habitat diversity and heterogeneity play a fundamental role in structuring ecological communities. Dam emplacement and removal can fundamentally alter habitat characteristics, which in turn can affect associated biological communities. Beginning in the early 1900s, the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams in Washington, USA, withheld an estimated 30 million tonnes of sediment from river, coastal, and nearshore habitats. During the staged removal of these dams—the largest dam removal project in history—over 14 million tonnes of sediment were released from the former reservoirs. Our interdisciplinary study in coastal habitats—the first of its kind—shows how the physical changes to the river delta and estuary habitats during dam removal were linked to responses in biological communities. Sediment released during dam removal resulted in over a meter of sedimentation in the estuary and over 400 m of expansion of the river mouth delta landform. These changes increased the amount of supratidal and intertidal habitat, but also reduced the influx of seawater into the pre-removal estuary complex. The effects of these geomorphic and hydrologic changes cascaded to biological systems, reducing the abundance of macroinvertebrates and fish in the estuary and shifting community composition from brackish to freshwater-dominated species. Vegetation did not significantly change on the delta, but pioneer vegetation increased during dam removal, coinciding with the addition of newly available habitat. Understanding how coastal habitats respond to large-scale human stressors—and in some cases the removal of those stressors—is increasingly important as human uses and restoration activities increase in these habitats.
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Geomorphic process fingerprints in submarine canyons
Brothers, Daniel S.; ten Brink, Uri S.; Andrews, Brian D.; Chaytor, Jason D.; Twichell, David C.
2013-01-01
Submarine canyons are common features of continental margins worldwide. They are conduits that funnel vast quantities of sediment from the continents to the deep sea. Though it is known that submarine canyons form primarily from erosion induced by submarine sediment flows, we currently lack quantitative, empirically based expressions that describe the morphology of submarine canyon networks. Multibeam bathymetry data along the entire passive US Atlantic margin (USAM) and along the active central California margin near Monterey Bay provide an opportunity to examine the fine-scale morphology of 171 slope-sourced canyons. Log–log regression analyses of canyon thalweg gradient (S) versus up-canyon catchment area (A) are used to examine linkages between morphological domains and the generation and evolution of submarine sediment flows. For example, canyon reaches of the upper continental slope are characterized by steep, linear and/or convex longitudinal profiles, whereas reaches farther down canyon have distinctly concave longitudinal profiles. The transition between these geomorphic domains is inferred to represent the downslope transformation of debris flows into erosive, canyon-flushing turbidity flows. Over geologic timescales this process appears to leave behind a predictable geomorphic fingerprint that is dependent on the catchment area of the canyon head. Catchment area, in turn, may be a proxy for the volume of sediment released during geomorphically significant failures along the upper continental slope. Focused studies of slope-sourced submarine canyons may provide new insights into the relationships between fine-scale canyon morphology and down-canyon changes in sediment flow dynamics.
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Draut, Amy E.; Rubin, David M.
2006-01-01
evaluate the potential for aeolian reworking of new fluvial sand deposits, and restoration of higher-elevation aeolian deposits, following the 60-hour controlled flood release from Glen Canyon Dam in November 2004. Substantial deposition of new sand occurred at all study sites during this high-flow experiment, but most of the new sediment was eroded by high flow fluctuations between January and March 2005. Comparison of aeolian sand transport in the spring windy seasons of the preand post-flood years indicates that, where some of the flood-deposited sand remained by spring, aeolian sand transport was significantly higher than during the pre-flood spring. Gully incision in an aeolian dune field was observed to be partially ameliorated by deposition of wind-blown sand derived from a nearby 2004 flood deposit. These results imply that sediment-rich controlled floods can renew sand deposition in aeolian dune fields above the flood-stage elevation. The potential for restoration of archaeological sites in aeolian deposits can be maximized by using dam operations that maximize the open sand area on fluvial sandbars during spring, when aeolian sediment transport is greatest.
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Duffield, W.; Riggs, N.; Kaufman, D.; Champion, D.; Fenton, C.; Forman, S.; McIntosh, W.; Hereford, R.; Plescia, J.; Ort, M.
2006-01-01
The Grand Falls basalt lava flow in northern Arizona was emplaced in late Pleistocene time. It flowed 10 km from its vent area to the Little Colorado River, where it cascaded into and filled a 65-m-deep canyon to form the Grand Falls lava dam. Lava continued ???25 km downstream and ???1 km onto the far rim beyond where the canyon was filled. Subsequent fluvial sedimentation filled the reservoir behind the dam, and eventually the river established a channel along the margin of the lava flow to the site where water falls back into the pre-eruption canyon. The ca. 150 ka age of the Grand Falls flow provided by whole-rock K-Ar analysis in the 1970s is inconsistent with the preservation of centimeter-scale flow-top features on the surface of the flow and the near absence of physical and chemical weathering on the flow downstream of the falls. The buried Little Colorado River channel and the present-day channel are at nearly the same elevation, indicating that very little, if any, regional downcutting has occurred since emplacement of the flow. Newly applied dating techniques better define the age of the lava dam. Infrared-stimulated luminescence dating of silty mudstone baked by the lava yielded an age of 19.6 ?? 1.2 ka. Samples from three noneroded or slightly eroded outcrops at the top of the lava flow yielded 3He cosmogenic ages of 16 ?? 1 ka, 17 ?? 1 ka, and 20 ?? 1 ka. A mean age of 8 ?? 19 ka was obtained from averaging four samples using the 40Ar/39Ar step-heating method. Finally, paleomagnetic directions in lava samples from two sites at Grand Falls and one at the vent area are nearly identical and match the curve of magnetic secular variation at ca. 15 ka, 19 ka, 23 ka, and 28 ka. We conclude that the Grand Falls flow was emplaced at ca. 20 ka. ?? 2006 Geological Society of America.
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Financial Analysis of Experimental Releases Conducted at Glen Canyon Dam during Water Year 2015
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Graziano, D. J.; Poch, L. A.; Veselka, T. D.
This report examines the financial implications of experimental flows conducted at the Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) in water year (WY) 2015. It is the seventh report in a series examining the financial implications of experimental flows conducted since the Record of Decision (ROD) was adopted in February 1997 (Reclamation 1996). A report released in January 2011 examined WYs 1997 to 2005 (Veselka et al. 2011); a report released in August 2011 examined WYs 2006 to 2010 (Poch et al. 2011); a report released June 2012 examined WY 2011 (Poch et al. 2012); a report released April 2013 examined WY 2012more » (Poch et al. 2013); a report released June 2014 examined WY 2013 (Graziano et al. 2014); and a report released September 2015 examined WY 2014 (Graziano et al. 2015). An experimental release may have either a positive or negative impact on the financial value of energy production. Only one experimental release was conducted at GCD in WY 2015; specifically, a high flow experimental (HFE) release conducted in November 2014. For this experimental release, financial costs of approximately $2.1 million were incurred because the HFE required sustained water releases that exceeded the powerplant’s maximum flow rate. In addition, during the month of the experiment, operators were not allowed to shape GCD power production to either follow firm power customer loads or to respond to market prices. This study identifies the main factors that contribute to HFE costs and examines the interdependencies among these factors. It applies an integrated set of tools to estimate financial impacts by simulating the GCD operations under two scenarios: (1) a baseline scenario that mimics both HFE operations during the experiment and during the rest of the year when it complies with the 1996 ROD operating criteria, and (2) a “without experiments” scenario that is identical to the baseline except it assumes that the HFE did not occur. The Generation and Transmission Maximization (GTMax) model
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Behn, Katherine E.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Hall, Robert O.
2010-01-01
Eight species of fish were native to the Colorado River before the closure of Glen Canyon Dam, but only four of these native species are currently present. A variety of factors are responsible for the loss of native fish species and the limited distribution and abundance of those that remain. These factors include cold and constant water temperatures, predation and competition with nonnative fish species, and food limitation. Backwaters are areas of stagnant flow in a return-current channel and are thought to be critical rearing habitat for juvenile native fish. Backwaters can be warmer than the main channel and may support higher rates of food production. Glen Canyon Dam is a peaking hydropower facility and, as a result, has subdaily variation in discharge because of changes in demand for power. Stable daily discharges may improve the quality of nearshore rearing habitats such as backwaters by increasing warming, stabilizing the substrate, and increasing food production. To evaluate whether backwaters have greater available food resources than main-channel habitats, and how resource availability in backwaters is affected by stable flow regimes, we quantified water-column and benthic food resources in backwaters seasonally for 1 year using both standing (organic matter concentration/density; chlorophyll a concentration/density; zooplankton concentration; benthic invertebrate density and biomass) and process measurements (chamber estimates of ecosystem metabolism). We compared backwater resource measurements with comparable data from main-channel habitats, and compared backwater data collected during stable discharge with data collected when there was subdaily variation in discharge. Rates of primary production in backwaters (mean gross primary production of 1.7 g O2/m2/d) and the main channel (mean gross primary production of 2.0 g O2/m2/d) were similar. Benthic organic matter standing stock (presented as ash-free dry mass-AFDM) was seven times higher in backwaters
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Davis, P. A.; Cagney, L. E.; Kohl, K. A.; Gushue, T. M.; Fritzinger, C.; Bennett, G. E.; Hamill, J. F.; Melis, T. S.
2010-12-01
Periodically, the Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center of the U.S. Geological Survey collects and interprets high-resolution (20-cm), airborne multispectral imagery and digital surface models (DSMs) to monitor the effects of Glen Canyon Dam operations on natural and cultural resources of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon. We previously employed the first generation of the ADS40 in 2000 and the Zeiss-Imaging Digital Mapping Camera (DMC) in 2005. Data from both sensors displayed band-image misregistration owing to multiple sensor optics and image smearing along abrupt scarps due to errors in image rectification software, both of which increased post-processing time, cost, and errors from image classification. Also, the near-infrared gain on the early, 8-bit ADS40 was not properly set and its signal was saturated for the more chlorophyll-rich vegetation, which limited our vegetation mapping. Both sensors had stereo panchromatic capability for generating a DSM. The ADS40 performed to specifications; the DMC failed. In 2009, we employed the new ADS40 SH52 to acquire 11-bit multispectral data with a single lens (20-cm positional accuracy), as well as stereo panchromatic data that provided a 1-m cell DSM (40-cm root-mean-square vertical error at one sigma). Analyses of the multispectral data showed near-perfect registration of its four band images at our 20-cm resolution, a linear response to ground reflectance, and a large dynamic range and good sensitivity (except for the blue band). Data were acquired over a 10-day period for the 450-km-long river corridor in which acquisition time and atmospheric conditions varied considerably during inclement weather. We received 266 orthorectified flightlines for the corridor, choosing to calibrate and mosaic the data ourselves to ensure a flawless mosaic with consistent, realistic spectral information. A linear least-squares cross-calibration of overlapping flightlines for the corridor showed that the dominate factors in
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Effects of roads and well pads on erosion in the Largo Canyon watershed, New Mexico, 2001-02
Matherne, Anne Marie
2006-01-01
Largo Canyon, located in the San Juan Basin of northwestern New Mexico, is one of the longest dry washes in the world. Oil and gas production in the San Juan Basin, which began in the 1940's, required the development of an extensive network of dirt roads to service the oil and gas wells in the Navajo Reservoir area. Presently, there are about eight wells per square mile, and the density of oil and gas wells is expected to increase. Potential environmental effects on landscape stability that may result from the additional roads and well pads have not been documented. In 2001, the U.S. Geological Survey began a study in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management to evaluate the effects of roads and well pads associated with oil and gas operations on the erosion potential of Bureau of Land Management lands in the Largo Canyon watershed. The effects of roads and well pads on erosion were quantified by installing sediment dams (dams) and by surveying transects across roads and well pads. Data from 26 dams were used in the analysis. Dams were installed at 43 sites: 21 on hillsides upslope from roads or pads to measure erosion from hillslopes, 11 at the downslope edges of roads to measure erosion from roads, and 11 at the downslope edges of well pads to measure erosion from well pads. Pairs of survey transects were established at nine well pads and two road locations. Sediment-accumulation data for 26 dams, recorded at 17 measurement intervals, indicate that average erosion rates at the dams significantly correlate to size of the contributing area. The average erosion rate normalized by drainage area was 0.001 foot per year below roads, 0.003 foot per year on hillslopes, and 0.011 foot per year below well pads. Results of a two-sample t-test indicate that there was no significant difference in average erosion rates for dams located on hillslopes and below roads, whereas average erosion rates were significantly greater for dams below well pads than for dams on
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Long-range movements and breeding dispersal of Prairie Falcons from southwest Idaho
Steenhof, K.; Fuller, M.R.; Kochert, M.N.; Bates, K.K.
2005-01-01
From 1999-2003, we tracked movements of adult female Prairie Falcons (Falco mexicanus) using satellite telemetry to characterize long-range movement patterns and breeding dispersal. We radio marked 40 falcons from April-May on their nesting grounds in the Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area in southwest Idaho. All falcons with functioning transmitters left the Snake River Canyon from late June through mid-July. Most headed northeast across the Continental Divide to summering areas in Montana, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and the Dakotas. Prairie Falcons stayed at their northern summer areas for 1-4 months before heading to the southern Great Plains or to southwest Idaho. The Great Plains was a key migration pathway. Important wintering areas included the Texas Panhandle and southwest Idaho. Most falcons completed their seasonal migrations within 2 weeks. Use of widely separated nesting, summering, and wintering areas appears to be a strategy to exploit seasonally abundant prey resources. Most falcons had three or fewer use areas during the nonbreeding season, and falcons showed a high degree of fidelity to their use areas during each season. At least 21 falcons returned to nest within 2.5 km of where they nested in the previous year, but one falcon moved to a new nesting area 124 km south of her previous breeding area. Prairie Falcon movements suggest large-scale connectivity of grassland and shrubsteppe landscapes throughout western North America. Conservation of Prairie Falcons must be an international effort that considers habitats used during both nesting and non-nesting seasons. ?? The Cooper Ornithological Society 2005.
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Sankey, Joel B.; Caster, Joshua; Kasprak, Alan; East, Amy
2018-01-01
In the Colorado River downstream of Glen Canyon Dam in the Grand Canyon, USA, controlled floods are used to resupply sediment to, and rebuild, river sandbars that have eroded severely over the past five decades owing to dam-induced changes in river flow and sediment supply. In this study, we examine whether controlled floods, can in turn resupply aeolian sediment to some of the large source-bordering aeolian dunefields (SBDs) along the margins of the river. Using a legacy of high-resolution lidar remote-sensing and meteorological data, we characterize the response of four SBDs (a subset of 117 SBDs and other aeolian-sand-dominated areas in the canyon) during four sediment-laden controlled floods of the Colorado River in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2016. We find that aeolian sediment resupply unambiguously occurred in 8 of the 16 instances of controlled flooding adjacent to SBDs. Resupply attributed to individual floods varied substantially among sites, and occurred with four, three, one, and zero floods at the four sites, respectively. We infer that the relative success of controlled floods as a regulated-river management tool for resupplying sediment to SBDs is analogous to the frequency of resupply observed for fluvial sandbars in this setting, in that sediment resupply was estimated to have occurred for roughly half of the instances of recent controlled flooding at sandbars monitored separately from this study. We find the methods developed in this, and a companion study, are effective tools to quantify geomorphic changes in sediment storage, along linked fluvial and aeolian pathways of sedimentary systems.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sankey, Joel B.; Caster, Joshua; Kasprak, Alan; East, Amy E.
2018-06-01
In the Colorado River downstream of Glen Canyon Dam in the Grand Canyon, USA, controlled floods are used to resupply sediment to, and rebuild, river sandbars that have eroded severely over the past five decades owing to dam-induced changes in river flow and sediment supply. In this study, we examine whether controlled floods, can in turn resupply aeolian sediment to some of the large source-bordering aeolian dunefields (SBDs) along the margins of the river. Using a legacy of high-resolution lidar remote-sensing and meteorological data, we characterize the response of four SBDs (a subset of 117 SBDs and other aeolian-sand-dominated areas in the canyon) during four sediment-laden controlled floods of the Colorado River in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2016. We find that aeolian sediment resupply unambiguously occurred in 8 of the 16 instances of controlled flooding adjacent to SBDs. Resupply attributed to individual floods varied substantially among sites, and occurred with four, three, one, and zero floods at the four sites, respectively. We infer that the relative success of controlled floods as a regulated-river management tool for resupplying sediment to SBDs is analogous to the frequency of resupply observed for fluvial sandbars in this setting, in that sediment resupply was estimated to have occurred for roughly half of the instances of recent controlled flooding at sandbars monitored separately from this study. We find the methods developed in this, and a companion study, are effective tools to quantify geomorphic changes in sediment storage, along linked fluvial and aeolian pathways of sedimentary systems.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Korman, Josh
2010-05-01
The abundance of adult fish populations is controlled by the growth and survival rates of early life stages. Evaluating the effects of flow regimes on early life stages is therefore critical to determine how these regimes affect the abundance of adult populations. Experimental high flow releases from Glen Canyon Dam, primarily intended to conserve fine sediment and improve habitat conditions for native fish in the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, AZ, have been conducted in 1996, 2004, and 2008. These flows potentially affect the Lee's Ferry reach rainbow trout population, located immediately downstream of the dam, which supports a highly valued fishery and likely influences the abundance of rainbow trout in Grand Canyon. Due to concerns about negative effects of high trout abundance on endangered native fish, hourly variation in flow from Glen Canyon Dam was experimentally increased between 2003 and 2005 to reduce trout abundance. This study reports on the effects of experimental high flow releases and fluctuating flows on early life stages of rainbow trout in the Lee's Ferry reach based on monthly sampling of redds (egg nests) and the abundance and growth of age-0 trout between 2003 and 2009. Data on spawn timing, spawning elevations, and intergravel temperatures were integrated in a model to estimate the magnitude and seasonal trend in incubation mortality resulting from redd dewatering due to fluctuations in flow. Experimental fluctuations from January through March promoted spawning at higher elevations where the duration of dewatering was longer and intergravel temperatures exceeded lethal thresholds. Flow-dependent incubation mortality rates were 24% (2003) and 50% (2004) in years with higher flow fluctuations, compared to 5-11% under normal operations (2006-2009). Spatial and temporal predictions of mortality were consistent with direct observations of egg mortality determined from the excavation of 125 redds. The amount of variation in backcalculated hatch
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Analysis of In-Canyon Flow Characterisitcs in step-up street canyons
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
PARK, S.; Kim, J.; Choi, W.; Pardyjak, E.
2017-12-01
Flow characteristics in strep-up street canyons were investigated focusing on in-canyon region. To see the effects of the building geometry, two building height ratios [ratio of the upwind (Hu) to downwind building heights (Hd) = 0.33, 0.6] were considered and eight building length ratios [ratio of the cross-wind building length (L) to street-canyon width (S) from 0.5 to 4 with the increment of 0.5] were systematically changed. For the model validation, the simulated results were compared with the wind- tunnel data measured for Hu/Hd = 0.33, 0.6 and L/S = 1, 2, 3, and 4. In the CFD model simulations, the corner vortices at the downwind side near the ground level and the recirculation zones above the downwind buildings had the relatively small extents, compared with those in the wind-tunnel experiments. However, the CFD model reproduced the main flow features such as the street-canyon vortices, circulations above the building roof, and the positions of the stagnation points on the downwind building walls in the wind-tunnel experiments reasonably well. By further analyzing the three-dimensional flow structures based on the numerical results simulated in the step-up street canyons, we schematically suggested the flow characteristics with different building-height and building-length ratios.
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Non-native fish control below Glen Canyon Dam - Report from a structured decision-making project
Runge, Michael C.; Bean, Ellen; Smith, David; Kokos, Sonja
2011-01-01
This report describes the results of a structured decision-making project by the U.S. Geological Survey to provide substantive input to the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) for use in the preparation of an Environmental Assessment concerning control of non-native fish below Glen Canyon Dam. A forum was created to allow the diverse cooperating agencies and Tribes to discuss, expand, and articulate their respective values; to develop and evaluate a broad set of potential control alternatives using the best available science; and to define individual preferences of each group on how to manage the inherent trade-offs in this non-native fish control problem. This project consisted of two face-to-face workshops, held in Mesa, Arizona, October 18-20 and November 8-10, 2010. At the first workshop, a diverse set of objectives was discussed, which represented the range of concerns of those agencies and Tribes present. A set of non-native fish control alternatives ('hybrid portfolios') was also developed. Over the 2-week period between the two workshops, four assessment teams worked to evaluate the control alternatives against the array of objectives. At the second workshop, the results of the assessment teams were presented. Multi-criteria decision analysis methods were used to examine the trade-offs inherent in the problem, and allowed the participating agencies and Tribes to express their individual judgments about how those trade-offs should best be managed in Reclamation`s selection of a preferred alternative. A broad array of objectives was identified and defined, and an effort was made to understand how these objectives are likely to be achieved by a variety of strategies. In general, the objectives reflected desired future conditions over 30 years. A rich set of alternative approaches was developed, and the complex structure of those alternatives was documented. Multi-criteria decision analysis methods allowed the evaluation of those alternatives against the array
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Ralston, B. E.; Sankey, J. B.
2013-12-01
Recent analysis of remotely sensed imagery of 400 km of the Colorado River confirms a net increase in vegetated area has occurred since the completion of Glen Canyon Dam in 1963. The rates and magnitude of vegetation change appear to be river stage-dependent. Riparian vegetation expansion on geomorphic surfaces at lower elevations relative to the river was greater for decades with lower peak and average discharges. Vegetation change at higher elevation relative to the river indicate that increases and decreases in vegetated area reflect regional precipitation patterns, and respectively coincide with regionally significant wet and dry periods that include the current early 21st century drought. The objective of this work was to examine the temporal persistence, and changes, in the spatial distribution of riparian vegetation relative to geomorphic characteristics of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, dam and reservoir management, and regional climate over the 5-decade period from the mid-1960s to present. We employed archived riparian vegetation classifications that used aerial imagery from 1965, 1973, 1984, 1992, 2002, and 2009 coupled with flow regime data that is primarily related to operations of Glen Canyon Dam, field-measured rating relations, predictions of rating relations based on 1-D modeling, and detailed, geomorphic field mapping. Documentation of the effects of river regulation on riparian habitats in the SW USA has traditionally been limited to either small segments of river channels (e.g., 0.1-10km), or focused on specific plant species. The smaller geographic scale approach evaluates local hydrology, river channel changes, and serial recruitment events of riparian plants. The species-specific plant response informs larger scale patterns of riparian plant distributions across the landscape, but is less sensitive to differences of climate and hydrology among rivers. Our study is unique in that it employs datasets that allow both large-scale change
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Carbon transport in Monterey Submarine Canyon
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Barry, J.; Paull, C. K.; Xu, J. P.; Clare, M. A.; Gales, J. A.; Buck, K. R.; Lovera, C.; Gwiazda, R.; Maier, K. L.; McGann, M.; Parsons, D. R.; Simmons, S.; Rosenberger, K. J.; Talling, P. J.
2017-12-01
Submarine canyons are important conduits for sediment transport from continental margins to the abyss, but the rate, volume, and time scales of material transport have been measured only rarely. Using moorings with current meters, sediment traps (10 m above bottom) and optical backscatter sensors, we measured near-bottom currents, suspended sediment concentrations, and sediment properties at 1300 m depth in Monterey Canyon and at a non-canyon location on the continental slope at the same depth. Flow and water column backscatter were used to characterize "ambient" conditions when tidal currents dominated the flow field, and occasional "sediment transport events" when anomalously high down-canyon flow with sediment-laden waters arrived at the canyon mooring. The ambient sediment flux measured in sediment traps in Monterey Canyon was 350 times greater than measured at the non-canyon location. Although the organic carbon content of the canyon sediment flux during ambient periods was low (1.8 %C) compared to the slope location (4.9 %C), the ambient carbon transport in the canyon was 130 times greater than at the non-canyon site. Material fluxes during sediment transport events were difficult to measure owing to clogging of sediment traps, but minimal estimates indicate that mass transport during events exceeds ambient sediment fluxes through the canyon by nearly 3 orders of magnitude, while carbon transport is 380 times greater. Estimates of the instantaneous and cumulative flux of sediment and carbon from currents, backscatter, and sediment properties indicated that: 1) net flux is down-canyon, 2) flux is dominated by sediment transport events, and 3) organic carbon flux through 1300 m in Monterey Canyon was ca. 1500 MT C per year. The injection of 1500 MTCy-1 into the deep-sea represents ca. 260 km2 of the sediment C flux measured at the continental slope station (5.8 gCm-2y-1) and is sufficient to support a benthic community carbon demand of 5 gCm-2y-1 over 300 km2.
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Idaho Geothermal Commercialization Program. Idaho geothermal handbook
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Hammer, G.D.; Esposito, L.; Montgomery, M.
The following topics are covered: geothermal resources in Idaho, market assessment, community needs assessment, geothermal leasing procedures for private lands, Idaho state geothermal leasing procedures - state lands, federal geothermal leasing procedures - federal lands, environmental and regulatory processes, local government regulations, geothermal exploration, geothermal drilling, government funding, private funding, state and federal government assistance programs, and geothermal legislation. (MHR)
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-03-15
...-Targhee National Forest, Idaho Falls, ID AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY... National Forests' Eastern Idaho Resource Advisory Committee will meet Friday, March 25, 2011 in Idaho Falls...-Targhee National Forest Headquarters Office, 1405 Hollipark Drive, Idaho Falls, Idaho 83401. FOR FURTHER...
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-03-11
...-Targhee National Forest, Idaho Falls, ID AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY... National Forests' Eastern Idaho Resource Advisory Committee will meet Friday, March 25, 2011 in Idaho Falls...-Targhee National Forest Headquarters Office, 1405 Hollipark Drive, Idaho Falls, Idaho 83401. FOR FURTHER...
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2007 Weather and Aeolian Sand-Transport Data from the Colorado River Corridor, Grand Canyon, Arizona
Draut, Amy E.; Andrews, Timothy; Fairley, Helen C.; Brown, Christopher R.
2009-01-01
Weather data constitute an integral part of ecosystem monitoring in the Colorado River corridor and are particularly valuable for understanding processes of landscape change that contribute to the stability of archeological sites. Data collected in 2007 are reported from nine weather stations in the Colorado River corridor through Grand Canyon, Ariz. The stations were deployed in February and March 2007 to measure wind speed and direction, rainfall, air temperature, relative humidity, and barometric pressure. Sand traps near each weather station collect windblown sand, from which daily aeolian sand-transport rates are calculated. The data reported here were collected as part of an ongoing study to test and evaluate methods for quantifying processes that affect the physical integrity of archeological sites along the river corridor; as such, these data can be used to identify rainfall events capable of causing gully incision and to predict likely transport pathways for aeolian sand, two landscape processes integral to the preservation of archeological sites. Weather data also have widespread applications to other studies of physical, cultural, and biological resources in Grand Canyon. Aeolian sand-transport data reported here, collected in the year before the March 2008 High-Flow Experiment (HFE) at Glen Canyon Dam, represent baseline data against which the effects of the 2008 HFE on windblown sand will be compared in future reports.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chan, Andy T.; Au, William T. W.; So, Ellen S. P.
The flow field and pollutant dispersion characteristics in a three-dimensional urban street canyon are investigated for various building array geometries. The street canyon in consideration is located in a multi-canopy building array that is similar to realistic estate situations. The pollutant dispersion characteristics are studied for various canopy aspect ratios, namely: the canyon height to width ratio, canyon length to height ratio, canyon breadth ratio and crossroad locations are studied. A three-dimensional field-size canyon has been analysed through numerical simulations using k- ɛ turbulence model. As expected, the wind flow and mode of pollutant dispersion is strongly dependent on the various flow geometric configurations and that the results can be different from that of a single canyon system. For example, it is found that the pollutant retention value is minimum when the canyon height-to-width ratio is approximately 0.8, or that the building height ratio is 0.5. Various rules of thumbs on urban canyon geometry have been established for good pollutant dispersion.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Robertson, C.; Bourque, J. R.; Davies, A. J.; Duineveld, G.; Mienis, F.; Brooke, S.; Ross, S. W.; Demopoulos, A. W.
2016-02-01
Submarine canyons are complex systems, acting as major conduits of organic matter along continental shelves and promoting gradients in food resources, turbidity flows, habitat heterogeneity, and areas of sediment resuspension and deposition. In the western North Atlantic, a large multidisciplinary program was conducted in two major Mid-Atlantic Bight (MAB) canyons (Baltimore and Norfolk canyons). This Atlantic Deepwater Canyons project was funded by BOEM, NOAA, and USGS. Here we investigate the `canyon effect' on benthic ecosystem ecology and functioning of two canyon systems by defining canyon specific processes influencing MAB shelf benthic community trends. Sediment cores were collected in 2012 and 2013 with a NIOZ box corer along the main axes ( 180-1200m) of Baltimore and Norfolk Canyon and at comparable depths on the adjacent continental slope. Whole community macrofaunal (>300 μm) abundance and biomass data provided insight into community trends across depth and biogeochemical gradients by coupling diversity metrics and biological trait analyses with sediment biogeochemistry and hydrodynamic data. The canyons exhibited clear differences in sediment profiles, hydrodynamic regimes and enrichment depocenters as well as significantly distinct infauna communities. Interestingly, both canyons showed bimodal distributions in abundances and diversity of infauna and a shallowing of species maxima which was not present on adjacent slopes. We hypothesize that physical canyon processes are important regulators in the depth of observed species maxima and community functioning on the MAB shelf, on local and regional scales. Unique sediment dynamics, organic enrichment, and hydrographic conditions were significant factors in structuring benthic community differences in MAB canyons The study provides a complete benthic infaunal appraisal of two canyon systems in the western Atlantic, incorporating biogeochemistry and oceanography to increase our understanding of canyon
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Formative flow in bedrock canyons
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Venditti, J. G.; Kwoll, E.; Rennie, C. D.; Church, M. A.
2017-12-01
In alluvial channels, it is widely accepted that river channel configuration is set by a formative flow that represents a balance between the magnitude and frequency of flood flows. The formative flow is often considered to be one that is just capable of filling a river channel to the top of its banks. Flows much above this formative flow are thought to cause substantial sediment transport and rearrange the channel morphology to accommodate the larger flow. This idea has recently been extended to semi-alluvial channels where it has been shown that even with bedrock exposed, the flows rarely exceed that required to entrain the local sediment cover. What constitutes a formative flow in a bedrock canyon is not clear. By definition, canyons have rock walls and are typically incised vertically, removing the possibility of the walls being overtopped, as can occur in an alluvial channel at high flows. Canyons are laterally constrained, have deep scour pools and often have width to maximum depth ratios approaching 1, an order of magnitude lower than alluvial channels. In many canyons, there are a sequence of irregularly spaced scour pools. The bed may have intermittent or seasonal sediment cover, but during flood flows the sediment bed is entrained leaving a bare bedrock channel. It has been suggested that canyons cut into weak, well-jointed rock may adjust their morphology to the threshold for block plucking because the rock bed is labile during exceptionally large magnitude flows. However, this hypothesis does not apply to canyons cut into massive crystalline rock where abrasion is the dominant erosion process. Here, we argue that bedrock canyon morphology is adjusted to a characteristic flow structure developed in bedrock canyons. We show that the deeply scoured canyon floor is adjusted to a velocity inversion that is present at low flows, but gets stronger at high flows. The effect is to increase boundary shear stresses along the scour pool that forms in constricted
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Let's Bet on Sediments! Hudson Canyon Cruise--Grades 9-12. Focus: Sediments of Hudson Canyon.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (DOC), Rockville, MD.
These activities are designed to teach about the sediments of Hudson Canyon. Students investigate and analyze the patterns of sedimentation in the Hudson Canyon, observe how heavier particles sink faster than finer particles, and learn that submarine landslides are avalanches of sediment in deep ocean canyons. The activity provides learning…
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106. DAM EARTH DIKE SUBMERSIBLE DAMS & DIKE ...
106. DAM - EARTH DIKE - SUBMERSIBLE DAMS & DIKE CONN. AT MOVABLE DAM (ML-8-52/2-FS) March 1940 - Upper Mississippi River 9-Foot Channel, Lock & Dam No. 8, On Mississippi River near Houston County, MN, Genoa, Vernon County, WI
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DAM Safety and Deformation Monitoring in Dams
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kalkan, Y.; Bilgi, S.; Potts, L.; Miiama, J.; Mahgoub, M.; Rahman, S.
2013-12-01
Water is the life and necessity to water is increasing day by day with respect to the World population, rising of living standards and destruction of nature. Thus, the importance of water and water structures have been increasing gradually. Dams are among the most important engineering structures used for water supplies, flood controls, agricultural purposes as well as drinking and hydroelectric power. There are about 150.000 large size dams in the World. Especially after the Second World War, higher and larger capacity dams have been constructed. Dams create certain risks like the other manmade structures. No one knows precisely how many dam failures have occurred in the World, whereas hundreds of dam failures have occurred throughout the U.S. history. Some basic physical data are very important for assessing the safety and performance of dams. These are movement, water pressure, seepage, reservoir and tail-water elevations, local seismic activities, total pressure, stress and strain, internal concrete temperature, ambient temperature and precipitation. These physical data are measured and monitored by the instruments and equipment. Dams and their surroundings have to be monitored by using essential methods at periodic time intervals in order to determine the possible changes that may occur over the time. Monitoring programs typically consist of; surveillance or visual observation. These programs on dams provide information for evaluating the dam's performance related to the design intent and expected changes that could affect the safety performance of the dam. Additionally, these programs are used for investigating and evaluating the abnormal or degrading performance where any remedial action is necessary. Geodetic and non-geodetic methods are used for monitoring. Monitoring the performance of the dams is critical for producing and maintaining the safe dams. This study provides some information, safety and the techniques about the deformation monitoring of the
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Wintertime Boundary Layer Structure in the Grand Canyon.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Whiteman, C. David; Zhong, Shiyuan; Bian, Xindi
1999-08-01
Wintertime temperature profiles in the Grand Canyon exhibit a neutral to isothermal stratification during both daytime and nighttime, with only rare instances of actual temperature inversions. The canyon warms during daytime and cools during nighttime more or less uniformly through the canyon's entire depth. This weak stability and temperature structure evolution differ from other Rocky Mountain valleys, which develop strong nocturnal inversions and exhibit convective and stable boundary layers that grow upward from the valley floor. Mechanisms that may be responsible for the different behavior of the Grand Canyon are discussed, including the possibility that the canyon atmosphere is frequently mixed to near-neutral stratification when cold air drains into the top of the canyon from the nearby snow-covered Kaibab Plateau. Another feature of canyon temperature profiles is the sharp inversions that often form near the canyon rims. These are generally produced when warm air is advected over the canyon in advance of passing synoptic-scale ridges.Wintertime winds in the main canyon are not classical diurnal along-valley wind systems. Rather, they are driven along the canyon axis by the horizontal synoptic-scale pressure gradient that is superimposed along the canyon's axis by passing synoptic-scale weather disturbances. They may thus bring winds into the canyon from either end at any time of day.The implications of the observed canyon boundary layer structure for air pollution dispersion are discussed.
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Draut, A.E.; Rubin, D.M.; Dierker, J.L.; Fairley, H.C.; Griffiths, R.E.; Hazel, J.E.; Hunter, R.E.; Kohl, K.; Leap, L.M.; Nials, F.L.; Topping, D.J.; Yeatts, M.
2008-01-01
We present a detailed geoarchaeological study of landscape processes that affected prehistoric formation and modern preservation of archaeological sites in three areas of the Colorado River corridor in Grand Canyon, Arizona, USA. The methods used in this case study can be applied to any locality containing unaltered, non-pedogenic sediments and, thus, are particularly relevant to geoarchaeology in arid regions. Resolving the interaction of fluvial, aeolian, and local runoff processes in an arid-land river corridor is important because the archaeological record in arid lands tends to be concentrated along river corridors. This study uses sedimentary structures and particle-size distributions to interpret landscape processes; these methods are commonplace in sedimentology but prove also to be valuable, though less utilized, in geoarchaeology and geomorphology. In this bedrock canyon, the proportion of fluvial sediment generally decreases with distance away from the river as aeolian, slope-wash, colluvial, and debris-flow sediments become more dominant. We describe a new facies consisting of 'flood couplets' that include a lower, fine-grained fluvial component and an upper, coarser, unit that reflects subaerial reworking at the land surface between flood events. Grain-size distributions of strata that lack original sedimentary structures are useful within this river corridor to distinguish aeolian deposits from finer-grained fluvial deposits that pre-date the influence of the upstream Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River. Identification of past geomorphic settings is critical for understanding the history and preservation of archaeologically significant areas, and for determining the sensitivity of archaeological sites to dam operations. Most archaeological sites in the areas studied were formed on fluvial deposits, with aeolian deposition acting as an important preservation agent during the past millennium. Therefore, the absence of sediment-rich floods in this
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Maupin, Molly A.
1995-01-01
Idaho leads the Nation in trout production for commercial sale. Combined mean annual discharges from 12 aquacultural facilities in the basin (1985-90) were about 787,000 acre-feet. These facilities are clustered in a reach of the Snake River between Milner Dam and King Hill where ground-water discharge is from many seeps and springs that provide sufficient quantities of good-quality water. Other facilities that release effluent to the Snake River include 13 municipal wastewater treatment plants and 3 industrial facilities.
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Sepulveda, S.A.; Murphy, W.; Jibson, R.W.; Petley, D.N.
2005-01-01
The 1994 Northridge earthquake (Mw = 6.7) triggered extensive rock slope failures in Pacoima Canyon, immediately north of Los Angeles, California. Pacoima Canyon is a narrow and steep canyon incised in gneissic and granitic rocks. Peak accelerations of nearly 1.6 g were recorded at a ridge that forms the left abutment of Pacoima Dam; peak accelerations at the bottom of the canyon were less than 0.5 g, suggesting the occurrence of topographic amplification. Topographic effects have been previously suggested to explain similarly high ground motions at the site during the 1971 (Mw = 6.7) San Fernando earthquake. Furthermore, high landslide concentrations observed in the area have been attributed to unusually strong ground motions rather than higher susceptibility to sliding compared with nearby zones. We conducted field investigations and slope stability back-analyses to confirm the impact of topographic amplification on the triggering of landslides during the 1994 earthquake. Our results suggest that the observed extensive rock sliding and falling would have not been possible under unamplified seismic conditions, which would have generated a significantly lower number of areas affected by landslides. In contrast, modelling slope stability using amplified ground shaking predicts slope failure distributions matching what occurred in 1994. This observation confirms a significant role for topographic amplification on the triggering of landslides at the site, and emphasises the need to select carefully the inputs for seismic slope stability analyses. ?? 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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78 FR 48670 - Boulder Canyon Project
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-08-09
... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Western Area Power Administration Boulder Canyon Project AGENCY: Western Area... Canyon Project (BCP) electric service provided by the Western Area Power Administration (Western). The... States Department of Energy, Western Area Power Administration, Boulder Canyon Project, 133 FERC ] 62,229...
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Street canyon aerosol pollutant transport measurements.
Longley, I D; Gallagher, M W; Dorsey, J R; Flynn, M; Bower, K N; Allan, J D
2004-12-01
Current understanding of dispersion in street canyons is largely derived from relatively simple dispersion models. Such models are increasingly used in planning and regulation capacities but are based upon a limited understanding of the transport of substances within a real canyon. In recent years, some efforts have been made to numerically model localised flow in idealised canyons (e.g., J. Appl. Meteorol. 38 (1999) 1576-89) and stepped canyons (Assimakopoulos V. Numerical modelling of dispersion of atmospheric pollution in and above urban canopies. PhD thesis, Imperial College, London, 2001) but field studies in real canyons are rare. To further such an understanding, a measurement campaign has been conducted in an asymmetric street canyon with busy one-way traffic in central Manchester in northern England. The eddy correlation method was used to determine fluxes of size-segregated accumulation mode aerosol. Measurements of aerosol at a static location were made concurrently with measurements on a platform lift giving vertical profiles. Size-segregated measurements of ultrafine and coarse particle concentrations were also made simultaneously at various heights. In addition, a small mobile system was used to make measurements of turbulence at various pavement locations within the canyon. From this data, various features of turbulent transport and dispersion in the canyon will be presented. The concentration and the ventilation fluxes of vehicle-related aerosol pollutants from the canyon will be related to controlling factors. The results will also be compared with citywide ventilation data from a separate measurement campaign conducted above the urban canopy.
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Sabol, Thomas A.; Springer, Abraham E.
2013-01-01
Seepage erosion and mass failure of emergent sandy deposits along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, are a function of the elevation of groundwater in the sandbar, fluctuations in river stage, the exfiltration of water from the bar face, and the slope of the bar face. In this study, a generalized three-dimensional numerical model was developed to predict the time-varying groundwater level, within the bar face region of a freshly deposited eddy sandbar, as a function of river stage. Model verification from two transient simulations demonstrates the ability of the model to predict groundwater levels within the onshore portion of the sandbar face across a range of conditions. Use of this generalized model is applicable across a range of typical eddy sandbar deposits in diverse settings. The ability to predict the groundwater level at the onshore end of the sandbar face is essential for both physical and numerical modeling efforts focusing on the erosion and mass failure of eddy sandbars downstream of Glen Canyon Dam along the Colorado River.
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Analysis of Idaho fire service education
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Roberts, Walter O.
1999-01-01
Becoming a career fire fighter in the state of Idaho requires specialized knowledge and training. Fire science education at Idaho colleges and universities is available only to people who are affiliated with a fire department. Law enforcement curriculum, on the other hand, is available to any interested persons. A student in law enforcement can attend the Police Officers Standards and Training (POST) academy or participate in classes in one of Idaho's institutions for higher education. There are no fire academies in Idaho. Applicants wanting to become professional fire fighters in Idaho are required to compete with applicants from other states; many of whom have had prior fire education and training. Resident Idaho fire fighter applicants are at a disadvantage when applying for Idaho fire fighting positions. Because of this apparent need, I surveyed the Idaho fire chiefs, using a research instrument I developed in a graduate field research class. I wrote the research instrument to determine the educational needs of the Idaho fire service. The College of Southern Idaho (CSI) and the Idaho Fire Chiefs Association (IFCA) were the recipients of this survey. This report, Analysis of Idaho Fire Service Education, describes that research process from beginning to end.
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Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR
2012-07-01
.../15/90 Unclassifiable Lewiston 11/15/90 Unclassifiable Remainder of AQCR 62 (Idaho portion) 11/15/90... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Idaho. 81.313 Section 81.313... AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES Section 107 Attainment Status Designations § 81.313 Idaho. Idaho...
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Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
.../15/90 Unclassifiable Lewiston 11/15/90 Unclassifiable Remainder of AQCR 62 (Idaho portion) 11/15/90... 40 Protection of Environment 17 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Idaho. 81.313 Section 81.313... AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES Section 107 Attainment Status Designations § 81.313 Idaho. Idaho...
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Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR
2013-07-01
.../15/90 Unclassifiable Lewiston 11/15/90 Unclassifiable Remainder of AQCR 62 (Idaho portion) 11/15/90... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Idaho. 81.313 Section 81.313... AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES Section 107 Attainment Status Designations § 81.313 Idaho. Idaho...
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Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR
2014-07-01
... Unclassifiable Lewiston 11/15/90 Unclassifiable Remainder of AQCR 62 (Idaho portion) 11/15/90 Unclassifiable... 40 Protection of Environment 18 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Idaho. 81.313 Section 81.313... AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES Section 107 Attainment Status Designations § 81.313 Idaho. Idaho...
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Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
.../15/90 Unclassifiable Lewiston 11/15/90 Unclassifiable Remainder of AQCR 62 (Idaho portion) 11/15/90... 40 Protection of Environment 17 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Idaho. 81.313 Section 81.313... AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES Section 107 Attainment Status Designations § 81.313 Idaho. Idaho...
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Durable terrestrial bedrock predicts submarine canyon formation
Smith, Elliot; Finnegan, Noah J.; Mueller, Erich R.; Best, Rebecca J.
2017-01-01
Though submarine canyons are first-order topographic features of Earth, the processes responsible for their occurrence remain poorly understood. Potentially analogous studies of terrestrial rivers show that the flux and caliber of transported bedload are significant controls on bedrock incision. Here we hypothesize that coarse sediment load could exert a similar role in the formation of submarine canyons. We conducted a comprehensive empirical analysis of canyon occurrence along the West Coast of the contiguous United States which indicates that submarine canyon occurrence is best predicted by the occurrence of durable crystalline bedrock in adjacent terrestrial catchments. Canyon occurrence is also predicted by the flux of bed sediment to shore from terrestrial streams. Surprisingly, no significant correlation was observed between canyon occurrence and the slope or width of the continental shelf. These findings suggest that canyon incision is promoted by greater yields of durable terrestrial clasts to the shore.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Twichell, David C.; Roberts, David G.
1982-08-01
The distribution and morphology of submarine canyons off the eastern United States between Hudson and Baltimore Canyons have been mapped by long-range sidescan sonar. In this area canyons are numerous, and their spacing correlates with overall slope gradient; they are absent where the gradient is less than 3°, are 2 to 10 km apart where the gradient is 3° to 5°, and are 1.5 to 4 km apart where the gradient exceeds 6°. Canyons range from straight to sinuous; those having sinuous axes indent the edge of the continental shelf and appear to be older than those that head on the upper slope and have straighter axes. A difference in canyon age would suggest that canyons are initiated on the continental slope and only with greater age erode headward to indent the shelf. Shallow gullies on the middle and upper slope parts of the canyon walls suggest that submarine erosion has been a major process in a recent phase of canyon development. *Present address: British Petroleum, Moorgate, London EC2Y 9BU, England
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Bove, D.J.; Shawe, D.R.; Lee, G.K.
1989-01-01
This book reports the Fish Creek Canyon (UT-060-204), Road Canyon(UT-060-201), and Mule Canyon (UT-060-205B) Wilderness Study Areas, which comprise 40,160 acres, 52,420 acres, and 5,990 acres, respectively, studied for their mineral endowment. A search of federal, state, and county records showed no current or previous mining-claim activity. No mineral resources were identified during field examination of the study areas. Sandstone and sand and gravel have no unique qualities but could have limited local use for road metal or other construction purposes. However, similar materials are abundant outside the study areas. The three study areas have moderate resource potential for undiscoveredmore » oil and gas and low resource potential for undiscovered metals, including uranium and thorium, coal, and geothermal energy.« less
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ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Wiggins, Annette Marie
2010-01-01
The purpose of this study was to explore Idaho Region IV fourth-grade teachers' perceptions regarding the educational influence of Idaho State Achievement Standards and the Idaho Standards Achievement Tests (ISAT) in language usage, reading, and math. Differences between subgroups based on teacher/school demographics, specifically, teachers'…
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Parliman, D.J.
1982-01-01
Well-inventory and groundwater-quality data for 665 sites with a total of 1,318 chemical analyses were compiled from Elmore, Owyhee, Ada, and Canyon Counties. Data are sorted by water temperature (less than 20 degrees Celsius is considered nonthermal; 20 degrees Celcius or greater is considered thermal) to facilitate their use.
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Ephemeral seafloor sedimentation during dam removal: Elwha River, Washington
Foley, Melissa M.; Warrick, Jonathan
2017-01-01
The removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams from the Elwha River in Washington, USA, resulted in the erosion and transport of over 10 million m3 of sediment from the former reservoirs and into the river during the first two years of the dam removal process. Approximately 90% of this sediment was transported through the Elwha River and to the coast at the Strait of Juan de Fuca. To evaluate the benthic dynamics of increased sediment loading to the nearshore, we deployed a tripod system in ten meters of water to the east of the Elwha River mouth that included a profiling current meter and a camera system. With these data, we were able to document the frequency and duration of sedimentation and turbidity events, and correlate these events to physical oceanographic and river conditions. We found that seafloor sedimentation occurred regularly during the heaviest sediment loading from the river, but that this sedimentation was ephemeral and exhibited regular cycles of deposition and erosion caused by the strong tidal currents in the region. Understanding the frequency and duration of short-term sediment disturbance events is instrumental to interpreting the ecosystem-wide changes that are occurring in the nearshore habitats around the Elwha River delta.
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Ephemeral seafloor sedimentation during dam removal: Elwha River, Washington
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Foley, Melissa M.; Warrick, Jonathan A.
2017-11-01
The removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams from the Elwha River in Washington, USA, resulted in the erosion and transport of over 10 million m3 of sediment from the former reservoirs and into the river during the first two years of the dam removal process. Approximately 90% of this sediment was transported through the Elwha River and to the coast at the Strait of Juan de Fuca. To evaluate the benthic dynamics of increased sediment loading to the nearshore, we deployed a tripod system in ten meters of water to the east of the Elwha River mouth that included a profiling current meter and a camera system. With these data, we were able to document the frequency and duration of sedimentation and turbidity events, and correlate these events to physical oceanographic and river conditions. We found that seafloor sedimentation occurred regularly during the heaviest sediment loading from the river, but that this sedimentation was ephemeral and exhibited regular cycles of deposition and erosion caused by the strong tidal currents in the region. Understanding the frequency and duration of short-term sediment disturbance events is instrumental to interpreting the ecosystem-wide changes that are occurring in the nearshore habitats around the Elwha River delta.
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Mars Canyon with Los Angeles for Scale
2006-03-13
A Grand Canyon of Mars slices across the Red Planet near its equator. This canyon -- Valles Marineris, or the Mariner Valley -- is 10 times longer and deeper than Arizona Grand Canyon, and 20 times wider
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Environmental assessment: Davis Canyon site, Utah
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
none,
1986-05-01
In February 1983, the US Department of Energy (DOE) identified the Davis Canyon site in Utah as one of the nine potentially acceptable sites for a mined geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. To determine their suitability, the Davis Canyon site and the eight other potentially acceptable sites have been evaluated in accordance with the DOE's General Guidelines for the Recommendation of Sites for the Nuclear Waste Repositories. These evaluations were reported in draft environmental assessments (EAs), which were issued for public review and comment. After considering the comments received on the draft EAs, the DOEmore » prepared the final EA. The Davis Canyon site is in the Paradox Basin, which is one of five distinct geohydrologic settings considered for the first repository. This setting contains one other potentially acceptable site -- the Lavender Canyon site. Although the Lavender Canyon site is suitable for site characterization, the DOE has concluded that the Davis Canyon site is the preferred site in the Paradox Basin. On the basis of the evaluations reported in this EA, the DOE has found that the Davis Canyon site is not disqualified under the guidelines. Furthermore, the DOE has fond that the site is suitable for site characterization because the evidence does not support a conclusion that the site will not be able to meet each of the qualifying conditions specified in the guidelines. On the basis of these findings, the DOE is nominating the Davis Canyon site as one of five sites suitable for characterization. 181 figs., 175 tabs.« less
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Environmental assessment: Davis Canyon site, Utah
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
none,
1986-05-01
In February 1983, the US Department of Energy (DOE) identified the Davis Canyon site in Utah as one of the nine potentially acceptable sites for a mined geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high- level radioactive waste. To determine their suitability, the Davis Canyon site and the eight other potentially acceptable sites have been evaluated in accordance with the DOE's General Guidelines for the Recommendation of Sites for the Nuclear Waste Repositories. These evaluations were reported in draft environmental assessments (EAs), which were issued for public review and comment. After considering the comments received on the draft EAs, themore » DOE prepared the final EA. The Davis Canyon site is in the Paradox Basin, which is one of five distinct geohydrologic settings considered for the first repository. This setting contains one other potentially acceptable site -- the Lavender Canyon site. Although the Lavender Canyon site is suitable for site characterization, the DOE has concluded that the Davis Canyon site is the preferred site in the Paradox Basin. On the basis of the evaluations reported in this EA, the DOE has found that the Davis Canyon site is not disqualified under the guidelines. Furthermore, the DOE has found that the site is suitable for site characterization because the evidence does not support a conclusion that the site will not be able to meet each of the qualifying conditions specified in the guidelines. On the basis of these findings, the DOE is nominating the Davis Canyon site as one of the five sites suitable for characterization.« less
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Environmental assessment: Davis Canyon site, Utah
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
none,
1986-05-01
In February 1983, the US Department of Energy (DOE) identified the Davis Canyon site in Utah as one of the nine potentially acceptable sites for a mined geologic repository for spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. To determine their suitability, the Davis Canyon site and the eight other potentially acceptable sites have been evaluated in accordance with the DOE's General Guidelines for the Recommendation of Sites for the Nuclear Waste Repositories. These evaluations were reported in draft environmental assessments (EAs), which were issued for public review and comment. After considering the comments received on the draft EAs, the DOEmore » prepared the final EA. The Davis Canyon site is in the Paradox Basin, which is one of five distinct geohydrologic settings considering for the first repository. This setting contains one other potentially acceptable site -- the Lavender Canyon site. Although the Lavender Canyon site is suitable for site characterization, the DOE has concluded that the Davis Canyon site is the preferred site in the Paradox Basin. On the basis of the evaluations reported in this EA, the DOE has found that the Davis Canyon site is not disqualified under the guidelines. Furthermore, the DOE has found that the site is suitable for site characterization because the evidence does not support a conclusion that the site will not be able to meet each of the qualifying conditions specified in the guidelines. On the basis of these findings, the DOE is nominating the Davis Canyon site as one of five sites suitable for characterization.« less
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Perry, J A
1979-01-01
The Teton Dam in Southeastern Idaho collapsed on June 5, 1976. The resulting flood damaged a large area and caused the release of toxicants into the Snake River. A pesticide recovery team in a helicopter worked the flooded area for three weeks and collected 1,104 containers, about 35% of which contained toxicants. It was estimated that less than 60% of the lost pesticide containers were recovered. This paper addresses the results of a one-time sampling effort designed to determine the magnitude of the chemical contamination. Over 300 samples of fish, plankton, waterfowl, sediments, water, stream drift, aquatic plants, and soil were taken. Pesticide residues were measured as microgram/kg (ppb) wet weight, whole animal basis. Rainbow trout had as much as 1432 micrograms/kg total DDT plus analogs, 66 micrograms/kg dieldrin, and 1010 micrograms/kg PCBs. Utah suckers had up to 1420 micrograms/kg total DDT plus analogs, 32 micrograms/kg dieldrin, and 1800 micrograms/kg PCB. Rocky Mountain whitefish had as much as 2650 micrograms/kg total DDT and analogs, 30 micrograms/kg dieldrin and 1400 micrograms/kg PCBs. These PCB and DDT levels were high, approaching the 2,000 micrograms/kg FDA proposed tolerance, but were below the 5,000 micrograms/kg present tolerance. Dieldrin levels were low and organophosphates were undetectable. An undeveloped area (the Fort Hall Bottoms) showed higher levels of contaminants than did an industrialized area (the lower Portneuf River). This apparent discrepancy remains unexplained. Very little pre-flood data on a whole fish basis were available for comparison (Johnson et al 1977). However, it does not appear that any human health hazard due to pesticide levels exists in this portion of the Snake River.
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107. DAM EARTH DIKE SUBMERSIBLE DAMS PLANS ...
107. DAM - EARTH DIKE - SUBMERSIBLE DAMS - PLANS & SECTIONS (ML-8-52/3-FS) March 1940 - Upper Mississippi River 9-Foot Channel, Lock & Dam No. 8, On Mississippi River near Houston County, MN, Genoa, Vernon County, WI
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Sankey, Joel B.; Ralston, Barbara E.; Grams, Paul E.; Schmidt, John C.; Cagney, Laura E.
2015-01-01
Documentation of the interacting effects of river regulation and climate on riparian vegetation has typically been limited to small segments of rivers or focused on individual plant species. We examine spatiotemporal variability in riparian vegetation for the Colorado River in Grand Canyon relative to river regulation and climate, over the five decades since completion of the upstream Glen Canyon Dam in 1963. Long-term changes along this highly modified, large segment of the river provide insights for management of similar riparian ecosystems around the world. We analyze vegetation extent based on maps and imagery from eight dates between 1965 and 2009, coupled with the instantaneous hydrograph for the entire period. Analysis confirms a net increase in vegetated area since completion of the dam. Magnitude and timing of such vegetation changes are river stage-dependent. Vegetation expansion is coincident with inundation frequency changes and is unlikely to occur for time periods when inundation frequency exceeds approximately 5%. Vegetation expansion at lower zones of the riparian area is greater during the periods with lower peak and higher base flows, while vegetation at higher zones couples with precipitation patterns and decreases during drought. Short pulses of high flow, such as the controlled floods of the Colorado River in 1996, 2004, and 2008, do not keep vegetation from expanding onto bare sand habitat. Management intended to promote resilience of riparian vegetation must contend with communities that are sensitive to the interacting effects of altered flood regimes and water availability from river and precipitation.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sankey, Joel B.; Ralston, Barbara E.; Grams, Paul E.; Schmidt, John C.; Cagney, Laura E.
2015-08-01
Documentation of the interacting effects of river regulation and climate on riparian vegetation has typically been limited to small segments of rivers or focused on individual plant species. We examine spatiotemporal variability in riparian vegetation for the Colorado River in Grand Canyon relative to river regulation and climate, over the five decades since completion of the upstream Glen Canyon Dam in 1963. Long-term changes along this highly modified, large segment of the river provide insights for management of similar riparian ecosystems around the world. We analyze vegetation extent based on maps and imagery from eight dates between 1965 and 2009, coupled with the instantaneous hydrograph for the entire period. Analysis confirms a net increase in vegetated area since completion of the dam. Magnitude and timing of such vegetation changes are river stage-dependent. Vegetation expansion is coincident with inundation frequency changes and is unlikely to occur for time periods when inundation frequency exceeds approximately 5%. Vegetation expansion at lower zones of the riparian area is greater during the periods with lower peak and higher base flows, while vegetation at higher zones couples with precipitation patterns and decreases during drought. Short pulses of high flow, such as the controlled floods of the Colorado River in 1996, 2004, and 2008, do not keep vegetation from expanding onto bare sand habitat. Management intended to promote resilience of riparian vegetation must contend with communities that are sensitive to the interacting effects of altered flood regimes and water availability from river and precipitation.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Harris, Peter T.; Barrie, J. Vaughn; Conway, Kim W.; Greene, H. Gary
2014-06-01
Faulting commonly influences the geomorphology of submarine canyons that occur on active continental margins. Here, we examine the geomorphology of canyons located on the continental margin off Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, that are truncated on the mid-slope (1200-1400 m water depth) by the Queen Charlotte Fault Zone (QCFZ). The QCFZ is an oblique strike-slip fault zone that has rates of lateral motion of around 50-60 mm/yr and a small convergent component equal to about 3 mm/yr. Slow subduction along the Cascadia Subduction Zone has accreted a prism of marine sediment against the lower slope (1500-3500 m water depth), forming the Queen Charlotte Terrace, which blocks the mouths of submarine canyons formed on the upper slope (200-1400 m water depth). Consequently, canyons along this margin are short (4-8 km in length), closely spaced (around 800 m), and terminate uniformly along the 1400 m isobath, coinciding with the primary fault trend of the QCFZ. Vertical displacement along the fault has resulted in hanging canyons occurring locally. The Haida Gwaii canyons are compared and contrasted with the Sur Canyon system, located to the south of Monterey Bay, California, on a transform margin, which is not blocked by any accretionary prism, and where canyons thus extend to 4000 m depth, across the full breadth of the slope.
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Hydrogeology of Middle Canyon, Oquirrh Mountains, Tooele County, Utah
Gates, Joseph Spencer
1963-01-01
Geology and climate are the principal influences affecting the hydrology of Middle Canyon, Tooele County, Utah. Reconnaissance in the canyon indicated that the geologic influences on the hydrology may be localized; water may be leaking through fault and fracture zones or joints in sandstone and through solution openings in limestone of the Oquirrh formation of Pennsylvanian and Permian age. Surficial deposits of Quaternary age serve as the main storage material for ground water in the canyon and transmit water from the upper canyon to springs and drains at the canyon mouth. The upper canyon is a more important storage area than the lower canyon because the surficial deposits are thicker, and any zones of leakage in the underlying bedrock of the upper canyon probably would result in greater leakage than would similar outlets in the lower canyon.The total annual discharge from Middle Canyon, per unit of precipitation, decreased between 1910 and 1939. Similar decreases occurred in Parleys Canyon in the nearby Wasatch Range and in other drainage basins in Utah, and it is likely that most of the decrease in discharge from Middle Canyon and other canyons in Utah is due to a change in climate.Chemical analyses of water showed that the high content of sulfate and other constituents in the water from the Utah Metals tunnel, which drains into Middle Canyon, does not have a significant effect on water quality at the canyon mouth. This suggests that much of the tunnel water is lost from the channel by leakage, probably in the upper canyon, during the dry part of the year.Comparison of the 150 acre-feet of water per square mile of drainage area discharged by Middle Canyon in 1947 with the 623 and 543 acre-feet per square mile discharged in 1948 by City Creek and Mill Creek Canyons, two comparable drainage basins in the nearby Wasatch Range, also suggests that there is leakage in Middle Canyon.A hydrologic budget of the drainage basin results in an estimate that about 3,000 acre
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DuRoss, Christopher B.; Personius, Stephen F.; Crone, Anthony J.; McDonald, Greg N.; Briggs, Richard W.
2012-01-01
Of the five central segments of the Wasatch fault zone (WFZ) having evidence of recurrent Holocene surface-faulting earthquakes, the Brigham City segment (BCS) has the longest elapsed time since its most recent surface-faulting event (~2.1 kyr) compared to its mean recurrence time between events (~1.3 kyr). Thus, the BCS has the highest time-dependent earthquake probability of the central WFZ. We excavated trenches at three sites––the Kotter Canyon and Hansen Canyon sites on the north-central BCS and Pearsons Canyon site on the southern BCS––to determine whether a surface-faulting earthquake younger than 2.1 ka occurred on the BCS. Paleoseismic data for Hansen Canyon and Kotter Canyon confirm that the youngest earthquake on the north-central BCS occurred before 2 ka, consistent with previous north-central BCS investigations at Bowden Canyon and Box Elder Canyon. At Hansen Canyon, the most recent earthquake is constrained to 2.1–4.2 ka and had 0.6–2.5 m of vertical displacement. At Kotter Canyon, we found evidence for two events at 2.5 ± 0.3 ka and 3.5 ± 0.3 ka, with an average displacement per event of 1.9–2.3 m. Paleoseismic data from Pearsons Canyon, on the previously unstudied southern BCS, indicate that a post-2 ka earthquake ruptured this part of the segment. The Pearsons Canyon earthquake occurred at 1.2 ± 0.04 ka and had 0.1–0.8 m of vertical displacement, consistent with our observation of continuous, youthful scarps on the southern 9 km of the BCS having 1–2 m of late Holocene(?) surface offset. The 1.2-ka earthquake on the southern BCS likely represents rupture across the Weber–Brigham City segment boundary from the penultimate Weber-segment earthquake at about 1.1 ka. The Pearsons Canyon data result in a revised length of the BCS that has not ruptured since 2 ka (with time-dependent probability implications), and provide compelling evidence of at least one segment-boundary failure and multi-segment rupture on the central WFZ. Our
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sankey, Joel; Kasprak, Alan; Caster, Joshua; East, Amy; Fairley, Helen
2017-04-01
Aeolian dunefields that are primarily built and maintained with river-derived sediment are found in many river valleys throughout the world and are impacted by changes in climate, land use, and river regulation. Quantifying the dynamic response of these aeolian dunefields to alterations in river flow is especially difficult given the highly correlated nature of the interacting geomorphic and sediment transport processes that drive their formation and maintenance. We characterize the effects of controlled river floods on changes in sediment connectivity at source-bordering aeolian dunefields in the Grand Canyon, USA. Controlled floods from the Glen Canyon Dam are used to build sandbars along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon which provide the main sediment source for aeolian dunefields. Aeolian dunefields are a primary resource of concern for land managers in the Grand Canyon because they often contain buried archaeological features. To characterize dunefield response to controlled floods, we use a novel, automated approach for the mechanistic segregation of geomorphic change to discern the geomorphic processes responsible for driving topographic change in very high resolution digital elevation models-of-difference (DODs) that span multiple, consecutive controlled river floods at source-bordering dunefields. We subsequently compare the results of mechanistic segregation with modelled estimates of aeolian dunefield evolution in order to understand how dunefields respond to contemporary, anthropogenically-driven variability in sediment supply and connectivity. These methods provide a rapid technique for sediment budgeting and enable the inference of spatial and temporal patterns in sediment flux between the fluvial and aeolian domains. We anticipate that this approach will be adaptable to other river valleys where the interactions of aeolian, fluvial, and hillslope processes drive sediment connectivity for the maintenance of source-bordering aeolian dunefields.
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Slope basins, headless canyons, and submarine palaeoseismology of the Cascadia accretionary complex
McAdoo, B.G.; Orange, D.L.; Screaton, Elizabeth; Lee, H.; Kayen, R.
1997-01-01
A combination of geomorphological, seismic reflection and geotechnical data constrains this study of sediment erosion and deposition at the toe of the Cascadia accretionary prism. We conducted a series of ALVIN dives in a region south of Astoria Canyon to examine the interrelationship of fluid flow and slope failure in a series of headless submarine canyons. Elevated head gradients at the inflection point of canyons have been inferred to assist in localized failures that feed sediment into a closed slope basin. Measured head gradients are an order of magnitude too low to cause seepage-induced slope failure alone; we therefore propose transient slope failure mechanisms. Intercanyon slopes are uniformly unscarred and smooth, although consolidation tests indicate that up to several metres of material may have been removed. A sheet-like failure would remove sediment uniformly, preserving the observed smooth intercanyon slope. Earthquake-induced liquefaction is a likely trigger for this type of sheet failure as the slope is too steep and short for sediment flow to organize itself into channels. Bathymetric and seismic reflection data suggest sediment in a trench slope basin between the second and third ridges from the prism's deformation is derived locally. A comparison of the amounts of material removed from the slopes and that in the basin shows that the amount of material removed from the slopes may slightly exceed the amount of material in the basin, implying that a small amount of sediment has escaped the basin, perhaps when the second ridge was too low to form a sufficient dam, or through a gap in the second ridge to the south. Regardless, almost 80% of the material shed off the slopes around the basin is deposited locally, whereas the remaining 20% is redeposited on the incoming section and will be re-accreted.
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Submarine sand dunes and sedimentary environments in Oceanographer Canyon.
Valentine, P.C.; Cooper, R.A.; Uzmann, J.R.
1984-01-01
Observations from research submersibles in the northern part of Oceanographer Canyon reveal the presence of an extensive field of large sand dunes on the canyon floor. The dunes are medium to coarse sand, are oriented across the axis, and the largest of them are as high as 3 m and have wavelengths up to 15 m. Their asymmetry, grain size, and height suggest that they are formed by axial currents flowing up- and downcanyon and that the largest dunes require flows of at least 70 cm/sec. Shelf sand, low in silt and clay content, is transported by currents down and along the canyon walls onto the canyon floor. As the sand enters the canyon, it is mixed with immobile gravel deposits on the canyon rim; lower on the walls, the sand is mixed with silt and clay burrowed by organisms from the semiconsolidated sandy silt that underlies the canyon walls and floor. Upon reaching the canyon floor, the sand is sculpted into bed forms by currents, and the fines are winnowed out and transported out of the canyon. At present, the shelf and canyon walls are being eroded by bottom currents and burrowing organisms, whereas the canyon floor is covered by mobile sand that moves both up and down the axis in this part of the canyon.
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Coupled dam safety analysis using WinDAM
USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database
Windows® Dam Analysis Modules (WinDAM) is a set of modular software components that can be used to analyze overtopping and internal erosion of embankment dams. Dakota is an extensive software framework for design exploration and simulation. These tools can be coupled to create a powerful framework...
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The Morpho-Acoustic Structure of Sakarya Canyon, Southwestern Black Sea
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Nasıf, Aslıhan; Dondurur, Derman
2017-04-01
In this study, Black Sea outlet of Sakarya River in the western Black Sea continental margin is analyzed using a total of 1400 km multichannel seismics, Chirp sub-bottom profiler and multibeam bathymetric datasets. Three scientific cruises between 2012 and 2016 have been conducted in the area to map and reveal the morphological structure of the Sakarya Canyon along the southwestern Black Sea margin. The Western Black Sea Turkey coastal area is also home to many active canyons. These canyons extend from deep shallow shelf areas of about 100 m to deep water depths of 1800-2000 m. The largest and most active of the Western Black Sea canyons is the Sakarya Canyon, which is located at the exit of the Sakarya River. Research on submarine canyons are important for military submarine operations, positioning of marine engineering structures and understanding the sedimentology, ecological and oceanographic functions of canyons. The canyon systems observed on continental slopes lead to the most convenient sedimentary transportation from the shelf platform. The dataset from study area was analyzed to identify the acoustic structure of Sakarya Canyon, the morphology of which is not widely known. Bathymetric data shows that the canyon consists of two separate canyon heads in the shallow continental shelf to the south, both of which coalesce at 867 m water depth. This meandering canyon then deepens along the continental slope towards to north. Another wide canyon from west, named as Kefken Canyon, then conjoins this main canyon at approximately 1000 m water depths to form the deeper structure of the modern Sakarya Canyon. In the distal parts, canyon gets wider and wider, and its thalweg becomes significantly flat eroded by the present day activity of small scale turbidity channels. Multichannel seismic data indicate that the Sakarya Canyon was formed by the activity of hyperphycnal flows and also clearly show the extensive sediment erosion along the canyon.
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The influence of Dworshak Dam on epilithic community metabolism in the Clearwater River, U.S.A.
Munn, M.D.; Brusven, M.A.
2004-01-01
Epilithic community metabolism was determined on a seasonal basis over two years in nonregulated and regulated reaches of the Clearwater River in northern Idaho, U.S.A. Metabolism was estimated using three, 12-liter recirculating chambers and the dissolved oxygen method, with parameters expressed as g O2 m−2 d−1. In the nonregulated reach above the reservoir, gross community productivity (GCP) ranged from 0.8 to 3.2, community respiration (CR24) from 0.3 to 1.2, and production/respiration (P/R) ratios from 1.2 to 3.3. Epilithic metabolism in the regulated reach immediately below the dam increased sharply; GCP ranged from 4.2 to 25.5, CR24 from 1.9 to 9.7, and P/R ratios from 1.4 to 5.7. Increased primary production and respiration in the regulated reach was a result of extensive growth of an aquatic moss (Fontanalis neo-mexicanus). The influence of the dam on epilithic community metabolism was mitigated 2.5 km downstream of the dam due to the regulated North Fork of the Clearwater River (NFCR) merging with the larger, nonregulated Clearwater River. While the regulated Clearwater River below the confluence was somewhat affected by the regulated NFCR flows upstream, metabolism was similar to that found above the reservoir (GCP = 1.2 – 2.6, CR24 = 0.6 – 1.3, and P/R = 1.4 – 2.2). This study demonstrates that while Dworshak Dam has altered both primary production and respiration directly below the dam, the placement of the dam only 2.5 km upstream from a nonregulated reach greatly mitigates its effects on stream metabolism downstream.
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36 CFR 294.22 - Idaho Roadless Areas.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Idaho Roadless Areas. 294.22... Idaho Roadless Area Management § 294.22 Idaho Roadless Areas. (a) Designations. All National Forest System lands within the State of Idaho listed in § 294.29 are hereby designated as Idaho Roadless Areas...
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Hall, Robert O.; Yackulic, Charles B.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Yard, Michael D.; Rosi-Marshall, Emma J.; Voichick, Nicholas; Behn, Kathrine E.
2015-01-01
Dams and river regulation greatly alter the downstream environment for gross primary production (GPP) because of changes in water clarity, flow, and temperature regimes. We estimated reach-scale GPP in five locations of the regulated Colorado River in Grand Canyon using an open channel model of dissolved oxygen. Benthic GPP dominates in Grand Canyon due to fast transport times and low pelagic algal biomass. In one location, we used a 738 days time series of GPP to identify the relative contribution of different physical controls of GPP. We developed both linear and semimechanistic time series models that account for unmeasured temporal covariance due to factors such as algal biomass dynamics. GPP varied from 0 g O2 m−2 d−1 to 3.0 g O2 m−2 d−1 with a relatively low annual average of 0.8 g O2 m−2d−1. Semimechanistic models fit the data better than linear models and demonstrated that variation in turbidity primarily controlled GPP. Lower solar insolation during winter and from cloud cover lowered GPP much further. Hydropeaking lowered GPP but only during turbid conditions. Using the best model and parameter values, the model accurately predicted seasonal estimates of GPP at 3 of 4 upriver sites and outperformed the linear model at all sites; discrepancies were likely from higher algal biomass at upstream sites. This modeling approach can predict how changes in physical controls will affect relative rates of GPP throughout the 385 km segment of the Colorado River in Grand Canyon and can be easily applied to other streams and rivers.
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McDonald, Richard R.; Nelson, Jonathan M.; Vaughn Paragamian,; Barton, Gary J.
2017-01-01
The Kootenai River white sturgeon currently spawn (2005) in an 18-kilometer reach of the Kootenai River, Idaho. Since completion of Libby Dam upstream from the spawning reach, there has been only one successful year of recruitment of juvenile fish. Where successful in other rivers, white sturgeon spawn over clean coarse material of gravel size or larger. The channel substrate in the current spawning reach is composed primarily of sand and some buried gravel; within a few kilometers upstream there is clean gravel. We used a 2-dimensional flow and sediment-transport model and the measured locations of sturgeon spawning from 1994-2002 to gain insight into the paradox between the current spawning location and the absence of suitable substrate. Spatial correlations between spawning locations and the model simulations of velocity and depth indicate the white sturgeon tend to select regions of highest velocity and depth within any river cross-section to spawn. These regions of high velocity and depth are independent of pre- or post-dam flow conditions. A simple sediment-transport simulation suggests that high discharge and relatively long duration flow associated with pre-dam flow events might be sufficient to scour the sandy substrate and expose existing lenses of gravel and cobble as lag deposits in the current spawning reach.
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Garcia, A.P.; Bradbury, S.; Arnsberg, B.D.
2008-11-25
Redd counts are routinely used to document the spawning distribution of fall Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) in the Snake River basin upriver of Lower Granite Dam. The first reported redd counts were from aerial searches conducted intermittently between 1959 and 1978 (Irving and Bjornn 1981, Witty 1988; Groves and Chandler 1996)(Appendix 1). In 1986, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife began an annual monitoring program that, in addition to the Snake River, included aerial searches of the Grande Ronde River the first year (Seidel and Bugert 1987), and the Imnaha River in subsequent years (Seidel et al. 1988; Bugertmore » et al. 1989-1991; Mendel et al. 1992). The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Idaho Power Company began contributing to this effort in 1991 by increasing the number of aerial searches conducted each year and adding underwater searches in areas of the Snake River that were too deep to be searched from the air (Connor et al. 1993; Garcia et al. 1994a, 1994b, 1996-2007; Groves 1993; Groves and Chandler 1996). The Nez Perce Tribe added aerial searches in the Clearwater River basin beginning in 1988 (Arnsberg et. al 1992), and the Salmon River beginning in 1992. Currently searches are conducted cooperatively by the Nez Perce Tribe, Idaho Power Company, and U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Our objective for this report was to consolidate the findings from annual redd searches counted upstream of Lower Granite Dam into a single document, containing detailed information about the searches from the most recent spawning season, and summary information from previous years. The work conducted in 2007 was funded by the Bonneville Power Administration and Idaho Power Company.« less
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Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... 40 Protection of Environment 17 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Idaho. 81.410 Section 81.410... Visibility Is an Important Value § 81.410 Idaho. Area name Acreage Public Law establishing Federal land...,800 acres are in Idaho. 2 Selway Bitterroot Wilderness, 1,240,700 acres overall, of which 988,700...
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Warrick, Jonathan A.; Bountry, Jennifer A.; East, Amy E.; Magirl, Christopher S.; Randle, Timothy J.; Gelfenbaum, Guy R.; Ritchie, Andrew C.; Pess, George R.; Leung, Vivian; Duda, Jeff J.
2015-01-01
waters, where slightly less than half of the sediment was deposited in the river-mouth delta. Although most of the measured fluvial and coastal deposition was sand-sized and coarser (> 0.063 mm), significant mud deposition was observed in and around the mainstem river channel and on the seafloor. Woody debris, ranging from millimeter-size particles to old-growth trees and stumps, was also introduced to fluvial and coastal landforms during the dam removals. At the end of our two-year study, Elwha Dam was completely removed, Glines Canyon Dam had been 75% removed (full removal was completed 2014), and ~ 65% of the combined reservoir sediment masses—including ~ 8 Mt of fine-grained and ~ 12 Mt of coarse-grained sediment—remained within the former reservoirs. Reservoir sediment will continue to be released to the Elwha River following our two-year study owing to a ~ 16 m base level drop during the final removal of Glines Canyon Dam and to erosion from floods with larger magnitudes than occurred during our study. Comparisons with a geomorphic synthesis of small dam removals suggest that the rate of sediment erosion as a percent of storage was greater in the Elwha River during the first two years of the project than in the other systems. Comparisons with other Pacific Northwest dam removals suggest that these steep, high-energy rivers have enough stream power to export volumes of sediment deposited over several decades in only months to a few years. These results should assist with predicting and characterizing landscape responses to future dam removals and other perturbations to fluvial and coastal sediment budgets.
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Ventilation Processes in a Three-Dimensional Street Canyon
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Nosek, Štěpán; Kukačka, Libor; Kellnerová, Radka; Jurčáková, Klára; Jaňour, Zbyněk
2016-05-01
The ventilation processes in three different street canyons of variable roof geometry were investigated in a wind tunnel using a ground-level line source. All three street canyons were part of an urban-type array formed by courtyard-type buildings with pitched roofs. A constant roof height was used in the first case, while a variable roof height along the leeward or windward walls was simulated in the two other cases. All street-canyon models were exposed to a neutrally stratified flow with two approaching wind directions, perpendicular and oblique. The complexity of the flow and dispersion within the canyons of variable roof height was demonstrated for both wind directions. The relative pollutant removals and spatially-averaged concentrations within the canyons revealed that the model with constant roof height has higher re-emissions than models with variable roof heights. The nomenclature for the ventilation processes according to quadrant analysis of the pollutant flux was introduced. The venting of polluted air (positive fluctuations of both concentration and velocity) from the canyon increased when the wind direction changed from perpendicular to oblique, irrespective of the studied canyon model. Strong correlations (>0.5) between coherent structures and ventilation processes were found at roof level, irrespective of the canyon model and wind direction. This supports the idea that sweep and ejection events of momentum bring clean air in and detrain the polluted air from the street canyon, respectively.
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Idaho traffic collisions, 2004
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2004-01-01
Idaho Traffic Collisions 2004 provides an annual description of motor vehicle collision characteristics for Idaho. : This document is used by state and local transportation, law enforcement, health, and other agencies charged with : the responsibilit...
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Idaho traffic collisions, 2006
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2006-01-01
Idaho Traffic Collisions 2006 provides an annual description of motor vehicle collision characteristics for Idaho. : This document is used by state and local transportation, law enforcement, health, and other agencies charged with : the responsibilit...
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Idaho traffic collisions, 2002
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2002-01-01
Idaho Traffic Collisions 2002 provides an annual description of motor vehicle collision characteristics for : Idaho. This document is used by state and local transportation, law enforcement, health, and other agencies : charged with the responsibilit...
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Idaho traffic collisions, 2003
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2003-01-01
Idaho Traffic Collisions 2003 provides an annual description of motor vehicle collision characteristics for Idaho. : This document is used by state and local transportation, law enforcement, health, and other agencies charged with : the responsibilit...
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Wright, S.A.; Kaplinski, M.
2011-01-01
In canyon rivers, debris fan constrictions create rapids and downstream pools characterized by secondary flow structures that are closely linked to channel morphology. In this paper we describe detailed measurements of the three-dimensional flow structure and sandbar dynamics of two pools along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon during a controlled flood release from Glen Canyon Dam. Results indicate that the pools are characterized by large lateral recirculation zones (eddies) resulting from flow separation downstream from the channel constrictions, as well as helical flow structures in the main channel and eddy. The lateral recirculation zones are low-velocity areas conducive to fine sediment deposition, particularly in the vicinity of the separation and reattachment points and are thus the dominant flow structures controlling sandbar dynamics. The helical flow structures also affect morphology but appear secondary in importance to the lateral eddies. During the controlled flood, sandbars in the separation and reattachment zones at both sites tended to build gradually during the rising limb and peak flow. Deposition in shallow water on the sandbars was accompanied by erosion in deeper water along the sandbar slope at the interface with the main channel. Erosion occurred via rapid mass failures as well as by gradual boundary shear stress driven processes. The flow structures and morphologic links at our study sites are similar to those identified in other river environments, in particular sharply curved meanders and channel confluences where the coexistence of lateral recirculation and helical flows has been documented. Copyright 2011 by the American Geophysical Union.
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Geology and biology of Oceanographer submarine canyon.
Valentine, P.C.; Uzmann, J.R.; Cooper, R.A.
1980-01-01
Santonian beds more than 100 m thick are the oldest rocks collected from the canyon. Quaternary silty clay veneers the canyon walls in many places and is commonly burrowed by benthic organisms that cause extensive erosion of the canyon walls, especially in the depth zone (100-1300 m) inhabited by the crabs Geryon and Cancer. Bioerosion is minimal on high, near-vertical cliffs of sedimentary rock, in areas of continual sediment movement, and where the sea floor is paved by gravel. A thin layer of rippled, unconsolidated silt and sand is commonly present on the canyon walls and in the axis. Shelf sediments are transported from Georges Bank over the E rim and in the Canyon by the SW drift and storm currents; tidal currents and internal waves move the sediment downcanyon along the walls and axis.- from Authors
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Discovery of two new large submarine canyons in the Bering Sea
Carlson, P.R.; Karl, Herman A.
1984-01-01
The Beringian continental margin is incised by some of the world's largest submarine canyons. Two newly discovered canyons, St. Matthew and Middle, are hereby added to the roster of Bering Sea canyons. Although these canyons are smaller and not cut back into the Bering shelf like the five very large canyons, they are nonetheless comparable in size to most of the canyons that have been cut into the U.S. eastern continental margin and much larger than the well-known southern California canyons. Both igneous and sedimentary rocks of Eocene to Pliocene age have been dredged from the walls of St. Matthew and Middle Canyons as well as from the walls of several of the other Beringian margin canyons, thus suggesting a late Tertiary to Quaternary genesis of the canyons. We speculate that the ancestral Yukon and possibly Anadyr Rivers were instrumental in initiating the canyon-cutting processes, but that, due to restrictions imposed by island and subsea bedrock barriers, cutting of the two newly discovered canyons may have begun later and been slower than for the other five canyons. ?? 1984.
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Idaho traffic collisions, 2000
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2000-01-01
Idaho Traffic Collisions 2000 provides an annual description of collision characteristics for Idaho. This : document is used by state and local transportation, law enforcement, health, and other agencies charged with : the responsibility of coping wi...
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Idaho traffic collisions, 2005
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2005-01-01
Idaho Traffic Collisions 2005 provides an annual description of motor vehicle collision characteristics for Idaho. This document is used by state and local transportation, law enforcement, health, and other agencies charged with the responsibility of...
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Chapter 12. Canyons microbiology studies
Kellogg, Christina A.; Lawler, Stephanie N.
2017-01-01
Off the eastern coast of the United States, several deep canyons cut through the continental shelf, acting like funnels to move sediment from the shelf out to the deep seafloor. Exposed rock outcrops and ledges along the walls of these canyons provide important habitat for deepsea corals and sponges. Although a few scientific expeditions have visited these canyons in the 1970s (Hecker and Blechschmidt 1979, Hecker et al. 1980), their purpose was mainly to map the contours and capture photographs of the bottom using manned submersibles and towed cameras. Our knowledge of the biodiversity in these complex ecosystems is limited; we know little about the macrofauna (e.g., fishes, crabs, sponges, and deepsea corals) and even less about the microbiota.The research described in this report was conducted from 2011 to 2015 as part of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) study, entitled “Atlantic Deepwater Canyons” study. This work used molecular and microbiological techniques to examine the microbial ecology and diversity associated with Baltimore and Norfolk canyons. Specifically, this work focused on the microbial ecology of four species of octocorals (Acanthogorgia aspera, Anthothela grandiflora, Paramuricea placomus, and Primnoa resedaeformis), the microbial diversity in sediments within and outside the canyons, and a settling plate experiment designed to characterize microbial biofilm formation on a variety of hard substrates.
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36 CFR 7.19 - Canyon de Chelly National Monument.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Canyon de Chelly National... INTERIOR SPECIAL REGULATIONS, AREAS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 7.19 Canyon de Chelly National Monument. (a) Visitors are prohibited from entering the canyons of Canyon de Chelly National Monument unless...
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36 CFR 7.19 - Canyon de Chelly National Monument.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Canyon de Chelly National... INTERIOR SPECIAL REGULATIONS, AREAS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 7.19 Canyon de Chelly National Monument. (a) Visitors are prohibited from entering the canyons of Canyon de Chelly National Monument unless...
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Idaho traffic collisions, 2001
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2001-01-01
Idaho Traffic Collisions 2001 provides an annual description of collision characteristics for Idaho. This document is used by state and local transportation, law enforcement, health, and other agencies charged with the responsibility of coping with t...
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DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2007-01-01
Idaho Traffic Crashes 2007 provides an annual description of motor vehicle crash characteristics for : crashes that have occurred within the State of Idaho. This document is used by state and local : transportation, law enforcement, health, and other...
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DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2009-01-01
Idaho Traffic Crashes 2009 provides an annual description of motor vehicle crash characteristics for : crashes that have occurred on public roads within the State of Idaho. This document is used by state and : local transportation, law enforcement, h...
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DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2008-01-01
Idaho Traffic Crashes 2008 provides an annual description of motor vehicle crash characteristics for : crashes that have occurred on public roads within the State of Idaho. This document is used by state and : local transportation, law enforcement, h...
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Morphodynamic Model of Submarine Canyon Incision by Sandblasting
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Zhang, L.; Parker, G.; Izumi, N.; Cartigny, M.; Li, T.; Wang, G.
2017-12-01
Submarine canyons are carved by turbidity currents under the deep sea. As opposed to subaerial canyons, the relevant processes are not easy to observe directly. Turbidity currents are bottom-hugging sediment gravity flows of that can incise or deposit on the seafloor to create submarine canyons or fans. The triggers of turbidity currents can be storms, edge waves, internal waves, canyon wall sapping, delta failure, breaching and hyperpycnal flows. The formation and evolution mechanisms of submarine canyons are similar to those of subaerial canyons, but have substantial differences. For example, sandblasting, rather than wear due to colliding gravel clasts is more likely to be the mechanism of bedrock incision. Submarine canyons incise downward, and often develop meander bends and levees within the canyon, so defining "fairways". Here we propose a simple model for canyon incision. The starting point of our model is the Macro Roughness Saltation Abrasion Alluviation model of Zhang et al. [2015], designed for bedrock incision by gravel clasts in mixed bedrock-alluvial rivers. We adapt this formulation to consider sandblasting as a means of wear. We use a layer-averaged model for turbidity current dynamics. The current contains a mixture of mud, which helps drive the flow but which does not cause incision, and sand, which is the agent of incision. We show that the model can successfully model channel downcutting, and indeed illustrate the early formation of net incisional cyclic steps, i.e. upstream-migrating undulations on the bed associated with transcritical (in the Froude sense) flow. These steps can be expected to abet the process of incision.
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Boise Basin Experimental Forest (Idaho)
Russell T. Graham; Theresa B. Jain
2004-01-01
The Boise Basin Experimental Forest was established in 1933 to study ponderosa pine. It consists of 3,537 ha with elevations ranging from 1,200 to 3,630 m. Boise Basin is divided into three units surrounding Idaho City in southern Idaho. Idaho City was a booming mining town in the 1870s and the surrounding forests supplied material to the community. Two units were...
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1. GORGE HIGH DAM. THIS THIN ARCH DAM WITH A ...
1. GORGE HIGH DAM. THIS THIN ARCH DAM WITH A GRAVITY SECTION IS THE THIRD DAM BUILT BY SEATTLE CITY LIGHT TO PROVIDE WATER FOR GORGE POWERHOUSE AND WAS COMPLETED IN 1961, 1989. - Skagit Power Development, Gorge High Dam, On Skagit River, 2.9 miles upstream from Newhalem, Newhalem, Whatcom County, WA
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Diets of insectivorous birds along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, Arizona
Yard, H.K.; van Riper, Charles; Brown, B.T.; Kearsley, M.J.
2004-01-01
We examined diets of six insectivorous bird species (n = 202 individuals) from two vegetation zones along the Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, 1994. All bird species consumed similar quantities of caterpillars and beetles, but use of other prey taxa varied. Non-native leafhoppers (Opsius stactagolus) specific to non-native tamarisk (Tamarix chinensis) substantially augmented Lucy's Warbler (Vermivora luciae) diets (49%), while ants comprised 82% of Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens) diets. Yellow Warbler (Dendroica petechia) diets were composed of 45% aquatic midges. All bird species consumed the non-native leafhopper specific to tamarisk. Comparison of bird diets with availability of arthropod prey from aquatic and terrestrial origins showed terrestrial insects comprised 91% of all avian diets compared to 9% of prey from aquatic origin. Seasonal shifts in arthropod prey occurred in diets of three bird species, although no seasonal shifts were detected in arthropods sampled in vegetation indicating that at least three bird species were not selecting prey in proportion to its abundance. All bird species had higher prey overlap with arthropods collected in the native, mesquite-acacia vegetation zone which contained higher arthropod diversity and better prey items (i.e., Lepidoptera). Lucy's Warbler and Yellow Warbler consumed high proportions of prey items found in greatest abundance in the tamarisk-dominated vegetation zone that has been established since the construction of Glen Canyon Dam. These species appeared to exhibit ecological plasticity in response to an anthropogenic increase in prey resources.
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Voichick, Nicholas; Topping, David J.
2014-01-01
range of sediment concentrations in the study area using data from the ADP instruments is particularly useful for biological studies. In Grand Canyon, turbidity has been correlated with food availability for aquatic organisms (gross primary production) as well as with fish behavior specific to predator-prey interactions. On the basis of the complete “extended” turbidity record and the relation between suspended-sediment concentration and turbidity, levels were higher before the construction of Glen Canyon Dam by a factor of approximately 2,000 at the Lees Ferry monitoring station (15 miles downstream from the dam) and by a factor of approximately 20 at the monitoring station 87 miles downstream from Lees Ferry (102 miles downstream from the dam). A comparison of turbidity data with data from Laser In-Situ Scattering and Transmissometry (LISST) laser-diffraction instruments, suspended-sediment concentration data, and ADP data shows the influence of the physical properties of suspended sediment. Apparent outliers in relations between turbidity, ADP, and suspended-sediment data during two events within the study period, a 2007 tributary flood from a watershed altered by a recent wildfire and a 2008 experimental controlled-flood release from Glen Canyon Dam, are explained in part by atypical grain sizes, shapes, densities, colors, and (or) clay mineral assemblages of suspended sediment occurring in the Colorado River during these two events. These analyses demonstrate the value of using multiple data-collection strategies for turbidity and sediment-transport studies and of continuous monitoring for capturing the full range and duration of turbidity and sediment-transport conditions, identifying the provenance of the sediment causing turbidity, and detecting physical and chemical processes that may be important for management of critical physical and biological resources.
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Idaho Library Laws, 1996-1997. Full Edition.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Idaho State Library, Boise.
This new edition of the "Idaho Library Laws" contains changes through the 1996 legislative session and includes "Idaho Code" sections that legally affect city, school-community or district libraries, or the Idaho State Library. These sections include the basic library laws in "Idaho Code" Title 33, Chapters 25, 26,…
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Bathymetry and capacity of Blackfoot Reservoir, Caribou County, Idaho, 2011
Wood, Molly S.; Skinner, Kenneth D.; Fosness, Ryan L.
2012-01-01
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, surveyed the bathymetry and selected above-water sections of Blackfoot Reservoir, Caribou County, Idaho, in 2011. Reservoir operators manage releases from Government Dam on Blackfoot Reservoir based on a stage-capacity relation developed about the time of dam construction in the early 1900s. Reservoir operation directly affects the amount of water that is available for irrigation of agricultural land on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation and surrounding areas. The USGS surveyed the below-water sections of the reservoir using a multibeam echosounder and real-time kinematic global positioning system (RTK-GPS) equipment at full reservoir pool in June 2011, covering elevations from 6,090 to 6,119 feet (ft) above the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88). The USGS used data from a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) survey performed in 2000 to map reservoir bathymetry from 6,116 to 6,124 ft NAVD 88, which were mostly in depths too shallow to measure with the multibeam echosounder, and most of the above-water section of the reservoir (above 6,124 ft NAVD 88). Selected points and bank erosional features were surveyed by the USGS using RTK-GPS and a total station at low reservoir pool in September 2011 to supplement and verify the LiDAR data. The stage-capacity relation was revised and presented in a tabular format. The datasets show a 2.0-percent decrease in capacity from the original survey, due to sedimentation or differences in accuracy between surveys. A 1.3-percent error also was detected in the previously used capacity table and measured water-level elevation because of questionable reference elevation at monitoring stations near Government Dam. Reservoir capacity in 2011 at design maximum pool of 6,124 ft above NAVD 88 was 333,500 acre-ft.
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Hunt, Paul; Lewczyk, Mike; Swain, Mike
2018-06-22
A video series presenting an overview of the Savannah River Site's (SRS) mission and operations. Each episode features a specific area/operation and how it contributes to help make the world safer. This episode features H Canyon's mission and operations. H Canyon and its adjoining H B Line facility represent the last full-scale radio chemical processing capabilities left in the United States.
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Deer Creek Dam, Dam, 1,204 feet/238 degrees from intersection of ...
Deer Creek Dam, Dam, 1,204 feet/238 degrees from intersection of dam complex access road and U.S. Highway 189 to center of dam, 874 feet/352 degrees from Hydroelectric Powerplant (HAER UT-93-B) to center of dam, Charleston, Wasatch County, UT
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Cross, Wyatt F.; Baxter, Colden V.; Donner, Kevin C.; Rosi-Marshall, Emma J.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Hall, Robert O.; Wellard Kelly, Holly A.; Rogers, R. Scott
2011-01-01
Large dams have been constructed on rivers to meet human demands for water, electricity, navigation, and recreation. As a consequence, flow and temperature regimes have been altered, strongly affecting river food webs and ecosystem processes. Experimental high-flow dam releases, i.e., controlled floods, have been implemented on the Colorado River, USA, in an effort to reestablish pulsed flood events, redistribute sediments, improve conditions for native fishes, and increase understanding of how dam operations affect physical and biological processes. We quantified secondary production and organic matter flows in the food web below Glen Canyon dam for two years prior and one year after an experimental controlled flood in March 2008. Invertebrate biomass and secondary production declined significantly following the flood (total biomass, 55% decline; total production, 56% decline), with most of the decline driven by reductions in two nonnative invertebrate taxa, Potamopyrgus antipodarum and Gammarus lacustris. Diatoms dominated the trophic basis of invertebrate production before and after the controlled flood, and the largest organic matter flows were from diatoms to the three most productive invertebrate taxa (P. antipodarum, G. lacustris, and Tubificida). In contrast to invertebrates, production of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) increased substantially (194%) following the flood, despite the large decline in total secondary production of the invertebrate assemblage. This counterintuitive result is reconciled by a post-flood increase in production and drift concentrations of select invertebrate prey (i.e., Chironomidae and Simuliidae) that supported a large proportion of trout production but had relatively low secondary production. In addition, interaction strengths, measured as species impact values, were strongest between rainbow trout and these two taxa before and after the flood, demonstrating that the dominant consumer—resource interactions were not
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McNary Dam, Ice Harbor Dam, and Lower Monumental Dam Smolt Monitoring Program; 1996 Annual Report.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Hillson, Todd; Lind, Sharon; Price, William
1997-07-01
The Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife (WDFW) assumed responsibility for the Smolt Monitoring Program at McNary Dam on the Columbia River in 1990 and at the new juvenile collection facility at Lower Monumental Dam on the Snake River in 1993. In 1996, Smolt Monitoring Program activities also began at the new juvenile collection facility located at Ice Harbor Dam. This report summarizes the 1996 Smolt Monitoring work at all three sites. The work at Ice Harbor consisted of Gas Bubble Trauma (GBT) monitoring only. In general, the 1996 passage season at both the McNary and Lower Monumental sites canmore » be characterized by reduced passage of juveniles through the collection systems due to elevated river flows and spill, and low (<1%) overall facility mortality rates most likely resulting from cooler water temperatures. In accordance with the National Marine Fisheries Service recommendations (NMFS, 1995) all spring migrants were bypassed at McNary Dam in 1996. Mechanical problems within the McNary collection system resulted in collection and sampling activities being delayed until April 18 at this site, while sampling and collection began on the scheduled starting date of April 1 at Lower Monumental Dam. Monitoring operations were conducted through December 14 at McNary Dam and through October 28 at Lower Monumental Dam. An ongoing transportation evaluation summer migrant marking program was conducted at McNary Dam in 1996 by the NMFS. This necessitated the sampling of 394,211 additional fish beyond the recommended sampling guidelines. All total, 509,237 and 31,219 juvenile salmonids were anesthetized and individually counted, examined for scale loss, injuries, and brands by WDFW Smolt Monitoring personnel in 1996 at McNary Dam and Lower Monumental Dam, respectively.« less
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Idaho Library Laws, 1999-2000. Full Edition.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Idaho State Library, Boise.
This new edition of the Idaho Library Laws contains changes through the 1998 legislative session and includes Idaho Code sections that legally affect city, school-community or district libraries, or the Idaho State Library. These sections include the basic library laws in Idaho Code Title 33, Chapters 25, 26, and 27, additional sections of the law…
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Berenbrock, Charles E.; Bassick, M.D.; Rogers, T.L.; Garcia, S.P.
1995-01-01
This map report illustrates digitally generated depth-to-water zones for the Rathdrum Prairie in Idaho; part of the Spokane River Valley in eastern Washington; and the intermontane valleys of the upper Big Wood, Big Lost, Pahsimeroi, Little Lost, and Lemhi Rivers and Birch Creek in Idaho. Depth to water is 400 to 500 feet below land surface in the northern part of Rathdrum Prairie, 100 to 200 feet below land surface at the Idaho-Washington State line, and 0 to 250 feet below land surface in the Spokane area. Depth to water in the intermontane valleys in east-central Idaho is least (usually less than 50 feet) near streams and increases toward valley margins where mountain-front alluvial fans have formed. Depths to water shown in the Moscow-Lewiston-Grangeville area in Idaho are limited to point data at individual wells because most of the water levels measured were not representative of levels in the uppermost aquifer but of levels in deeper aquifers.
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Large-scale dam removal on the Elwha River, Washington, USA: coastal geomorphic change
Gelfenbaum, Guy R.; Stevens, Andrew W.; Miller, Ian M.; Warrick, Jonathan A.; Ogston, Andrea S.; Eidam, Emily
2015-01-01
Two dams on the Elwha River, Washington State, USA trapped over 20 million m3 of mud, sand, and gravel since 1927, reducing downstream sediment fluxes and contributing to erosion of the river's coastal delta. The removal of the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams, initiated in September 2011, induced massive increases in river sediment supply and provided an unprecedented opportunity to examine the geomorphic response of a coastal delta to these increases. Detailed measurements of beach topography and nearshore bathymetry show that ~ 2.5 million m3 of sediment was deposited during the first two years of dam removal, which is ~ 100 times greater than deposition rates measured prior to dam removal. The majority of the deposit was located in the intertidal and shallow subtidal region immediately offshore of the river mouth and was composed of sand and gravel. Additional areas of deposition include a secondary sandy deposit to the east of the river mouth and a muddy deposit west of the mouth. A comparison with fluvial sediment fluxes suggests that ~ 70% of the sand and gravel and ~ 6% of the mud supplied by the river was found in the survey area (within about 2 km of the mouth). A hydrodynamic and sediment transport model, validated with in-situ measurements, shows that tidal currents interacting with the larger relict submarine delta help disperse fine sediment large distances east and west of the river mouth. The model also suggests that waves and currents erode the primary deposit located near the river mouth and transport sandy sediment eastward to form the secondary deposit. Though most of the substrate of the larger relict submarine delta was unchanged during the first two years of dam removal, portions of the seafloor close to the river mouth became finer, modifying habitats for biological communities. These results show that river restoration, like natural changes in river sediment supply, can result in rapid and substantial coastal geomorphological
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Pollutant Dilution and Diffusion in Urban Street Canyon Neighboring Streets
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Sun, Z.; Fu, Zh. M.
2011-09-01
In the present study we investigated the airflow patterns and air quality of a series of typical street canyon combinations, developed a mass balance model to determine the local pollutant dilution rate, and discuss the impact of upstream canyon on the air quality of downstream canyon. The results indicated that the geometrical size of upstream and downstream buildings have significant impacts on the ambient airflow patterns. The pollution distribution within the canyons varies with different building combinations and flow patterns. Within the upstream canyon, pollution always accumulates to the low building side for non-symmetrical canyon, and for symmetrical canyon high level of pollution occurs at the leeward side. The height of the middle and downstream buildings can evidently change the pollutant dispersion direction during the transport process. Within the polluted canyon, the pollutant dilution rate (PDR) also varies with different street canyon combinations. The highest PDR is observed when the upstream buildings are both low buildings no matter the height of downstream building. However, the two cases are likely to contribution pollution to the downstream canyon. The H-L-H combination is mostly against local pollution remove, while the L-H-L case is considered the best optimistic building combination with both the ability of diluting local pollution and not remarkably decreasing air quality of downstream canyon. The current work is expected instructive for city designers to optimize traffic patterns under typical existing geometry or in the development of urban geometry modification for air quality control.
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Hispanics in Idaho: Concerns and Challenges. Idaho Human Rights Commission, Research Report.
ERIC Educational Resources Information Center
Mabbutt, Richard
A study was done of the civil rights status of Hispanics in Idaho with respect to issues raised at a series of community hearings sponsored by the Idaho Human Rights Commission. Testimony included concerns about state and local hiring practices; the perceived need for bilingual state social service providers and educators; the need for outreach…
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Anatomy of La Jolla submarine canyon system; offshore southern California
Paull, C.K.; Caress, D.W.; Lundsten, E.; Gwiazda, R.; Anderson, K.; McGann, M.; Conrad, J.; Edwards, B.; Sumner, E.J.
2013-01-01
An autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) carrying a multibeam sonar and a chirp profiler was used to map sections of the seafloor within the La Jolla Canyon, offshore southern California, at sub-meter scales. Close-up observations and sampling were conducted during remotely operated vehicle (ROV) dives. Minisparker seismic-reflection profiles from a surface ship help to define the overall geometry of the La Jolla Canyon especially with respect to the pre-canyon host sediments. The floor of the axial channel is covered with unconsolidated sand similar to the sand on the shelf near the canyon head, lacks outcrops of the pre-canyon host strata, has an almost constant slope of 1.0° and is covered with trains of crescent shaped bedforms. The presence of modern plant material entombed within these sands confirms that the axial channel is presently active. The sand on the canyon floor liquefied during vibracore collection and flowed downslope, illustrating that the sediment filling the channel can easily fail even on this gentle slope. Data from the canyon walls help constrain the age of the canyon and extent of incision. Horizontal beds of moderately cohesive fine-grained sediments exposed on the steep canyon walls are consistently less than 1.232 million years old. The lateral continuity of seismic reflectors in minisparker profiles indicate that pre-canyon host strata extend uninterrupted from outside the canyon underneath some terraces within the canyon. Evidence of abandoned channels and point bar-like deposits are noticeably absent on the inside bend of channel meanders and in the subsurface of the terraces. While vibracores from the surface of terraces contain thin (< 10 cm) turbidites, they are inferred to be part of a veneer of recent sediment covering pre-canyon host sediments that underpin the terraces. The combined use of state of the art seafloor mapping and exploration tools provides a uniquely detailed view of the morphology within an active submarine canyon.
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Anthropogenic Impacts of Recreational Use on Sandbars in Hells Canyon on the Snake River, Idaho
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Morehead, M. D.
2014-12-01
Sandbars along large rivers are important cultural, recreational, and natural resources. In modern, historic and prehistoric times the sandbars have been used for camping, hunting, fishing and recreational activities. Sandbars are a dynamic geomorphic unit of the river system that stores and exchanges sand with the main river channel. Both natural and anthropogenic changes to river systems affect the size, shape and dynamics of sandbars. During high spring flows, the Snake River can resupply and build the sand bars. During the lower flows of the summer and fall the sand is redistributed to lower levels by natural and anthropogenic forces, where it can be remobilized by the river and exported from the bar. During the summer and fall high use season many people camp and recreate on the bars and redistribute the sand. This study utilizes change detection from repeat high resolution terrestrial LiDAR scanning surveys to study the impacts humans have on the sandbars in Hells Canyon. Nearly a decade of annual LiDAR and Bathymetric surveys were used to place these recreational impacts into the context of overall sandbar dynamics.
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Bottom-trawling along submarine canyons impacts deep sedimentary regimes.
Paradis, Sarah; Puig, Pere; Masqué, Pere; Juan-Díaz, Xènia; Martín, Jacobo; Palanques, Albert
2017-02-24
Many studies highlight that fish trawling activities cause seafloor erosion, but the assessment of the remobilization of surface sediments and its relocation is still not well documented. These impacts were examined along the flanks and axes of three headless submarine canyons incised on the Barcelona continental margin, where trawling fleets have been operating for decades. Trawled grounds along canyon flanks presented eroded and highly reworked surface sediments resulting from the passage of heavy trawling gear. Sedimentation rates on the upper canyon axes tripled and quadrupled its natural (i.e. pre-industrialization) values after a substantial increase in total horsepower of the operating trawling fleets between 1960 s and 1970 s. These impacts affected the upper canyon reaches next to fishing grounds, where sediment resuspended by trawling can be transported towards the canyon axes. This study highlights that bottom trawling has the capacity to alter natural sedimentary environments by promoting sediment-starved canyon flanks, and by enhancing sedimentation rates along the contiguous axes, independently of canyons' morphology. Considering the global mechanisation and offshore expansion of bottom trawling fisheries since the mid-20 th century, these sedimentary alterations may occur in many trawled canyons worldwide, with further ecological impacts on the trophic status of these non-resilient benthic communities.
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None
2018-05-07
This historical film footage, originally produced in the early 1950s as part of a series by WOI-TV, shows atomic research at Ames Laboratory. The work was conducted in a special area of the Laboratory known as the "Hot Canyon".
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161. Photocopy of Photograph (original in Roger Lewis' private collection, ...
161. Photocopy of Photograph (original in Roger Lewis' private collection, Twin Falls, Idaho). Photographer and date unknown. MILNER DAM, SOUTH SIDE CANAL, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; WORKERS AT CAMP AT HEAD OF CANAL. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-07-06
... Experimental and Management Plan for the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation and... Interior (Secretary) Ken Salazar announced that the development of a Long-Term Experimental and Management... GCDAMP includes a Federal advisory committee known as the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group...
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Geology of the Canyon Reservoir site on the Guadalupe River, Comal County, Texas
George, William O.; Welder, Frank A.
1955-01-01
In response to a request by Colonel Harry O. Fisher, District Engineer of the Fort Worth District of the Corps of Engineers, United States Army (letter of Dec. 13, 1954), a reconnaissance investigation was made of the geology of the Canyon (F-1) reservoir site on the Guadalupe River in Comal County, Tex. The purpose of the investigation was to study the geology in relation to possible leakage - particularly leakage of water that might then be lost from the drainage area of the Guadalupe River - and to add to the general knowledge of the ground-water hydrology of the San Antonio area. The dam (F-1) was originally designed for flood control and conservation only, with provision for the addition of a power unit if feasible. Since the completion of the investigation by the Corps of Engineers, the city of San Antonio has expressed an interest in the reservoir as a possible source of public water supply. The Corps of Engineers has made a thorough engineering and geologic study of the dam site (Corps of Engineers, 1950), which has Congressional approval. The geology and water resources of Comal County have been studied by George (1952). The rocks studied are those within the reservoir area and generally below the 1,000-foot contour as shown on the Smithson Valley quadrangle of the U.S. Geological Survey.
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Recreational impacts on Colorado River beaches in Glen Canyon, Arizona
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Carothers, Steven W.; Johnson, Robert A.; Dolan, Robert
1984-07-01
Recreational impact was measured on eight beaches in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and 15 beaches in Grand Canyon National Park using permanently located transects and plots. Recreational impact indices included densities of human trash and charcoal and a measure of sand discoloration due to charcoal. Significant increases in the indices occurred on several Glen Canyon beaches over a seven-month period. Sand discoloration became significantly higher over all Glen Canyon beaches during the same time period. All indices were significantly higher in Glen Canyon than on similar Grand Canyon beaches. These differences are probably due to differences in: (a) level of impacts tolerated by the respective management regimes and, (b) in the number of user days among the two National Park Service administrative units. Management alternatives are presented for reversing the present trends of recreational impact on Glen Canyon beaches.
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Wind-Flow Patterns in the Grand Canyon as Revealed by Doppler Lidar.
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Banta, Robert M.; Darby, Lisa S.; Kaufmann, Pirmin; Levinson, David H.; Zhu, Cui-Juan
1999-08-01
Many interesting flow patterns were found in the Grand Canyon by a scanning Doppler lidar deployed to the south rim during the 1990 Wintertime Visibility Study. Three are analyzed in this study: 1) flow reversal in the canyon, where the flow in the canyon was in the opposite direction from the flow above the canyon rim; 2) under strong, gusty flow from the southwest, the flow inside and above the canyon was from a similar direction and coupled; and 3) under light large-scale ambient flow, the lidar found evidence of local, thermally forced up- and down-canyon winds in the bottom of the canyon.On the days with flow reversal in the canyon, the strongest in-canyon flow response was found for days with northwesterly flow and a strong inversion at the canyon rim. The aerosol backscatter profiles were well mixed within the canyon but poorly mixed across the rim because of the inversion. The gusty southwest flow days showed strong evidence of vertical mixing across the rim both in the momentum and in the aerosol backscatter profiles, as one would expect in turbulent flow. The days with light ambient flow showed poor vertical mixing even inside the canyon, where the jet of down-canyon flow in the bottom of the canyon at night was often either cleaner or dirtier than the air in the upper portions of the canyon. In a case study presented, the light ambient flow regime ended with an intrusion of polluted, gusty, southwesterly flow. The polluted, high-backscatter air took several hours to mix into the upper parts of the canyon. An example is also given of high-backscatter air in the upper portions of the canyon being mixed rapidly down into a jet of cleaner air in the bottom of the canyon in just a few minutes.
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ECHETA DAM SPILLWAY. COMING OUT BELOW THE DAM. AT CENTER ...
ECHETA DAM SPILLWAY. COMING OUT BELOW THE DAM. AT CENTER OF PHOTO. VIEW TO NORTHEAST. - Echeta Dam & Reservoir, 2.9 miles east of Echeta Road at Echeta Railroad Siding at County Road 293, Echeta, Campbell County, WY
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ECHETA DAM RIPRAP ON RESERVOIR SIDE OF THE DAM AT ...
ECHETA DAM RIP-RAP ON RESERVOIR SIDE OF THE DAM AT BREACH. VIEW TO NORTH-NORTHEAST. - Echeta Dam & Reservoir, 2.9 miles east of Echeta Road at Echeta Railroad Siding at County Road 293, Echeta, Campbell County, WY
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Alvarez, Laura V.; Schmeeckle, Mark W.; Grams, Paul E.
2017-01-01
Lateral flow separation occurs in rivers where banks exhibit strong curvature. In canyon-bound rivers, lateral recirculation zones are the principal storage of fine-sediment deposits. A parallelized, three-dimensional, turbulence-resolving model was developed to study the flow structures along lateral separation zones located in two pools along the Colorado River in Marble Canyon. The model employs the detached eddy simulation (DES) technique, which resolves turbulence structures larger than the grid spacing in the interior of the flow. The DES-3D model is validated using Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler flow measurements taken during the 2008 controlled flood release from Glen Canyon Dam. A point-to-point validation using a number of skill metrics, often employed in hydrological research, is proposed here for fluvial modeling. The validation results show predictive capabilities of the DES model. The model reproduces the pattern and magnitude of the velocity in the lateral recirculation zone, including the size and position of the primary and secondary eddy cells, and return current. The lateral recirculation zone is open, having continuous import of fluid upstream of the point of reattachment and export by the recirculation return current downstream of the point of separation. Differences in magnitude and direction of near-bed and near-surface velocity vectors are found, resulting in an inward vertical spiral. Interaction between the recirculation return current and the main flow is dynamic, with large temporal changes in flow direction and magnitude. Turbulence structures with a predominately vertical axis of vorticity are observed in the shear layer becoming three-dimensional without preferred orientation downstream.
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Alvarez, Laura V.; Schmeeckle, Mark W.; Grams, Paul E.
2017-01-01
Lateral flow separation occurs in rivers where banks exhibit strong curvature. In canyon-boundrivers, lateral recirculation zones are the principal storage of fine-sediment deposits. A parallelized,three-dimensional, turbulence-resolving model was developed to study the flow structures along lateralseparation zones located in two pools along the Colorado River in Marble Canyon. The model employs thedetached eddy simulation (DES) technique, which resolves turbulence structures larger than the grid spacingin the interior of the flow. The DES-3D model is validated using Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler flowmeasurements taken during the 2008 controlled flood release from Glen Canyon Dam. A point-to-pointvalidation using a number of skill metrics, often employed in hydrological research, is proposed here forfluvial modeling. The validation results show predictive capabilities of the DES model. The model reproducesthe pattern and magnitude of the velocity in the lateral recirculation zone, including the size and position ofthe primary and secondary eddy cells, and return current. The lateral recirculation zone is open, havingcontinuous import of fluid upstream of the point of reattachment and export by the recirculation returncurrent downstream of the point of separation. Differences in magnitude and direction of near-bed andnear-surface velocity vectors are found, resulting in an inward vertical spiral. Interaction between therecirculation return current and the main flow is dynamic, with large temporal changes in flow direction andmagnitude. Turbulence structures with a predominately vertical axis of vorticity are observed in the shearlayer becoming three-dimensional without preferred orientation downstream.
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The Dams and Monitoring Systems and Case Study: Ataturk and Karakaya Dams
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kalkan, Y.; Bilgi, S.; Gülnerman, A. G.
2017-12-01
Dams are among the most important engineering structures used for flood controls, agricultural purposes as well as drinking and hydroelectric power. Especially after the Second World War, developments on the construction technology, increase the construction of larger capacity dams. There are more than 150.000 dams in the world and almost 1000 dams in Turkey, according to international criteria. Although dams provide benefits to humans, they possess structural risks too. To determine the performance of dams on structural safety, assessing the spatial data is very important. These are movement, water pressure, seepage, reservoir and tail-water elevations, local seismic activities, total pressure, stress and strain, internal concrete temperature, ambient temperature and precipitation. These physical data are measured and monitored by the instruments and equipment. Dams and their surroundings have to be monitored by using essential methods at periodic time intervals in order to determine the possible changes that may occur over the time. Monitoring programs typically consist of; surveillance or visual observation. These programs on dams provide information for evaluating the dam's performance related to the design intent and expected changes that could affect the safety performance of the dam. Additionally, these programs are used for investigating and evaluating the abnormal or degrading performance where any remedial action is necessary. Geodetic and non-geodetic methods are used for monitoring. Monitoring the performance of the dams is critical for producing and maintaining the safe dams. This study provides some general information on dams and their different monitoring systems by taking into account two different dams and their structural specifications with the required information. The case study in this paper depends on a comparison of the monitoring surveys on Atatürk Dam and Karakaya Dam, which are constructed on Firat River with two different structural
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77 FR 52310 - Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-08-29
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Salmon, Idaho and Challis, Idaho. The committee is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and...
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Restoring Anadromous Fish Habitat in Big Canyon Creek Watershed, 2004-2005 Annual Report.
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Rasmussen, Lynn
2006-07-01
The ''Restoring Anadromous Fish Habitat in the Big Canyon Creek Watershed'' is a multi-phase project to enhance steelhead trout in the Big Canyon Creek watershed by improving salmonid spawning and rearing habitat. Habitat is limited by extreme high runoff events, low summer flows, high water temperatures, poor instream cover, spawning gravel siltation, and sediment, nutrient and bacteria loading. Funded by the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) as part of the Northwest Power Planning Council's Fish and Wildlife Program, the project assists in mitigating damage to steelhead runs caused by the Columbia River hydroelectric dams. The project is sponsored by the Nezmore » Perce Soil and Water Conservation District. Target fish species include steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Steelhead trout within the Snake River Basin were listed in 1997 as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. Accomplishments for the contract period September 1, 2004 through October 31, 2005 include; 2.7 riparian miles treated, 3.0 wetland acres treated, 5,263.3 upland acres treated, 106.5 riparian acres treated, 76,285 general public reached, 3,000 students reached, 40 teachers reached, 18 maintenance plans completed, temperature data collected at 6 sites, 8 landowner applications received and processed, 14 land inventories completed, 58 habitat improvement project designs completed, 5 newsletters published, 6 habitat plans completed, 34 projects installed, 2 educational workshops, 6 displays, 1 television segment, 2 public service announcements, a noxious weed GIS coverage, and completion of NEPA, ESA, and cultural resources requirements.« less
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9. Excavation work at Pleasant Dam (now called Waddell Dam). ...
9. Excavation work at Pleasant Dam (now called Waddell Dam). Photographer unknown, July, 22, 1926. Source: Maricopa County Municipal Water Conservation District Number One (MWD). - Waddell Dam, On Agua Fria River, 35 miles northwest of Phoenix, Phoenix, Maricopa County, AZ
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32. AERIAL VIEW OF TIETON DAM, UPSTREAM FACE OF DAM ...
32. AERIAL VIEW OF TIETON DAM, UPSTREAM FACE OF DAM (Trashrack-structure for outlet at lower left in reservoir, spillway at upper left. Reservoir nearly empty due to drought.) - Tieton Dam, South & East of State Highway 12, Naches, Yakima County, WA
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yu, P. W.; Hubble, T.; Airey, D.; Gallagher, S. J.; Clarke, S. L.
2014-12-01
A voyage was conducted aboard the RV Southern Surveyor in early 2013 to investigate the east Australian continental margin. From the continental slope of the Wide Bay region offshore Fraser Island, Queensland, Australia, remote sensing data and sediment samples were collected. Bathymetric data reveals that the continental slope of the region presents a mature canyon system. Eight dredge samples were recovered from the walls of Wide Bay Canyon and the adjacent, relatively intact continental slope along the entire length of the slope, from the start of the shelf break to the toe, in water depths ranging from 1100-2500 m. For these samples, sediment composition, biostratigraphic age, and bulk mineralogy data are reported. These slope-forming sediments are primarily comprised of calcareous sandy-silts. Occasional terrestrial plant fossils and minerals can be found in a mostly marine-fossiliferous composition, suggesting minor but significant riverine and aeolian input. Biostratigraphic dates extracted from the foraminiferal contents of these samples indicate that the intra-canyon and slope material was deposited between Middle Miocene to Pliocene, implying that the incision of this section of the margin and formation of the erosional features took place no earlier than the Pliocene. In conjunction with bathymetric data of the local continental slope, the depositional origins of this section of the east Australian continental margin, and the timing of major morphological events such as slope failure and canyon incision can be interpreted. The Wide Bay Canyon system can serve as a representative case study of local canyon formation, allowing a better understanding of the past or ongoing processes that are shaping the margin and giving way to similar morphologies.
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77 FR 45575 - Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-08-01
... Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Salmon, Idaho. The committee is authorized under... be held at the Public Lands Center, 1206 S. Challis Street, Salmon, Idaho 83467. All comments...
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165. Photocopy of Photograph (original in Roger Lewis' private collection). ...
165. Photocopy of Photograph (original in Roger Lewis' private collection). Photographer and date unknown. MILNER DAM, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER IDAHO; CRANES USED TO PLACE ROCK ON DAM; NOTE ELECTRIC RAILROAD CAR AT LEFT. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-10-17
... Long-term Experimental and Management Plan (LTEMP) for the operation of Glen Canyon Dam. This Federal... and Hold Public Scoping Meetings on the Adoption of a Long-term Experimental and Management Plan for the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation and National Park Service, Interior...
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Korman, Josh; Yard, Michael D.; Yackulic, Charles B.
2015-01-01
We estimated the abundance, survival, movement, and recruitment of non-native rainbow trout in the Colorado River in Grand Canyon to determine what controls their abundance near the Little Colorado River (LCR) confluence where endangered humpback chub rear. Over a 3-year period, we tagged more than 70,000 trout and recovered over 8,200 tagged fish. Trout density was highest (10,000-25,000 fish/km) in the reach closest to Glen Canyon Dam where the majority of trout recruitment occurs, and was 30-50-fold lower (200-800 fish/km) in reaches near the LCR confluence ~100 km downstream. The extent of rainbow trout movement was limited with less than 1% of recaptures making movements greater than 20 km. However, due to high trout densities in upstream source areas, this small dispersal rate was sufficient to explain the 3-fold increase in the relatively small population near the LCR. Reducing dispersal rates of trout from upstream sources is the most feasible solution to maintain low densities near the LCR to minimize negative effects of competition and predation on humpback chub.
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Idaho Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
1995-01-01
The Idaho Bicycle and Pedestrian Transportation Plan of Idaho's long range transportation planning process sets the stage for changes in our transportation mix. The plan is about expanding options for personal transportation. Most importantly, it is ...
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fu, Xiangwen; Liu, Junfeng; Ban-Weiss, George A.; Zhang, Jiachen; Huang, Xin; Ouyang, Bin; Popoola, Olalekan; Tao, Shu
2017-09-01
Street canyons are ubiquitous in urban areas. Traffic-related air pollutants in street canyons can adversely affect human health. In this study, an urban-scale traffic pollution dispersion model is developed considering street distribution, canyon geometry, background meteorology, traffic assignment, traffic emissions and air pollutant dispersion. In the model, vehicle exhausts generated from traffic flows first disperse inside street canyons along the micro-scale wind field generated by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model. Then, pollutants leave the street canyon and further disperse over the urban area. On the basis of this model, the effects of canyon geometry on the distribution of NOx and CO from traffic emissions were studied over the center of Beijing. We found that an increase in building height leads to heavier pollution inside canyons and lower pollution outside canyons at pedestrian level, resulting in higher domain-averaged concentrations over the area. In addition, canyons with highly even or highly uneven building heights on each side of the street tend to lower the urban-scale air pollution concentrations at pedestrian level. Further, increasing street widths tends to lead to lower pollutant concentrations by reducing emissions and enhancing ventilation simultaneously. Our results indicate that canyon geometry strongly influences human exposure to traffic pollutants in the populated urban area. Carefully planning street layout and canyon geometry while considering traffic demand as well as local weather patterns may significantly reduce inhalation of unhealthy air by urban residents.
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MacCoy, Dorene E.; Shephard, Zachary M.; Benjamin, Joseph R.; Vidergar, Dmitri T.; Prisciandaro, Anthony F.
2017-03-23
Bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus), listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, are among the more thermally sensitive of coldwater species in North America. The Boise River upstream of Arrowrock Dam in southwestern Idaho (including Arrowrock Reservoir) provides habitat for one of the southernmost populations of bull trout. The presence of the species in Arrowrock Reservoir poses implications for dam and reservoir operations. From 2011 to 2014, the Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Geological Survey collected fish telemetry data to improve understanding of bull trout distribution and movement in Arrowrock Reservoir and in the upper Boise River tributaries. The U.S. Geological Survey compiled the telemetry (fish location) data, along with reservoir elevation, river discharge, precipitation, and water-quality data in a geodatabase. The geodatabase includes metadata compliant with Federal Geographic Data Committee content standards. The Bureau of Reclamation plans to incorporate the data in a decision‑support tool for reservoir management.
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Characteristics of flow and reactive pollutant dispersion in urban street canyons
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Park, Soo-Jin; Kim, Jae-Jin; Kim, Minjoong J.; Park, Rokjin J.; Cheong, Hyeong-Bin
2015-05-01
In this study, the effects of aspect ratio defined as the ratio of building height to street width on the dispersion of reactive pollutants in street canyons were investigated using a coupled CFD-chemistry model. Flow characteristics for different aspect ratios were analyzed first. For each aspect ratio, six emission scenarios with different VOC-NOX ratios were considered. One vortex was generated when the aspect ratio was less than 1.6 (shallow street canyon). When the aspect ratio was greater than 1.6 (deep street canyon), two vortices were formed in the street canyons. Comparing to previous studies on two-dimensional street canyons, the vortex center is slanted toward the upwind building and reverse and downward flows are dominant in street canyons. Near the street bottom, there is a marked difference in flow pattern between in shallow and deep street canyons. Near the street bottom, reverse and downward flows are dominant in shallow street canyon and flow convergence exists near the center of the deep street canyons, which induces a large difference in the NOX and O3 dispersion patterns in the street canyons. NOX concentrations are high near the street bottom and decreases with height. The O3 concentrations are low at high NO concentrations near the street bottom because of NO titration. At a low VOC-NOX ratio, the NO concentrations are sufficiently high to destroy large amount of O3 by titration, resulting in an O3 concentration in the street canyon much lower than the background concentration. At high VOC-NOX ratios, a small amount of O3 is destroyed by NO titration in the lower layer of the street canyons. However, in the upper layer, O3 is formed through the photolysis of NO2 by VOC degradation reactions. As the aspect ratio increases, NOX (O3) concentrations averaged over the street canyons decrease (increase) in the shallow street canyons. This is because outward flow becomes strong and NOX flux toward the outsides of the street canyons increases
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184. Photocopy of drawing (taken from right corner of Twin ...
184. Photocopy of drawing (taken from right corner of Twin Falls Canal Company drawing #7017, located in Twin Falls Canal Company office, Twin Falls, Idaho). ORIGINAL 1900 SEGREGATION DAM PLAN, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-11-14
... Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is publishing this notice to explain why the BLM Director is denying the...] BLM Director's Response to the Idaho Governor's Appeal of the BLM Idaho State Director's Governor's... (Finding) to the BLM Idaho State Director (State Director). The State Director determined the Governor's...
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7. DARK CANYON SIPHON Photographic copy of construction drawing ...
7. DARK CANYON SIPHON - Photographic copy of construction drawing c1907 (from Record Group 115, Box 17, Denver Branch of the National Archives, Denver) DARK CANYON SIPHON PLAN, ELEVATION, AND SECTIONS - Carlsbad Irrigation District, Dark Canyon Siphon, On Main Canal, 1 mile South of Carlsbad, Carlsbad, Eddy County, NM
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Slope instabilities along the Western Andean Escarpment and the main canyons in Northern Chile
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Crosta, G.; Hermanns, R. L.; Valbuzzi, E.; Dehls, J.; Yugsi Molina, F. X.; Sepulveda, S.
2012-04-01
landslides can be classified as large block slides and can evolve in large rock avalanches. Their initiation seems to be strongly associated to the presence of secondary faults and large fractures transversal to the slope. Furthermore, most of these landslides show evidences suggesting a re-incision by the main canyon network. Landslides along the canyon flanks affect volumes lower than 1 km3 and can be mainly classified as large complex slumps. The deposits of these landslides often cross the valley and have been incised exposing undeformed bedrock material. At the same time large boulder fields and alluvial deposits infill the lower part of the canyons suggesting also a long history of dam breaching events. We present a landslide inventory in the area (about 220 km long and 80 km wide) between Pisagua (19.4° Chile) and Tacna (17.5° Perù) to the NE of the Arica bend. We mapped landslides, main tectonic structures and other morphological features. Mapping has been performed by use of satellite images, Google Earth® and field surveys performed in the last few years. We discuss two specific landslide sites, the Cerro Caquilluco-Cerrillos Negros rock slide-avalanche (Tacna, Tomasiri, Perù) and a small group of rock avalanches south of Iquique (Chile) in two other abstracts presented by the authors at this conference
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-12-30
... Management Plan for the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation and National Park Service... Impact Statement (EIS) for Adoption of a Long-term Experimental and Management Plan (LTEMP) for the Operation of Glen Canyon Dam to January 31, 2012. The Notice to Solicit Comments and Hold Public Scoping...
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5. DARK CANYON SIPHON Photographic copy of historic photo, ...
5. DARK CANYON SIPHON - Photographic copy of historic photo, November 11, 1906 (original print located at the Carlsbad Irrigation District offices, Carlsbad, New Mexico) photographer unknown 'LOWER END OF DARK CANYON SIPHON CONSTRUCTION' - Carlsbad Irrigation District, Dark Canyon Siphon, On Main Canal, 1 mile South of Carlsbad, Carlsbad, Eddy County, NM
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Bottom-trawling along submarine canyons impacts deep sedimentary regimes
Paradis, Sarah; Puig, Pere; Masqué, Pere; Juan-Díaz, Xènia; Martín, Jacobo; Palanques, Albert
2017-01-01
Many studies highlight that fish trawling activities cause seafloor erosion, but the assessment of the remobilization of surface sediments and its relocation is still not well documented. These impacts were examined along the flanks and axes of three headless submarine canyons incised on the Barcelona continental margin, where trawling fleets have been operating for decades. Trawled grounds along canyon flanks presented eroded and highly reworked surface sediments resulting from the passage of heavy trawling gear. Sedimentation rates on the upper canyon axes tripled and quadrupled its natural (i.e. pre-industrialization) values after a substantial increase in total horsepower of the operating trawling fleets between 1960 s and 1970 s. These impacts affected the upper canyon reaches next to fishing grounds, where sediment resuspended by trawling can be transported towards the canyon axes. This study highlights that bottom trawling has the capacity to alter natural sedimentary environments by promoting sediment-starved canyon flanks, and by enhancing sedimentation rates along the contiguous axes, independently of canyons’ morphology. Considering the global mechanisation and offshore expansion of bottom trawling fisheries since the mid-20th century, these sedimentary alterations may occur in many trawled canyons worldwide, with further ecological impacts on the trophic status of these non-resilient benthic communities. PMID:28233856
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Bottom-trawling along submarine canyons impacts deep sedimentary regimes
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Paradis, Sarah; Puig, Pere; Masqué, Pere; Juan-Díaz, Xènia; Martín, Jacobo; Palanques, Albert
2017-02-01
Many studies highlight that fish trawling activities cause seafloor erosion, but the assessment of the remobilization of surface sediments and its relocation is still not well documented. These impacts were examined along the flanks and axes of three headless submarine canyons incised on the Barcelona continental margin, where trawling fleets have been operating for decades. Trawled grounds along canyon flanks presented eroded and highly reworked surface sediments resulting from the passage of heavy trawling gear. Sedimentation rates on the upper canyon axes tripled and quadrupled its natural (i.e. pre-industrialization) values after a substantial increase in total horsepower of the operating trawling fleets between 1960 s and 1970 s. These impacts affected the upper canyon reaches next to fishing grounds, where sediment resuspended by trawling can be transported towards the canyon axes. This study highlights that bottom trawling has the capacity to alter natural sedimentary environments by promoting sediment-starved canyon flanks, and by enhancing sedimentation rates along the contiguous axes, independently of canyons’ morphology. Considering the global mechanisation and offshore expansion of bottom trawling fisheries since the mid-20th century, these sedimentary alterations may occur in many trawled canyons worldwide, with further ecological impacts on the trophic status of these non-resilient benthic communities.
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Seegert, Sarah E. Zahn; Rosi-Marshall, Emma J.; Baxter, Colden V.; Kennedy, Theodore A.; Hall, Robert O.; Cross, Wyatt F.
2014-01-01
River regulation may mediate the interactions among native and nonnative species, potentially favoring nonnative species and contributing to the decline of native populations. We examined food resource use and diet overlap among small-bodied fishes in the Grand Canyon section of the Colorado River as a first step in evaluating potential resource competition. We compared the diets of the predominant small-bodied fishes (native Speckled Dace Rhinichthys osculus, juvenile Flannelmouth Sucker Catostomus latipinnis, and juvenile Bluehead Sucker C. discobolus, and nonnative Fathead Minnow Pimephales promelas) across seasons at four sites downstream of Glen Canyon Dam using nonmetric multidimensional scaling and Schoener's similarity index. The diets of these fishes included diatoms, amorphous detritus, aquatic invertebrates (especially simuliid and chironomid larvae), terrestrial invertebrates, and terrestrial vegetation. Diets varied with season and were affected by high turbidity. Fish consumed more amorphous detritus and terrestrial vegetation during the summer monsoon season (July–September), when turbidity was higher. The diets of all species overlapped, but there was large variation in the degree of overlap. The diets of juvenile suckers and Fathead Minnows were most similar, while Speckled Dace had relatively distinct diets. The differences took the form of higher proportions of diatoms and amorphous detritus in the diets of Bluehead Suckers and Fathead Minnows and higher proportions of simuliids and chironomids in those of Speckled Dace. If food resources are or become limiting, diet overlap suggests that competition may occur among native and nonnative species, which could have implications for the population dynamics of these fishes and for the management of the Colorado River ecosystem in Grand Canyon.
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Active geologic processes in Barrow Canyon, northeast Chukchi Sea
Eittreim, S.; Grantz, A.; Greenberg, J.
1982-01-01
Circulation patterns on the shelf and at the shelf break appear to dominate the Barrow Canyon system. The canyon's shelf portion underlies and is maintained by the Alaska Coastal Current (A.C.C.), which flows northeastward along the coast toward the northeast corner of the broad Chukchi Sea. Offshelf and onshelf advective processes are indicated by oceanographic measurements of other workers. These advective processes may play an important role in the production of bedforms that are found near the canyon head as well as in processes of erosion or non-deposition in the deeper canyon itself. Coarse sediments recovered from the canyon axis at 400 to 570 m indicate that there is presently significant flow along the canyon. The canyon hooks left at a point north of Point Barrow where the A.C.C. loses its coastal constriction. The left hook, as well as preferential west-wall erosion, continues down to the abyssal plain of the Canada Basin at 3800 m. A possible explanation for the preferential west-wall erosion along the canyon, at least for the upper few hundred meters, is that the occasional upwelling events, which cause nutrient-rich water to flow along the west wall would in turn cause larger populations of burrowing organisms to live there than on the east wall, and that these organisms cause high rates of bioerosion. This hypothesis assumes that the dominant factor in the canyon's erosion is biological activity, not current velocity. Sedimentary bedforms consisting of waves and furrows are formed in soft mud in a region on the shelf west of the canyon head; their presence there perhaps reflects: (a) the supply of fine suspended sediments delivered by the A.C.C. from sources to the south, probably the Yukon and other rivers draining northwestern Alaska; and (b) the westward transport of these suspended sediments by the prevailing Beaufort Gyre which flows along the outer shelf. ?? 1982.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Foley, M. M.; Bellmore, J. R.; O'Connor, J. E.; Duda, J. J.; East, A. E.; Grant, G. E.; Anderson, C. W.; Bountry, J. A.; Collins, M. J.; Connolly, P. J.; Craig, L. S.; Evans, J. E.; Greene, S. L.; Magilligan, F. J.; Magirl, C. S.; Major, J. J.; Pess, G. R.; Randle, T. J.; Shafroth, P. B.; Torgersen, C. E.; Tullos, D.; Wilcox, A. C.
2017-07-01
Dam removal is widely used as an approach for river restoration in the United States. The increase in dam removals—particularly large dams—and associated dam-removal studies over the last few decades motivated a working group at the USGS John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis to review and synthesize available studies of dam removals and their findings. Based on dam removals thus far, some general conclusions have emerged: (1) physical responses are typically fast, with the rate of sediment erosion largely dependent on sediment characteristics and dam-removal strategy; (2) ecological responses to dam removal differ among the affected upstream, downstream, and reservoir reaches; (3) dam removal tends to quickly reestablish connectivity, restoring the movement of material and organisms between upstream and downstream river reaches; (4) geographic context, river history, and land use significantly influence river restoration trajectories and recovery potential because they control broader physical and ecological processes and conditions; and (5) quantitative modeling capability is improving, particularly for physical and broad-scale ecological effects, and gives managers information needed to understand and predict long-term effects of dam removal on riverine ecosystems. Although these studies collectively enhance our understanding of how riverine ecosystems respond to dam removal, knowledge gaps remain because most studies have been short (< 5 years) and do not adequately represent the diversity of dam types, watershed conditions, and dam-removal methods in the U.S.
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Foley, Melissa M.; Bellmore, James; O'Connor, James E.; Duda, Jeff; East, Amy E.; Grant, Gordon G.; Anderson, Chauncey; Bountry, Jennifer A.; Collins, Mathias J.; Connolly, Patrick J.; Craig, Laura S.; Evans, James E.; Greene, Samantha; Magilligan, Francis J.; Magirl, Christopher S.; Major, Jon J.; Pess, George R.; Randle, Timothy J.; Shafroth, Patrick B.; Torgersen, Christian E.; Tullos, Desiree D.; Wilcox, Andrew C.
2017-01-01
Dam removal is widely used as an approach for river restoration in the United States. The increase in dam removals—particularly large dams—and associated dam-removal studies over the last few decades motivated a working group at the USGS John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis to review and synthesize available studies of dam removals and their findings. Based on dam removals thus far, some general conclusions have emerged: (1) physical responses are typically fast, with the rate of sediment erosion largely dependent on sediment characteristics and dam-removal strategy; (2) ecological responses to dam removal differ among the affected upstream, downstream, and reservoir reaches; (3) dam removal tends to quickly reestablish connectivity, restoring the movement of material and organisms between upstream and downstream river reaches; (4) geographic context, river history, and land use significantly influence river restoration trajectories and recovery potential because they control broader physical and ecological processes and conditions; and (5) quantitative modeling capability is improving, particularly for physical and broad-scale ecological effects, and gives managers information needed to understand and predict long-term effects of dam removal on riverine ecosystems. Although these studies collectively enhance our understanding of how riverine ecosystems respond to dam removal, knowledge gaps remain because most studies have been short (< 5 years) and do not adequately represent the diversity of dam types, watershed conditions, and dam-removal methods in the U.S.
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30 CFR 912.700 - Idaho Federal program.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-07-01
... Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR PROGRAMS FOR THE CONDUCT OF SURFACE MINING OPERATIONS WITHIN EACH STATE IDAHO § 912.700 Idaho Federal program. (a) This part contains all rules that are applicable to surface coal mining operations in Idaho...
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76 FR 31388 - Idaho Disaster #ID-00014
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-05-31
... SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION [Disaster Declaration 12603 and 12604] Idaho Disaster ID-00014... declaration of a major disaster for Public Assistance Only for the State of Idaho (FEMA-- 1987--DR), dated 05..., Clearwater, Idaho, Nez Perce, Shoshone, Nez Perce Tribe. The Interest Rates are: Percent For Physical Damage...
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75 FR 45682 - Idaho Disaster #ID-00010
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-08-03
... SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION [Disaster Declaration 12250 and 12251] Idaho Disaster ID-00010... declaration of a major disaster for Public Assistance Only for the State of Idaho (FEMA-1927- DR), dated 07/27... adversely affected by the disaster: Primary Counties: Adams, Gem, Idaho, Lewis, Payette, Valley, Washington...
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M. M. Foley; J. R. Bellmore; J. E. O' Connor; J. J. Duda; A. E. East; G. E. Grant; C. W. Anderson; J. A. Bountry; M. J. Collins; P. J. Connolly; L. S. Craig; J. E. Evans; S. L. Greene; F. J. Magilligan; C. S. Magirl; J. J. Major; G. R. Pess; T. J. Randle; P. B. Shafroth; C. E. Torgersen; D. Tullos; A. C. Wilcox
2017-01-01
Dam removal is widely used as an approach for river restoration in the United States. The increase in dam removalsâparticularly large damsâand associated dam-removal studies over the last few decades motivated a working group at the USGS John Wesley Powell Center for Analysis and Synthesis to review and synthesize available studies of dam removals and their findings....
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Perspective view over the Grand Canyon, Arizona
2001-10-22
This simulated true color perspective view over the Grand Canyon was created from Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data acquired on May 12, 2000. The Grand Canyon Village is in the lower foreground; the Bright Angel Trail crosses the Tonto Platform, before dropping down to the Colorado Village and then to the Phantom Ranch (green area across the river). Bright Angel Canyon and the North Rim dominate the view. At the top center of the image the dark blue area with light blue haze is an active forest fire. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA01908
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Boise State's Idaho Eclipse Outreach Program
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Davis, Karan; Jackson, Brian
2017-10-01
The 2017 total solar eclipse is an unprecedented opportunity for astronomical education throughout the continental United States. With the path of totality passing through 14 states, from Oregon to South Carolina, the United States is expecting visitors from all around the world. Due to the likelihood of clear skies, Idaho was a popular destination for eclipse-chasers. In spite of considerable enthusiasm and interest by the general population, the resources for STEM outreach in the rural Pacific Northwest are very limited. In order to help prepare Idaho for the eclipse, we put together a crowdfunding campaign through the university and raised over $10,000. Donors received eclipse shades as well as information about the eclipse specific to Idaho. Idaho expects 500,000 visitors, which could present a problem for the many small, rural towns scattered across the path of totality. In order to help prepare and equip the public for the solar eclipse, we conducted a series of site visits to towns in and near the path of totality throughout Idaho. To maximize the impact of this effort, the program included several partnerships with local educational and community organizations and a focus on the sizable refugee and low-income populations in Idaho, with considerable attendance at most events.
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6. DARK CANYON SIPHON Photographic copy of historic photo, ...
6. DARK CANYON SIPHON - Photographic copy of historic photo, January 29, 1907 (original print filed in Record Group 115, National Archives, Washington, D.C.) W.J.Lubken, photographer 'RIPRAP AT THE ENTRANCE END OF DARK CANYON PRESSURE PIPE' - Carlsbad Irrigation District, Dark Canyon Siphon, On Main Canal, 1 mile South of Carlsbad, Carlsbad, Eddy County, NM
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Dam failure analysis for the Lago El Guineo Dam, Orocovis, Puerto Rico
Gómez-Fragoso, Julieta; Heriberto Torres-Sierra,
2016-08-09
The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, completed hydrologic and hydraulic analyses to assess the potential hazard to human life and property associated with the hypothetical failure of the Lago El Guineo Dam. The Lago El Guineo Dam is within the headwaters of the Río Grande de Manatí and impounds a drainage area of about 4.25 square kilometers.The hydrologic assessment was designed to determine the outflow hydrographs and peak discharges for Lago El Guineo and other subbasins in the Río Grande de Manatí hydrographic basin for three extreme rainfall events: (1) a 6-hour probable maximum precipitation event, (2) a 24-hour probable maximum precipitation event, and (3) a 24-hour, 100-year recurrence rainfall event. The hydraulic study simulated a dam failure of Lago El Guineo Dam using flood hydrographs generated from the hydrologic study. The simulated dam failure generated a hydrograph that was routed downstream from Lago El Guineo Dam through the lower reaches of the Río Toro Negro and the Río Grande de Manatí to determine water-surface profiles developed from the event-based hydrologic scenarios and “sunny day” conditions. The Hydrologic Engineering Center’s Hydrologic Modeling System (HEC–HMS) and Hydrologic Engineering Center’s River Analysis System (HEC–RAS) computer programs, developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, were used for the hydrologic and hydraulic modeling, respectively. The flow routing in the hydraulic analyses was completed using the unsteady flow module available in the HEC–RAS model.Above the Lago El Guineo Dam, the simulated inflow peak discharges from HEC–HMS resulted in about 550 and 414 cubic meters per second for the 6- and 24-hour probable maximum precipitation events, respectively. The 24-hour, 100-year recurrence storm simulation resulted in a peak discharge of about 216 cubic meters per second. For the hydrologic analysis, no dam failure conditions are
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Water-resources activities of the U.S. Geological Survey in Idaho, fiscal years 1989-90
Kemp, B. N.
1993-01-01
Twenty-five funded projects were conducted by the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey, Idaho District, during fiscal years 1989-90. These projects were done in cooperation with 13 State and local agencies, 11 other Federal agencies, and 1 International Commission. State and local cooperative funding amounted to about $1.1 million in fiscal year 1989 and $1 million in fiscal year 1990; Federal funding amounted to about $3.6 million in fiscal year 1989 and about $4.4 million in fiscal year 1990. In conducting its fiscal year 1989-90 activities, the Idaho District employed a total of 83 employees. Projects other than continuing programs for collection of hydrologic data included establishment of statewide surface-water and groundwater-quality monitoring networks; study of effects of irrigation drainage; development of a hydraulic model to determine water-surface elevations for decreased discharges of the Snake River at Swan Falls Dam; evaluation of subsurface waste disposal; delineation of agricultural areas of the State with high concentrations of dissolved nitrogen; evaluation of water use and its effect on groundwater levels and thermal waters in specific areas of the State; and determination of the cause or causes of rapidly decreasing hot-spring discharges along Hot Creek. (USGS)
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Impacts of Climate Change on Stream Temperatures in the Clearwater River, Idaho
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Yearsley, J. R.; Chegwidden, O.; Nijssen, B.
2016-12-01
Dworshak Dam in northern Idaho impounds the waters of the North Fork of the Clearwater River, creating a reservoir of approximately 4.278 km3 at full pool elevation. The dam's primary purpose is for flood control and hydroelectric power generation. It also provides important water quality benefits by releasing cold water into the Clearwater River during the summer when conditions become critical for migrating endangered species of salmon. Changes in the climate may have an impact on the ability of Dworshak Dam and Reservoir to provide these benefits. To investigate the potential for extreme outcomes that would limit cold water releases from Dworshak Reservoir and compromise the fishery, we implemented a system of hydrologic and water temperature models that simulate daily-averaged water temperatures in both the riverine and reservoir environments. We used the macroscale hydrologic model, VIC, to simulate land surface water and energy fluxes, the one-dimensional, time-dependent stream temperature model, RBM, to simulate river temperatures and a modified version of CEQUAL-W2 to simulate water temperatures in Dworshak Reservoir. A long-term hydrologically based gridded data set of meteorological forcing provided the input for comparing model results with available observations of flow and water temperature. For purposes of investigating the impacts of climate change, we used the results from ten of the most recent Climate Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) climate change models scenarios in conjunction with the estimates of anthropogenic inputs of climate change gases from two representative concentration pathways (RCP). We compared the simulated results associated with a range of outcomes at critical river locations from the climate scenarios with existing conditions assuming that the reservoir would be operated under a rule curve based on the average reservoir elevation for the period 2006-2015 rule curve and for power demands represented by that same period.
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Daniel, G.; Rudisill, T.; Almond, P.
The Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is actively engaged in the development of electrochemical processing technology for the treatment of fast reactor fuels using irradiated fuel from the Experimental Breeder Reactor-II (EBR-II) as the primary test material. The research and development (R&D) activities generate a low enriched uranium (LEU) metal product from the electrorefining of the EBR-II fuel and the subsequent consolidation and removal of chloride salts by the cathode processor. The LEU metal ingots from past R&D activities are currently stored at INL awaiting disposition. One potential disposition pathway is the shipment of the ingots to the Savannah River Sitemore » (SRS) for dissolution in H-Canyon. Carbon steel cans containing the LEU metal would be loaded into reusable charging bundles in the H-Canyon Crane Maintenance Area and charged to the 6.4D or 6.1D dissolver. The LEU dissolution would be accomplished as the final charge in a dissolver batch (following the dissolution of multiple charges of spent nuclear fuel (SNF)). The solution would then be purified and the 235U enrichment downblended to allow use of the U in commercial reactor fuel. To support this potential disposition path, the Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) developed a dissolution flowsheet for the LEU using samples of the material received from INL.« less
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193. Photocopy of Photograph, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. ...
193. Photocopy of Photograph, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. MILNER DAM PROFILE, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; BLUEPRINT. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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191. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. ...
191. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. SPILLWAY GATES, MILNER DAM, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; BLUEPRINT. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Crossing fitness canyons by a finite population
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Saakian, David B.; Bratus, Alexander S.; Hu, Chin-Kun
2017-06-01
We consider the Wright-Fisher model of the finite population evolution on a fitness landscape defined in the sequence space by a path of nearly neutral mutations. We study a specific structure of the fitness landscape: One of the intermediate mutations on the mutation path results in either a large fitness value (climbing up a fitness hill) or a low fitness value (crossing a fitness canyon), the rest of the mutations besides the last one are neutral, and the last sequence has much higher fitness than any intermediate sequence. We derive analytical formulas for the first arrival time of the mutant with two point mutations. For the first arrival problem for the further mutants in the case of canyon crossing, we analytically deduce how the mean first arrival time scales with the population size and fitness difference. The location of the canyon on the path of sequences has a crucial role. If the canyon is at the beginning of the path, then it significantly prolongs the first arrival time; otherwise it just slightly changes it. Furthermore, the fitness hill at the beginning of the path strongly prolongs the arrival time period; however, the hill located near the end of the path shortens it. We optimize the first arrival time by applying a nonzero selection to the intermediate sequences. We extend our results and provide a scaling for the valley crossing time via the depth of the canyon and population size in the case of a fitness canyon at the first position. Our approach is useful for understanding some complex evolution systems, e.g., the evolution of cancer.
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Thickness of surficial sediment at and near the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Idaho
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Anderson, S.R.; Liszewski, M.J.; Ackerman, D.J.
1996-06-01
Thickness of surficial sediment was determined from natural-gamma logs in 333 wells at and near the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory in eastern Idaho to provide reconnaissance data for future site-characterization studies. Surficial sediment, which is defined as the unconsolidated clay, silt, sand, and gravel that overlie the uppermost basalt flow at each well, ranges in thickness from 0 feet in seven wells drilled through basalt outcrops east of the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant to 313 feet in well Site 14 southeast of the Big Lost River sinks. Surficial sediment includes alluvial, lacustrine, eolian, and colluvial deposits that generally accumulated duringmore » the past 200 thousand years. Additional thickness data, not included in this report, are available from numerous auger holes and foundation borings at and near most facilities.« less
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[Effect of greenbelt on pollutant dispersion in street canyon].
Xu, Wei-Jia; Xing, Hong; Yu, Zhi
2012-02-01
The effect feature of greenbelt on flow field and pollutant dispersion in urban street canyon was researched. The greenbelt was assumed as uniform porous media and its aerodynamics property defined by the pressure loss coefficient. Subsequently, the pollutant dispersion in the street canyon of which there was greenbelt in the middle was simulated with the steady-state standard kappa-epsilon turbulence model and species transport equation. The simulated results agreed well with the wind-tunnel data. Compared with the treeless case, it finds that the street canyon contain a clockwise vortex, the pollutant concentration of the leeward was several times than the windward and the growth rate of pollutant concentration was 46.0%. The further simulation for the impact of tree crown position on the airflow and pollutant dispersion finds that the height of major vortex center in the street canyon increases with the height of tree crown and gradually closes the top of windward building This causes that the average wind speed in the street canyon decreases. Especially when the top of tree crown over the roof and hinder the air flow above the street canyon, the average pollutant concentration increases with the height of tree crown rapidly.
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Dam failure analysis for the Lago de Matrullas Dam, Orocovis, Puerto Rico
Torres-Sierra, Heriberto; Gómez-Fragoso, Julieta
2015-01-01
Results from the simulated dam failure of the Lago de Matrullas Dam using the HEC–RAS model for the 6- and 24-hour PMP events showed peak discharges at the dam of 3,149.33 and 3,604.70 m3/s, respectively. Dam failure during the 100-year-recurrence, 24-hour rainfall event resulted in a peak discharge of 2,103.12 m3/s directly downstream from the dam. Dam failure under sunny day conditions produced a peak discharge of 1,695.91 m3/s at the dam assuming the antecedent lake level was at the morning-glory spillway invert elevation. Flood-inundation maps prepared as part of the study depict the flood extent and provide valuable information for preparing an Emergency Action Plan. Results of the failure analysis indicate that a failure of the Lago de Matrullas Dam could cause flooding to many of the inhabited areas along stream banks from the Lago de Matrullas Dam to the mouth of the Río Grande de Manatí. Among the areas most affected are the low-lying regions in the vicinity of the towns of Ciales, Manatí, and Barceloneta. The delineation of the flood boundaries near the town of Barceloneta considered the effects of a levee constructed during 2000 at Barceloneta in the flood plain of the Río Grande de Manatí to provide protection against flooding to the near-by low-lying populated areas. The results showed overtopping can be expected in the aforementioned levee during 6- and 24-hour probable-maximum-precipitation dam failure scenarios. No overtopping of the levee was simulated, however, during dam failure scenarios under the 100-year recurrence, 24-hour rainfall event or sunny day conditions.
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76 FR 17817 - North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-03-31
... Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The North Central Idaho RAC will meet in Grangeville, Idaho. The committee is meeting as authorized... Supervisors Office, 104 Airport Road, Grangeville, Idaho. Written comments should be sent to Laura Smith at...
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Economic Cost of Crashes in Idaho
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2016-06-01
The Idaho Transportation Departments Office of Highway Safety contracted with Cambridge Systematics (CS) for an assessment of the feasibility of calculating the Idaho-specific economic and comprehensive costs associated with vehicle crashes. Resea...
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75 FR 44984 - IDAHO: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-07-30
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] IDAHO: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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75 FR 8645 - South Central Idaho Resource Advisory Council
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-02-25
... Central Idaho Resource Advisory Council AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The South Central Idaho RAC will meet in Twin Falls, Idaho. The committee is meeting as authorized... Springs Hotel, 1357 Blue Lakes Blvd. North, Twin Falls, Idaho 83301. Written comments should be sent to...
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76 FR 42724 - Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-07-19
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] Idaho: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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75 FR 63852 - Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-10-18
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] Idaho: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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76 FR 4934 - Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-01-27
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] Idaho: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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76 FR 66322 - Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-10-26
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] Idaho: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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76 FR 80388 - IDAHO: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-12-23
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] IDAHO: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9 a.m., on the date specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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Lucchitta, Ivo; Curtis, Garniss H.; Davis, Marie E.; Davis, Sidney W.; Turrin, Brent
2000-01-01
In the western Grand Canyon, fluvial terraces and pediment surfaces, both associated with a Pleistocene basalt flow, document Quaternary aggradation and downcutting by the Colorado River, illuminate the river's response to overload and the end of overload, and allow calibration of soil-carbonate stages and determination of downcutting rates. Four downcutting-aggradation cycles are present. Each begins with erosion of older deposits to form a new river channel in which a characteristic suite of deposits is laid down. The current cycle (I) started ~700 yr B.P. The oldest (IV) includes the 603,000 ± 8000 to 524,000 ± 7000 yr Black Ledge basalt flow, emplaced when the river channel was ~30 m higher than it is now. The flow is overlain by basalt-cobble gravel and basalt sand. Soils reach the stage V level of carbonate development. Calibrated ages for soil stages are Stage V, ~525,000 yr; stage IV, <525,000 yr, ≥250,000 yr; stage III, <250,000 yr, ≥100,000 yr. The monolithologic basalt sand beds represent overloading by volcanic ash produced by an eruption 30-50 km upstream. The basalt-cobble beds signal breaching and rapid destruction of lava dams and erosion of flows. These deposits show that the Colorado River responds to overload by aggrading vigorously during the overload and then downcutting equally vigorously when the overload ends. The overall downcutting rate for the interval studied is 1.6 cm/1000 yr, much lower than rates upstream. The current downcutting rate, 11-14 m/1000 yr, likely is a response both to the end of late Pleistocene and early Holocene overload and to the reduction of sediment supply caused by Glen Canyon Dam.
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Geomorphic Thresholds of Submarine Canyons Along the U.S. Atlantic Continental Margin
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Brothers, D. S.; ten Brink, U. S.; Andrews, B. D.; Chaytor, J. D.
2011-12-01
Vast networks of submarine canyons and associated channels are incised into the U.S. Atlantic continental slope and rise. Submarine canyons form by differential erosion and deposition, primarily from sedimentary turbidity flows. Theoretical and laboratory studies have investigated the initiation of turbidity flows and their capacity to erode and entrain sedimentary material at distances far from the shelf edge. The results have helped understand the nature of turbidite deposits on the continental slope and rise. Nevertheless, few studies have examined the linkages between down-canyon sediment transport and the morphology of canyon/channel networks using mesoscale analyses of swath bathymetry data. We present quantitative analysis of 100-m resolution multibeam bathymetry data spanning ~616,000 km2 of the slope and rise between Georges Banks and the Blake Plateau (New England to North Carolina). Canyons are categorized as shelf-indenting or slope-confined based on spatial scale, vertical relief and connection with terrestrial river systems during sea level low stands. Shelf-indenting canyons usually represent the trunk-canyon of submerged channel networks. On the rise, shelf-indenting canyons have relatively well-developed channel-levees and sharp inner-thalwag incision suggesting much higher frequency and volume of turbidity flows. Because of the similarities between submarine canyon networks and terrestrial river systems, we apply methods originally developed to study fluvial morphology. Along-canyon profiles are extracted from the bathymetry data and the power-law relationship between thalwag gradient and drainage area is examined for more than 180 canyons along an ~1200 km stretch of the US Atlantic margin. We observe distinct thresholds in the power-law relationship between drainage area and gradient. Almost all canyons with heads on the upper slope contain at least two linear segments when plotted in log-log form. The first segment along the upper slope is flat
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76 FR 25298 - Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-05-04
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY... Forests' Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee will conduct a business meeting. The meeting is open... Operations Center, 108 Spring Street, Cascade, Idaho. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Agenda topics will include...
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Spatial and Temporal Variation in DeSoto Canyon Macrofaunal Community Structure
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Baco-Taylor, A.; Shantharam, A. K.
2016-02-01
Sediment-dwelling macrofauna (polychaetes, bivalves, and assorted crustaceans ≥ 300 µm) have long served as biological indicators of ecosystem stress. As part of evaluating the 2010 impact from the Deepwater Horizon blowout, we sampled 12 sites along and transverse to the DeSoto Canyon axis, Gulf of Mexico, as well as 2 control sites outside the Canyon. Sites ranged in depth from 479-2310 m. Three of the sites (PCB06, S36, and XC4) were sampled annually from 2012-2014. We provide an overview of the macrofauna community structure of canyon and non-canyon sites, as well as trends in community structure and diversity at the time-series sites. Compositionally, polychaetes dominated the communities, followed by tanaid crustaceans and bivalves. The total number of individuals was not significantly correlated with depth while the total number of taxa and species richness were. Rarefaction shows the deepest station, XC4 (2310 m) had the lowest diversity while NT800 (a non-canyon control at 800m) had the highest. Multivariate analysis shows the canyon assemblages fall into eight clusters with the non-canyon stations forming a separate ninth cluster, indicating a detectable difference in canyon and non-canyon communities. Time series stations show an increase in diversity from 2012-2014 with a strong overlap in community structure in 2013 and 2014 samples. Environmental analysis, via BEST, using data from 10 canyon sites and the controls, indicated depth in combination with latitude explain the most variation in macrofaunal community structure.
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NASA Satellite Reveals Grandeur of Arizona Grand Canyon
2011-10-14
Arguably one of America most magnificent national parks is the Grand Canyon in northern Arizona. NASA Terra spacecraft captured this image looking to the northeast, the buildings and roads in the center foreground are Grand Canyon Village.
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Distribution and transport of suspended particulate matter in Monterey Canyon, California
Xu, J. P.; Noble, M.; Eittreim, S.L.; Rosenfeld, L.K.; Schwing, F.B.; Pilskaln, C.H.
2002-01-01
From August 1993 to August 1994, six moorings that measure current, temperature, salinity, and water clarity were deployed along the axis of Monterey Canyon to study the circulation and transport of water and suspended particulate matter through the canyon system. The moorings occupied three sites that are morphologically different: a narrow transverse section (axis width 900 m) at 1450 m water depth, a wide transverse section at 2837 m, and a third site in the fan valley axis farther offshore at 3223 m that recorded for 3 yr. In addition, CTD/transmissometer casts were conducted within and near the Monterey Canyon during four cruises. Our data show a mainly biogenic, surface turbid layer, a limited intermediate nepheloid layer, and a bottom nepheloid layer. There is a consistent presence of a turbid layer within the canyon at a water depth of about 1500 m. Tidal flow dominates at all sites, but currents above the canyon rim and within the canyon appear to belong to two distinct dynamic systems. Bottom intensification of currents plays an important role in raising the near-bottom shear stress high enough that bottom sediments are often, if not always, resuspended. Mean flow pattern suggests a convergence zone between the narrow and wide site: the near-bed (100 m above bottom where the lowest current meter was located) mean transport is down-canyon at the 1450-m site, while the near-bottom transport at the 2837-m site is up-canyon, at a smaller magnitude. Transport at the 3223-m site is dominantly NNW, cross-canyon, with periods of up-canyon flow over 3 yr. A very high-turbidity event was recorded 100 m above the canyon bottom at the narrow site. The event started very abruptly and lasted more than a week. This event was not detected at either of the deeper sites. A canyon head flushing event is likely the cause. ?? 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
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78 FR 21968 - Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-04-12
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] Idaho: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9:00 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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77 FR 64351 - Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-10-19
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] Idaho: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9:00 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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77 FR 77089 - Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-12-31
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] Idaho: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9:00 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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75 FR 66788 - Idaho: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-10-29
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] Idaho: Filing... described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9:00 a.m., on the date specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho 83709-1657...
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75 FR 27813 - IDAHO: Filing of Plats of Survey
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-05-18
... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Bureau of Land Management [LLID9570000.LL14200000.BJ0000] IDAHO: Filing... lands described below in the BLM Idaho State Office, Boise, Idaho, effective 9:00 a.m., on the dates specified. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bureau of Land Management, 1387 South Vinnell Way, Boise, Idaho...
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185. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. ...
185. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. MILNER DAM CROSS SECTION PLAN, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; BLUEPRINT. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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137. TWIN FALLS SOUTH SIDE MAIN CANAL DIVERSION HEADGATES, TWIN ...
137. TWIN FALLS SOUTH SIDE MAIN CANAL DIVERSION HEADGATES, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; OVERALL VIEW OF MAIN HEADGATES, DAM IN BACKGROUND. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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190. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. ...
190. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. GENERAL PLAN OF MILNER DAM TUNNELS, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; BLUEPRINT. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Strategic guidelines for street canyon geometry to achieve sustainable street air quality
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Chan, Andy T.; So, Ellen S. P.; Samad, Subash C.
This paper is concerned with the motion of air within the urban street canyon and is directed towards a deeper understanding of pollutant dispersion with respect to various simple canyon geometries and source positions. Taking into account the present days typical urban configurations, three principal flow regimes "isolated roughness flow", "skimming flow" and "wake interference flow" (Boundary Layer Climates, 2nd edition, Methuen, London) and their corresponding pollutant dispersion characteristics are studied for various canopies aspect ratios, namely relative height ( h2/ h1), canyon height to width ratio ( h/ w) and canyon length to height ratio ( l/ h). A field-size canyon has been analyzed through numerical simulations using the standard k- ɛ turbulence closure model. It is found that the pollutant transport and diffusion is strongly dependent upon the type of flow regime inside the canyon and exchange between canyon and the above roof air. Some rules of thumbs have been established to get urban canyon geometries for efficient dispersion of pollutants.
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Space Radar Image of Craters of the Moon, Idaho
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)
1994-01-01
Ancient lava flows dating back 2,000 to 15,000 years are shown in light green and red on the left side of this space radar image of the Craters of the Moon National Monument area in Idaho. The volcanic cones that produced these lava flows are the dark points shown within the light green area. Craters of the Moon National Monument is part of the Snake River Plain volcanic province. Geologists believe this area was formed as the North American tectonic plate moved across a 'hot spot' which now lies beneath Yellowstone National Park. The irregular patches, shown in red, green and purple in the lower half of the image are lava flows of different ages and surface roughnesses. One of these lava flows is surrounded by agricultural fields, the blue and purple geometric features, in the right center of the image. The town of Arco, Idaho is the bright yellow area on the right side of the agricultural area. The peaks along the top of the image are the White Knob Mountains. The Big Lost River flows out of the canyon at the top right of the image. The image was acquired by the Spaceborne Imaging Radar-C/X-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SIR-C/X-SAR) when it flew aboard the space shuttle Endeavour on October 5, 1994. This image is centered at 43.58 degrees north latitude, 113.42 degrees west longitude. The area shown is approximately 33 kilometers by 48 kilometers 20.5 miles by 30 miles). Colors are assigned to different frequencies and polarizations of the radar as follows: red is the L-band horizontally transmitted, horizontally received; green is the L-band horizontally transmitted, vertically received; blue is the C-band horizontally transmitted, vertically received. SIR-C/X-SAR, a joint mission of the German, Italian and United States space agencies, is part of NASA's Mission to Planet Earth program.
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Geology of the head of Lydonia Canyon, U.S. Atlantic outer continental shelf
Twichell, David C.
1983-01-01
The geology of the part of Lydonia Canyon shoreward of the continental shelf edge on the southern side of Georges Bank was mapped using high-resolution seismic-reflection and side-scan sonar techniques and surface sediment grab samples. The head of the canyon incises Pleistocene deltaic deposits and Miocene shallow marine strata. Medium sand containing some coarse sand and gravel covers the shelf except for a belt of very fine sand containing no gravel on either side of the canyon in water depths of 125–140 m. Gravel and boulders, presumably ice-rafted debris, cover the rim of the canyon. The canyon floor and canyon wall gullies are covered by coarse silt of Holocene age which is as much as 25 m thick, and Miocene and Pleistocene strata are exposed on the spurs between gullies. The Holocene sediment is restricted to the canyon shoreward of the shelf edge and has been winnowed from the shelf. Furrows cut in the shelf sands and ripples on the shelf and in the canyon suggest that sediment continues to be moved in this area. Sediment distribution, however, is inconsistent with that expected from the inferred westward sediment transport on the shelf. Either the fine-grained deposits on the shelf to either side of the canyon head are relict or there is a significant component of offshore transport around the canyon head.In the head of Oceanographer Canyon, only 40 km west of Lydonia Canyon, present conditions are strikingly different. The floor of Oceanographer Canyon is covered by sand waves, and their presence indicates active reworking of the bottom sediments by strong currents. The close proximity of the two canyons suggests that the relative importance of processes acting in canyons can be variable over short distances.
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H CANYON PROCESSING IN CORRELATION WITH FH ANALYTICAL LABS
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Weinheimer, E.
2012-08-06
Management of radioactive chemical waste can be a complicated business. H Canyon and F/H Analytical Labs are two facilities present at the Savannah River Site in Aiken, SC that are at the forefront. In fact H Canyon is the only large-scale radiochemical processing facility in the United States and this processing is only enhanced by the aid given from F/H Analytical Labs. As H Canyon processes incoming materials, F/H Labs provide support through a variety of chemical analyses. Necessary checks of the chemical makeup, processing, and accountability of the samples taken from H Canyon process tanks are performed at themore » labs along with further checks on waste leaving the canyon after processing. Used nuclear material taken in by the canyon is actually not waste. Only a small portion of the radioactive material itself is actually consumed in nuclear reactors. As a result various radioactive elements such as Uranium, Plutonium and Neptunium are commonly found in waste and may be useful to recover. Specific processing is needed to allow for separation of these products from the waste. This is H Canyon's specialty. Furthermore, H Canyon has the capacity to initiate the process for weapons-grade nuclear material to be converted into nuclear fuel. This is one of the main campaigns being set up for the fall of 2012. Once usable material is separated and purified of impurities such as fission products, it can be converted to an oxide and ultimately turned into commercial fuel. The processing of weapons-grade material for commercial fuel is important in the necessary disposition of plutonium. Another processing campaign to start in the fall in H Canyon involves the reprocessing of used nuclear fuel for disposal in improved containment units. The importance of this campaign involves the proper disposal of nuclear waste in order to ensure the safety and well-being of future generations and the environment. As processing proceeds in the fall, H Canyon will have a
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Callahan, J.E.; McIntyre, D.H.; Cooley, E.F.; Cookro, T.M.
1984-01-01
The Jerry Peak Wilderness Study Area is about 25 mi south of Challis in Custer County, central Idaho (fig. 1). The study area contains 46,150 acres of land administered by the by the Bureau of Land Management and 1 sq mi owned by the State of Idaho, a total of 46,790 acres. Most of the study area is readily accessible by roads along tributaries of the East Fork Salmon River, especially Road Creek, Herd Creek, and Lake Creek. The southeastern part of the area can be reached from Road Creek by the road down Peck's Canyon and by roads from Thousand Springs Valley, southeast of the study area. Several access roads to past logging operations extend up Sage Creek and its tributaries in the southeast part of the study area. Access to points within the northern part of the area is facilitated by jeep trails that connect with Road Creek and lake Creek and by improved road that extends northward from Herd Lake. The study area is moderately rugged, with local relief approaching 2,000 ft. Jerry (10,010 ft), the highest point within the area, is a low knoll on a north-trending linear ridge (fig. 1). The ridge has not been glaciated, despite its relatively high altitude. Most of the area is thinly covered by grass and low shrubs; trees, for the most part, are restricted to valley bottoms or to local, small groves on hillslopes.
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76 FR 18153 - Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-04-01
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY... Forests' Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee will conduct a business meeting. The meeting is open to the public. DATES: Thursday, April 21, 2011, beginning at 9 a.m. ADDRESSES: Idaho Counties Risk...
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78 FR 24381 - Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-04-25
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The Southwest Idaho Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) will meet in Boise, Idaho. The RAC is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community...
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East, Amy E.; Collins, Brian D.; Sankey, Joel B.; Corbett, Skye C.; Fairley, Helen C.; Caster, Joshua J.
2016-05-17
We conclude that most of the river-corridor archeological sites are at elevated risk of net erosion under present dam operations. In the present flow regime, controlled floods do not simulate the magnitude or frequency of natural floods, and are not large enough to deposit sand at elevations that were flooded at annual to decadal intervals in predam time. For archeological sites that depend upon river-derived sand, we infer elevated erosion risk owing to a combination of reduced sand supply (both fluvial and aeolian) through (1) the lower-than-natural flood magnitude, frequency, and sediment supply of the controlled-flooding protocol; (2) reduction of open, dry sand area available for wind redistribution under current normal (nonflood) dam operations, which do not include flows as low as natural seasonal low flows and do include substantial daily flow fluctuations; and (3) impeded aeolian sand entrainment and transport owing to increased riparian vegetation growth in the absence of larger, more-frequent floods. If dam operations were to increase the supply of sand available for windblown transport—for example, through larger floods, sediment augmentation, or increased fluvial sandbar exposure by low flows—and also decrease riparian vegetation, the prevalence of active aeolian sand could increase over time, and the propensity for unmitigated gully erosion could decrease. Although the evolution of river-corridor landscapes and archeological sites has been altered fundamentally by the lack of large, sediment-rich floods (flows on the order of 5,000 m3/s), some combination of sediment-rich flows above 1,270 m3/s, seasonal flows below 226 m3/s, and riparian-vegetation removal might increase the preservation potential for sand-dependent archeological resources in the Colorado River corridor.
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27 CFR 9.152 - Malibu-Newton Canyon.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR
2010-04-01
....” (2) Then south along Kanan Dume Road to the point where an unnamed, unimproved dirt road referred to... Canyon Road to an unnamed, unimproved dirt road referred to by the petitioner as Newton Mountain Way at... southeastern ridgeline of Newton Canyon, to an unnamed, unimproved dirt road referred to by the petitioner as...
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lorenson, T. D.; Maier, K. L.; Gwiazda, R.; Paull, C. K.; McGann, M.
2017-12-01
Submarine canyons are major vectors of sediment transport off the continent into the deep sea. Recent results from the Monterey Coordinated Canyon Experiment document fifteen sediment transport events occurred during an 18-month period from 2015 to 2017, and three of them reached at least to 1850m. In an attempt to constrain the timing and rate in which sediments were transported down canyons in these and earlier events we have collected sediment cores and measured the sedimentation rates using 210Pb and 137Cs dating techniques along the axis of Monterey Canyon. We employed transects of precisely located ROV collected push cores and vibracores collected at water depths ranging from 300m to 2900m perpendicular to the canyon axis using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). Some cores were taken in 2013 and compared with those taken in 2017. We focused on cores from terraces that are between 60m and 75m above the canyon thalweg in water depths between 300 and 1500 m and in cores collected form the canyon's axial channel between 1800 and 2900 m water depths where the canyon widens considerably. Generally sedimentation rates vary with depth, with the highest sedimentation rate closest to land, but vary substantially across successive terraces. Sawtooth-shaped excess 210Pb and 137Cs profiles with depth at almost all sites at least to 1500m imply several episodes of deposition and reworking of sediment on the terraces suggesting multiple sediment transport events. The excess 210Pb in many cores reach depths of up to 1m implying sedimentation rates greater than 10mm per year. At the deepest site (2900m) about 10 cm of fine hemipelagic sediment overlies sand indicating a high-energy sediment flow event. In 2014 the measured 210Pb sedimentation rate of 0.6 to 0.8mm per year indicates that the last 10 cm of sediment have been deposited and undisturbed since about the year 1910 showing that recent events have not reached this depth. Measurements are on going to determine if the
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Dispersion and photochemical evolution of reactive pollutants in street canyons
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kwak, Kyung-Hwan; Baik, Jong-Jin; Lee, Kwang-Yeon
2013-05-01
Dispersion and photochemical evolution of reactive pollutants in street canyons with canyon aspect ratios of 1 and 2 are investigated using a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model coupled with the carbon bond mechanism IV (CBM-IV). Photochemical ages of NOx and VOC are expressed as a function of the NO2-to-NOx and toluene-to-xylene ratios, respectively. These are found to be useful for analyzing the O3 and OH oxidation processes in the street canyons. The OH oxidation process (O3 oxidation process) is more pronounced in the upper (lower) region of the street canyon with a canyon aspect ratio of 2, which is characterized by more (less) aged air. In the upper region of the street canyon, O3 is chemically produced as well as transported downward across the roof level, whereas O3 is chemically reduced in the lower region of the street canyon. The O3 chemical production is generally favorable when the normalized photochemical ages of NOx and VOC are larger than 0.55 and 0.28, respectively. The sensitivities of O3 chemical characteristics to NOx and VOC emission rates, photolysis rate, and ambient wind speed are examined for the lower and upper regions of the street canyon with a canyon aspect ratio of 2. The O3 concentration and the O3 chemical production rate divided by the O3 concentration increase as the NOx emission rate decreases and the VOC emission rate and photolysis rate increase. The O3 concentration is less sensitive to the ambient wind speed than to other factors considered. The relative importance of the OH oxidation process compared to the O3 oxidation process increases with increasing NOx emission rate and photolysis rate and decreasing VOC emission rate. In this study, both O3 and OH oxidation processes are found to be important in street-canyon scale chemistry. The methodology of estimating the photochemical ages can potentially be adopted to neighborhood scale chemistry.
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Dam break analysis and flood inundation map of Krisak dam for emergency action plan
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Juliastuti, Setyandito, Oki
2017-11-01
The Indonesian Regulation which refers to the ICOLD Regulation (International Committee on Large Dam required have the Emergency Action Plan (EAP) guidelines because of the dams have potential failure. In EAP guidelines there is a management of evacuation where the determination of the inundation map based on flood modeling. The purpose of the EAP is to minimize the risk of loss of life and property in downstream which caused by dam failure. This paper will describe about develop flood modeling and inundation map in Krisak dam using numerical methods through dam break analysis (DBA) using hydraulic model Zhong Xing HY-21. The approaches of dam failure simulation are overtopping and piping. Overtopping simulation based on quadrangular, triangular and trapezium fracture. Piping simulation based on cracks of orifice. Using results of DBA, hazard classification of Krisak dam is very high. The nearest village affected dam failure is Singodutan village (distance is 1.45 kilometer from dam) with inundation depth is 1.85 meter. This result can be used by stakeholders such as emergency responders and the community at risk in formulating evacuation procedure.
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Fencl, Jane S.; Mather, Martha E.; Costigan, Katie H.; Daniels, Melinda D.
2015-01-01
Longitudinal connectivity is a fundamental characteristic of rivers that can be disrupted by natural and anthropogenic processes. Dams are significant disruptions to streams. Over 2,000,000 low-head dams (<7.6 m high) fragment United States rivers. Despite potential adverse impacts of these ubiquitous disturbances, the spatial impacts of low-head dams on geomorphology and ecology are largely untested. Progress for research and conservation is impaired by not knowing the magnitude of low-head dam impacts. Based on the geomorphic literature, we refined a methodology that allowed us to quantify the spatial extent of low-head dam impacts (herein dam footprint), assessed variation in dam footprints across low-head dams within a river network, and identified select aspects of the context of this variation. Wetted width, depth, and substrate size distributions upstream and downstream of six low-head dams within the Upper Neosho River, Kansas, United States of America were measured. Total dam footprints averaged 7.9 km (3.0–15.3 km) or 287 wetted widths (136–437 wetted widths). Estimates included both upstream (mean: 6.7 km or 243 wetted widths) and downstream footprints (mean: 1.2 km or 44 wetted widths). Altogether the six low-head dams impacted 47.3 km (about 17%) of the mainstem in the river network. Despite differences in age, size, location, and primary function, the sizes of geomorphic footprints of individual low-head dams in the Upper Neosho river network were relatively similar. The number of upstream dams and distance to upstream dams, but not dam height, affected the spatial extent of dam footprints. In summary, ubiquitous low-head dams individually and cumulatively altered lotic ecosystems. Both characteristics of individual dams and the context of neighboring dams affected low-head dam impacts within the river network. For these reasons, low-head dams require a different, more integrative, approach for research and management than the individualistic
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Costigan, Katie H.; Daniels, Melinda D.
2015-01-01
Longitudinal connectivity is a fundamental characteristic of rivers that can be disrupted by natural and anthropogenic processes. Dams are significant disruptions to streams. Over 2,000,000 low-head dams (<7.6 m high) fragment United States rivers. Despite potential adverse impacts of these ubiquitous disturbances, the spatial impacts of low-head dams on geomorphology and ecology are largely untested. Progress for research and conservation is impaired by not knowing the magnitude of low-head dam impacts. Based on the geomorphic literature, we refined a methodology that allowed us to quantify the spatial extent of low-head dam impacts (herein dam footprint), assessed variation in dam footprints across low-head dams within a river network, and identified select aspects of the context of this variation. Wetted width, depth, and substrate size distributions upstream and downstream of six low-head dams within the Upper Neosho River, Kansas, United States of America were measured. Total dam footprints averaged 7.9 km (3.0–15.3 km) or 287 wetted widths (136–437 wetted widths). Estimates included both upstream (mean: 6.7 km or 243 wetted widths) and downstream footprints (mean: 1.2 km or 44 wetted widths). Altogether the six low-head dams impacted 47.3 km (about 17%) of the mainstem in the river network. Despite differences in age, size, location, and primary function, the sizes of geomorphic footprints of individual low-head dams in the Upper Neosho river network were relatively similar. The number of upstream dams and distance to upstream dams, but not dam height, affected the spatial extent of dam footprints. In summary, ubiquitous low-head dams individually and cumulatively altered lotic ecosystems. Both characteristics of individual dams and the context of neighboring dams affected low-head dam impacts within the river network. For these reasons, low-head dams require a different, more integrative, approach for research and management than the individualistic
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Physiographic rim of the Grand Canyon, Arizona: a digital database
Billingsley, George H.; Hampton, Haydee M.
1999-01-01
This Open-File report is a digital physiographic map database. This pamphlet serves to introduce and describe the digital data. There is no paper map included in the Open-File report. The report does include, however, PostScript and PDF format plot files, each containing an image of the map. For those interested in a paper plot of information contained in the database or in obtaining the PostScript plot files, please see the section entitled "For Those Who Don't Use Digital Geologic Map Databases" below. This physiographic map of the Grand Canyon is modified from previous versions by Billingsley and Hendricks (1989), and Billingsley and others (1997). The boundary is drawn approximately along the topographic rim of the Grand Canyon and its tributary canyons between Lees Ferry and Lake Mead (shown in red). Several isolated small mesas, buttes, and plateaus are within this area, which overall encompasses about 2,600 square miles. The Grand Canyon lies within the southwestern part of the Colorado Plateaus of northern Arizona between Lees Ferry, Colorado River Mile 0, and Lake Mead, Colorado River Mile 277. The Colorado River is the corridor for raft trips through the Grand Canyon. Limestone rocks of the Kaibab Formation form most of the north and south rims of the Grand Canyon, and a few volcanic rocks form the north rim of parts of the Uinkaret and Shivwits Plateaus. Limestones of the Redwall Limestone and lower Supai Group form the rim of the Hualapai Plateau area, and Limestones of Devonian and Cambrian age form the boundary rim near the mouth of Grand Canyon at the Lake Mead. The natural physiographic boundary of the Grand Canyon is roughly the area a visitor would first view any part of the Grand Canyon and its tributaries.
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182. Photocopy of Photograph, Twin Falls Canal Company. Photographer and ...
182. Photocopy of Photograph, Twin Falls Canal Company. Photographer and date unknown. MILNER DAM TUNNELS, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; APPROACH TO TUNNELS. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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187. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. ...
187. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. TOPOGRAPHICAL MAP OF MILNER DAM LOCATION, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; BLUEPRINT MAP. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Shelf-Slope Exchanges near Submarine Canyons in the Southern Mid-Atlantic Bight
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Wang, H.; Gong, D.
2016-02-01
Shelf-slope exchange processes are major physical drivers of biological productivity near the shelf-break. Observations from two Slocum ocean gliders in Fall 2013 are used to explore the driving mechanisms of cross-shelf-slope exchanges near Norfolk Canyon and Washington Canyon in the southern Mid-Atlantic Bight. Offshore excursion of bottom "cold pool" water, and shoreward intrusion of slope water at surface layer and thermocline depth occurred during northeasterly along-shelf winds. The saline intrusions of surface slope water resided between the cold pool and surface shelf water, and reached the bottom on the outer and mid-shelf, while the offshore excursion of cold pool water was found between the surface and intermediate slope-water over the canyon. Ekman transport calculation shows wind-driven cross-shelf transport can partially explain this interleaving pattern of intrusions. Scaling analysis of double diffusive processes demonstrate that they also likely played a role in the cross-shelf-slope exchange. A unique canyon upwelling event was captured in and around Washington Canyon during a period of southwesterly along-shelf wind and along-shelf flow to the northeast. The water mass distributions and isopycnal responses in both along-canyon and cross-canyon transects are consistent with scaling analysis and numerical studies of canyon upwelling. Temperature-Salinity properties of water masses in the canyon suggest active mixing between shelf and slope water masses near the canyon head. These results point to the importance of wind, double diffusion, and canyon topography on shelf-slope exchange in the MAB.
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Mueller, Erich R.; Grams, Paul E.; Schmidt, John C.; Hazel, Joseph E.; Kaplinski, Matt; Alexander, Jason A.; Kohl, Keith
2014-01-01
In 2011, a large magnitude flow release from Flaming Gorge Reservoir, Wyoming and Utah, occurred in response to high snowpack in the middle Rocky Mountains. This was the third highest recorded discharge along the Green River downstream of Flaming Gorge Dam, Utah, since its initial closure in November 1962 and motivated a research effort to document effects of these flows on channel morphology and sedimentology at four long-term monitoring sites within the Canyon of Lodore in Dinosaur National Monument, Colorado and Utah. Data collected in September 2011 included raft-based bathymetric surveys, ground-based surveys of banks, channel cross sections and vegetation-plot locations, sand-bar stratigraphy, and painted rock recovery on gravel bars. As part of this surveying effort, Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data were collected at benchmarks on the canyon rim and along the river corridor to establish a high-resolution survey control network. This survey control network allows for the collection of repeatable spatial and elevation data necessary for high accuracy geomorphic change detection. Nearly 10,000 ground survey points and more than 20,000 bathymetric points (at 1-meter resolution) were collected over a 5-day field campaign, allowing for the construction of reach-scale digital elevation models (DEMs). Additionally, we evaluated long-term geomorphic change at these sites using repeat topographic surveys of eight monumented cross sections at each of the four sites. Analysis of DEMs and channel cross sections show a spatially variable pattern of erosion and deposition, both within and between reaches. As much as 5 meters of scour occurred in pools downstream from flow constrictions, especially in channel segments where gravel bars were absent. By contrast, some channel cross sections were stable during the 2011 floods, and have shown almost no change in over a decade of monitoring. Partial mobility of gravel bars occurred, and although in some locations
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Deformation Monitoring and Bathymetry Analyses in Rock-Fill Dams, a Case Study at Ataturk Dam
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Kalkan, Y.; Bilgi, S.
2014-12-01
Turkey has 595 dams constructed between 1936 and 2013 for the purposes of irrigation, flood control, hydroelectric energy and drinking water. A major portion of the dam basins in Turkey are deprived of vegetation and have slope topography on near surrounding area. However, landscaping covered with forest around the dam basin is desirable for erosion control. In fact; the dams, have basins deprived of vegetation, fill up quickly due to sediment transport. Erosion control and forestation are important factors, reducing the sediment, to protect the water basins of the dams and increase the functioning life of the dams. The functioning life of dams is as important as the investment and construction. Nevertheless, in order to provide safety of human life living around, well planned monitoring is essential for dams. Dams are very large and critical structures and they demand the use or application of precise measuring systems. Some basic physical data are very important for assessing the safety and performance of dams. These are movement, water pressure, seepage, reservoir and tail-water elevations, local seismic activities, total pressure, stress and strain, internal concrete temperature, ambient temperature and precipitation. Monitoring is an essential component of the dam after construction and during operation and must enable the timely detection of any behavior that could deteriorate the dam, potentially result in its shutdown or failure. Considering the time and labor consumed by long-term measurements, processing and analysis of measured data, importance of the small structural motions at regular intervals could be comprehended. This study provides some information, safety and the techniques about the deformation monitoring of the dams, dam safety and related analysis. The case study is the deformation measurements of Atatürk Dam in Turkey which is the 6th largest dam of world considering the filling volume of embankment. Brief information is given about the
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Evolution and Submarine Landslide Potential of Monterey Canyon Head, Offshore Central California
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Maier, K. L.; Johnson, S. Y.; Hart, P. E.; Hartwell, S. R.
2016-12-01
Monterey Canyon, offshore central California, incises the shelf from near the shoreline to 30 km seaward where axial water depths approach 2,000 m. It is one of the world's most studied submarine canyons, yet debate continues concerning its age, formation, and associated geologic hazards. To address these issues, the USGS, with partial support from the California Seafloor Mapping Program, collected hundreds of kilometers of high-resolution, mini-sparker, single-channel (2009 and 2011 surveys) and multichannel (2015 survey) seismic-reflection profiles near the canyon head. The seismic data were combined with multibeam bathymetry to generate a geologic map of the proximal canyon, which delineates numerous faults and compound submarine landslide headwall scarps (covering up to 4 km2) along canyon walls. Seismic-reflection data reveal a massive ( 100 km2 lateral extent) paleochannel cut-and-fill complex underlying the proximal canyon. These subsurface cut-and-fill deposits span both sides of the relatively narrow modern canyon head, crop out in canyon walls, and incise into Purisima Formation (late Miocene and Pliocene) bedrock to depths of up to 0.3 s two-way travel time ( 240 m) below the modern shelf. We propose that the paleochannel complex represents previous locations of a migrating canyon head, and attribute its origin to multiple alternating cycles of fluvial and submarine canyon erosion and deposition linked to fluctuating sea levels. Thus, the canyon head imaged in modern bathymetry is a relatively young feature, perhaps forming in the last 20,000 years of sea-level rise. The paleocanyon deposits are significantly less consolidated than bedrock in deeper canyon walls, and therefore, are probably more prone to submarine landsliding. Nearby mapped faults occur within the active, distributed, San Andreas fault system, and earthquake-generated strong ground motions are likely triggers for past and future submarine landslides and potential associated tsunamis.
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-06-07
..., Jeffrey Hessing, Idaho Sports Medicine Institute, John Kloss, David Lamey, and Troy Watkins; Proposed... Sports Medicine Institute, John Kloss, David Lamey, and Troy Watkins, Civil Case No. 10-268. On May 28..., Jeffrey Hessing, Idaho Sports Medicine Institute, John Kloss, David Lamey, and Troy Watkins, Defendants...
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Westernmost Grand Canyon incision: Testing thermochronometric resolution
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Fox, M.; Tripathy-Lang, A.; Shuster, D. L.; Winn, C.; Karlstrom, K.; Kelley, S.
2017-09-01
The timing of carving of Grand Canyon has been debated for over 100 years with competing endmember hypotheses advocating for either a 70 Ma ("old") or <6 Ma ("young") Grand Canyon. Several geological constraints appear to support a "young" canyon model, but thermochronometric measures of cooling history and corresponding estimates of landscape evolution have been in debate. In particular, 4He/3He thermochronometric data record the distribution of radiogenic 4He (from the 238U, 235U and 232Th decay series) within an individual apatite crystal and thus are highly sensitive to the thermal history corresponding to landscape evolution. However, there are several complicating factors that make interpreting such data challenging in geologic scenarios involving reheating. Here, we analyze new data that provide measures of the cooling of basement rocks at the base of westernmost Grand Canyon, and use these data as a testbed for exploring the resolving power and limitations of 4He/3He data in general. We explore a range of thermal histories and find that these data are most consistent with a "young" Grand Canyon. A problem with the recovered thermal history, however, is that burial temperatures are under predicted based on sedimentological evidence. A solution to this problem is to increase the resistance of alpha recoil damage to annealing, thus modifying He diffusion kinetics, allowing for higher temperatures throughout the thermal history. This limitation in quantifying radiation damage (and hence crystal retentivity) introduces non-uniqueness to interpreting time-temperature paths in rocks that resided in the apatite helium partial retention zone for long durations. Another source of non-uniqueness, is due to unknown U and Th distributions within crystals. We show that for highly zoned with a decrease in effective U of 20 ppm over the outer 80% of the radius of the crystal, the 4He/3He data could be consistent with an "old" canyon model. To reduce this non-uniqueness, we
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Shank, T. M.
2016-02-01
From 2012 to 2015, annual seafloor surveys using the towed camera TowCam were used to characterize benthic ecosystems and habitats to groundtruth recently developed habitat suitability models that predict deep-sea coral locations in northwest Atlantic canyons. Faunal distribution, abundance, and habitat data were obtained from more than 90 towed camera surveys in 21 canyons, specifically Tom's, Hendrickson, Veatch, Gilbert, Ryan, Powell, Munson, Accomac, Leonard, Washington, Wilmington, Lindenkohl, Clipper, Sharpshooter, Welker, Dogbody, Chebacco, Heel Tapper, File Bottom, Carteret, and Spencer Canyons, as well as unnamed minor canyons and inter-canyon areas. We also investigated additional canyons including Block, Alvin, Atlantis, Welker, Heezen, Phoenix, McMaster, Nantucket, and two minor canyons and two intercanyon areas through high-definition ROV image surveys from the NOAA CANEX 2013 and 2014 expeditions. Significant differences in species composition and distribution correlated with specific habitat types, depth, and individual canyons. High abundances and diversity of scleractinians, antipatharians, octocorals and sponges were highly correlated with habitat substrates, includingvertical canyon walls, margins, sediments, cobbles, boulders, and coral rubble habitat. Significant differences in species composition among canyons were observed across similar depths suggesting that many canyons may have their own biological and geological signature. Locating and defining the composition and distribution of vulnerable coral ecosystems in canyons in concert with validating predictive species distribution modeling has resulted in the regional management and conservation recommendations of these living resources and the largest proposed Marine Protected Area in North American waters.
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NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Welcker, C. W.; Burke, M.
2015-12-01
The Snake River in Hells Canyon supports a growing population of spawning Fall Chinook Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) immediately downstream of the Hells Canyon Complex (HCC) of hydroelectric dams for the last 60 years. The long-term survival of this salmon run depends on the input of spawning gravel (25-150 mm) from local tributaries balancing the losses of spawning gravel through attrition and export out of the reach between the HCC and the Salmon River confluence. We are working to quantify the gravel input of these local tributaries at different time-scales and put this into the context of historical supply and transport. Long-term total sediment production rates of these tributaries estimated through various methods have varied by over 2 orders of magnitude, but we have recently completed 10Be work to constrain these estimates. We are measuring the change in storage of Fall Chinook spawning-size gravel through repeat multibeam echosounder surveys of the riverbed. The limited amount of repeat data collected to date has shown complex patterns of change in the riverbed. One possible driver of this complexity is the episodic and spatially variable nature of sediment inputs from these tributaries. We are attempting to quantify the frequency of the debris flows or floods capable of transporting spawning gravel through digitizing historic imagery of the last 60 years to determine the recurrence interval. We are measuring the magnitude of these events by surveying tributary fans pre and post-event to measure the sediment volume and particle size produced by specific events. These floods and debris flows are driven by extreme rainfall or snowmelt events, so we have also reconstructed historical meteorological conditions to identify the triggering conditions for transport, and identify the areas where snowmelt or rainfall is the more likely trigger. We are currently testing whether the unique bedrock geology of Hells Canyon can be used as a tracer to identify the
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Stone, Paul; Stevens, Calvin H.; Belasky, Paul; Montañez, Isabel P.; Martin, Lauren G.; Wardlaw, Bruce R.; Sandberg, Charles A.; Wan, Elmira; Olson, Holly A.; Priest, Susan S.
2014-01-01
This geologic map and pamphlet focus on the stratigraphy, depositional history, and paleogeographic significance of upper Paleozoic rocks exposed in the Marble Canyon area in Death Valley National Park, California. Bedrock exposed in this area is composed of Mississippian to lower Permian (Cisuralian) marine sedimentary rocks and the Jurassic Hunter Mountain Quartz Monzonite. These units are overlain by Tertiary and Quaternary nonmarine sedimentary deposits that include a previously unrecognized tuff to which we tentatively assign an age of late middle Miocene (~12 Ma) based on tephrochronologic analysis, in addition to the previously recognized Pliocene tuff of Mesquite Spring. Mississippian and Pennsylvanian rocks in the Marble Canyon area represent deposition on the western continental shelf of North America. Mississippian limestone units in the area (Tin Mountain, Stone Canyon, and Santa Rosa Hills Limestones) accumulated on the outer part of a broad carbonate platform that extended southwest across Nevada into east-central California. Carbonate sedimentation was interrupted by a major eustatic sea-level fall that has been interpreted to record the onset of late Paleozoic glaciation in southern Gondwana. Following a brief period of Late Mississippian clastic sedimentation (Indian Springs Formation), a rise in eustatic sea level led to establishment of a new carbonate platform that covered most of the area previously occupied by the Mississippian platform. The Pennsylvanian Bird Spring Formation at Marble Canyon makes up the outer platform component of ten third-order (1 to 5 m.y. duration) stratigraphic sequences recently defined for the regional platform succession. The regional paleogeography was fundamentally changed by major tectonic activity along the continental margin beginning in middle early Permian time. As a result, the Pennsylvanian carbonate shelf at Marble Canyon subsided and was disconformably overlain by lower Permian units (Osborne Canyon and
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The influence of the San Gregorio fault on the morphology of Monterey Canyon
McHugh, C.M.G.; Ryan, William B. F.; Eittreim, S.; Donald, Reed
1998-01-01
A side-scan sonar survey was conducted of Monterey Canyon and the San Gregorio fault zone, off shore of Monterey Bay. The acoustic character and morphology of the sonar images, enhanced by SeaBeam bathymetry, show the path of the San Gregorio fault zone across the shelf, upper slope, and Monterey Canyon. High backscatter linear features a few kilometers long and 100 to 200 m wide delineate the sea-floor expression of the fault zone on the shelf. Previous studies have shown that brachiopod pavements and carbonate crusts are the source of the lineations backscatter. In Monterey Canyon, the fault zone occurs where the path of the canyon makes a sharp bend from WNW to SSW (1800 m). Here, the fault is marked by NW-SE-trending, high reflectivity lineations that cross the canyon floor between 1850 m and 1900 m. The lineations can be traced to ridges on the northwestern canyon wall where they have ~ 15 m of relief. Above the low-relief ridges, bowl-shaped features have been excavated on the canyon wall contributing to the widening of the canyon. We suggest that shear along the San Gregorio fault has led to the formation of the low-relief ridges near the canyon wall and that carbonate crusts, as along the shelf, may be the source of the high backscatter features on the canyon floor. The path of the fault zone across the upper slope is marked by elongated tributary canyons with high backscatter floors and 'U'-shaped cross-sectional profiles. Linear features and stepped scarps suggestive of recent crustal movement and mass-wasting, occur on the walls and floors of these canyons. Three magnitude-4 earthquakes have occurred within the last 30 years in the vicinity of the canyons that may have contributed to the observed features. As shown by others, motion along the fault zone has juxtaposed diverse lithologies that outcrop on the canyon walls. Gully morphology and the canyon's drainage patterns have been influenced by the substrate into which the gullies have formed.
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Is Canyon Width a Diagnostic Indicator of the Discharge of Megafloods on Earth and Mars?
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
Lapotre, M. G.; Lamb, M. P.
2013-12-01
On Earth, large floods have carved steep-walled and amphitheater-headed canyons from the Pleistocene (e.g. Box Canyon, ID) through the Holocene (e.g. Asbyrgi Canyon, Iceland), to historic times (e.g. Canyon Lake Gorge, TX). The geologic record on Mars suggests that similar floods have carved canyons by waterfall retreat about 3.5 billion years ago, when the red planet was wetter and possibly warmer. We currently lack robust paleo-hydraulic tools to reconstruct the discharge of ancient floods, especially on Mars where sediment sizes are obscured from observation. To address this issue, we hypothesize that the width of canyon escarpment is controlled by the hydraulics of the canyon-carving flood due to focusing of the flood into the canyon head. We compiled field data from multiple canyons and floods on Earth and Mars and show that there is a correlation between estimated flood discharge and canyon headwall width. To explore what sets this relationship, we identified five important parameters using dimensional analysis: the Froude number, the ratio of backwater length to canyon length, the ratio of backwater length to flood width, the ratio of canyon width to flood width, and the topographic slope upstream of the canyon. We used the hydraulic numerical modeling suite ANUGA to simulate overland flow over different canyon geometries and flood parameters to systematically explore the relative bed shear stresses along the canyon rim as a metric for flow focusing. Results show that canyons that exceed a certain length, scaling with the hydraulic backwater length, have shear stresses at their heads that are significantly higher than near the canyon mouth. Shear stresses along the rim of the canyon sidewalls are limited, in comparison to stresses along the canyon head, when the flood width is of the order of the backwater length. Flow focusing only occurs for subcritical flow. Together, these results suggest that canyons may only grow from a perturbation that is large
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194. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. ...
194. Photocopy of drawing, Twin Falls Canal Company, date unknown. PROFILE AND GATE PLAN, NORTH ISLAND CROSS SECTION OF DAM, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; BLUEPRINT. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Optimizing Street Canyon Orientation for Rajarhat Newtown, Kolkata, India
NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)
De, Bhaskar; Mukherjee, Mahua
2017-12-01
Air temperature in urban street canyons is increased due to the morphed urban geometry, increased surface area, decreased long wave radiation and evapo-transpiration, different thermo-physical properties of surface materials and anthropogenic heat which results in thermal discomfort. Outdoor thermal stress can be mitigated substantially by properly orienting the canyons. It is crucial for the urban planners and designers to orient street canyons optimally considering variable local climatic context. It is important especially for cities in warm humid climatic context as these cities receive higher insolation with higher relative humidity and low level macro wind flow. This paper examines influence of canyon orientation on outdoor thermal comfort and proposes the optimum canyon orientation for the Rajarhat Newtown, Kolkata - a city in warm humid climate zone. Different scenarios are generated with different orientations. Change in air temperature, wind speed, Mean Radiant Temperature (MRT) and Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) of different scenarios are compared to find out the optimum orientation by parametric simulation in ENVI_met. Analysing the simulation results it is observed that orientation angle between 30°-60° to north performs the best for the study area of the Rajarhat Newtown. The findings of this research will be helpful for the planners to orient the street canyons optimally for future development and extension of the Rajarhat Newtown, Kolkata.
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-09-02
... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Project No. 503-048] Idaho Power Company, Idaho; Notice of Availability of Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Swan Falls Project August 26, 2010. In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (Commission or FERC'...
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Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-03-15
... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Project No. 503-048] Idaho Power Company, Idaho; Notice of Availability of Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Swan Falls Project March 5, 2010. In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (Commission or FERC's)...
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Geologic Map of the Upper Parashant Canyon and Vicinity, Mohave County, Northwestern Arizona
Billingsley, George H.; Harr, Michelle L.; Wellmeyer, Jessica L.
2000-01-01
Introduction The geologic map of the upper Parashant Canyon area covers part of the Colorado Plateau and several large tributary canyons that make up the western part of Arizona's Grand Canyon. The map is part of a cooperative U.S. Geological Survey and National Park Service project to provide geologic information for areas within the newly established Grand Canyon/Parashant Canyon National Monument. Most of the Grand Canyon and parts of the adjacent plateaus have been geologically mapped; this map fills in one of the remaining areas where uniform quality geologic mapping was needed. The geologic information presented may be useful in future related studies as to land use management, range management, and flood control programs for federal and state agencies, and private concerns. The map area is in a remote region of the Arizona Strip, northwestern Arizona about 88 km south of the nearest settlement of St. George, Utah. Elevations range from about 1,097 m (3,600 ft) in Parashant Canyon (south edge of map area) to 2,145 m (7,037 ft) near the east-central edge of the map area. Primary vehicle access is by dirt road locally known as the Mount Trumbull road; unimproved dirt roads and jeep trails traverse various parts of the map area. Travel on the Mount Trumbull road is possible with 2-wheel-drive vehicles except during wet conditions. Extra fuel, two spare tires and extra food and water are highly recommended when traveling in this remote area. The map area includes about 26 sections of land belonging to the State of Arizona, about 40 sections of private land, and a small strip of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area (southeast edge of the map area). The private land is mainly clustered around the abandoned settlement of Mt. Trumbull, locally known as Bundyville, and a few sections are scattered in the upper Whitmore Canyon area just south of Bundyville. Lower elevations within the canyons support a sparse growth of sagebrush, cactus, grass, creosote bush, and a
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152. Photocopy of drawing (taken from Twin Falls Canal Company ...
152. Photocopy of drawing (taken from Twin Falls Canal Company Surveyor's Transit Book #363, Page 1). 1912 CONDITION REPORT OF MILNER DAM AREA, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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183. Photocopy of map (Twin Falls Canal Company). TOPOGRAPHICAL MAP ...
183. Photocopy of map (Twin Falls Canal Company). TOPOGRAPHICAL MAP OF MILNER DAM SITE, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; MAP, LEFT SIDE ONLY. CROSS REFERENCE: ID-15-192. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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Idaho still attractive to industry
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Stremel, K.
1984-01-01
Idaho continues to attract operators willing to gamble millions in the hope of establishing the first commercial production in the state. Low well density compounds the complexity of Idaho's geology. Projections are that at least three wildcats will be drilled in the Bear Lake County this year. Plans are to continue infill seismic work on the Overthrust acreage, where significant amount of reconnaissance lines has been shot.
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Giant submarine canyons: Is size any clue to their importance in the rock record?
Normark, William R.; Carlson, Paul R.
2003-01-01
Submarine canyons are the most important conduits for funneling sediment from continents to oceans. Submarine canyons, however, are zones of sediment bypassing, and little sediment accumulates in the canyon until it ceases to be an active conduit. To understand the potential importance in the rock record of any given submarine canyon, it is necessary to understand sediment-transport processes in, as well as knowledge of, deep-sea turbidite and related deposits that moved through the canyons. There is no straightforward correlation between the final volume of the sedimentary deposits and size of the associated submarine canyons. Comparison of selected modern submarine canyons together with their deposits emphasizes the wide range of scale differences between canyons and their impact on the rock record.Three of the largest submarine canyons in the world are incised into the Beringian (North American) margin of the Bering Sea. Zhemchug Canyon has the largest cross-section at the shelf break and greatest volume of incision of slope and shelf. The Bering Canyon, which is farther south in the Bering Sea, is first in length and total area. In contrast, the largest submarine fans-e.g., Bengal, Indus, and Amazon-have substantially smaller, delta-front submarine canyons that feed them; their submarine drainage areas are one-third to less than one-tenth the area of Bering Canyon. some very large deep-sea channels and tubidite deposits are not even associated with a significant submarine canyon; examples include Horizon Channel in the northeast Pacific and Laurentian Fan Valley in the North Atlantic. Available data suggest that the size of turbidity currents (as determined by volume of sediment transported to the basins) is also not a reliable indicator of submarine canyon size.
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Beeman, J.W.; Braatz, A.C.; Hansel, H.C.; Fielding, S.D.; Haner, P.V.; Hansen, G.S.; Shurtleff, D.J.; Sprando, J.M.; Rondorf, D.W.
2010-01-01
This report describes a study of dam passage and survival of radio-tagged juvenile salmonids after installation of a temporary spillway weir (TSW) at Little Goose Dam, Washington, in 2009. The purpose of the study was to document fish passage and survival when the dam was operated with the TSW in place. Spillway weirs are one of several methods used to improve downstream passage of juvenile salmonids. Each spillway weir design is based on the concept of providing an overflow weir with a depth more similar to the natural migration depth of juvenile salmonids than conventional spill bays. Little Goose Dam was the last of the four lower Snake River dams to have a spillway weir installed. This was the first year that some form of surface passage device was operating at all Snake River and Columbia River dams between Lewiston, Idaho, and the Columbia River estuary. The study design stipulated that a total of 30 percent of the river discharge would continuously be passed over the TSW and the conventional spill bays, and this percentage was achieved. The TSW also was to be operated at the 'low crest' elevation during the spring and the 'high crest' elevation during the summer, but the TSW was only operated at the low crest elevation during this study. Behavior, passage, and survival of spring and summer juvenile salmonid migrants passing through Little Goose Dam were examined using radio telemetry. Survival was estimated using the Route Specific Survival Model (RSSM) by releasing tagged fish near Central Ferry State Park 21 kilometers upstream of the dam and in the tailrace approximately 0.5 kilometer downstream of the dam. From April 18 to May 21, 2009, 1,520 yearling Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) and 1,517 juvenile steelhead (O. mykiss) were radio tagged and released. From June 6 to July 5, 2009, 4,251 subyearling Chinook salmon (O. tshawytscha) were radio tagged and released. Release dates of subyearling Chinook salmon were selected to avoid 'reservoir
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Characterization of a dam Mutant of Serratia marcescens and Nucleotide Sequence of the dam Region
Ostendorf, Tammo; Cherepanov, Peter; de Vries, Johann; Wackernagel, Wilfried
1999-01-01
The DNA of Serratia marcescens has N6-adenine methylation in GATC sequences. Among 2-aminopurine-sensitive mutants isolated from S. marcescens Sr41, one was identified which lacked GATC methylation. The mutant showed up to 30-fold increased spontaneous mutability and enhanced mutability after treatment with 2-aminopurine, ethyl methanesulfonate, or UV light. The gene (dam) coding for the adenine methyltransferase (Dam enzyme) of S. marcescens was identified on a gene bank plasmid which alleviated the 2-aminopurine sensitivity and the higher mutability of a dam-13::Tn9 mutant of Escherichia coli. Nucleotide sequencing revealed that the deduced amino acid sequence of Dam (270 amino acids; molecular mass, 31.3 kDa) has 72% identity to the Dam enzyme of E. coli. The dam gene is located between flanking genes which are similar to those found to the sides of the E. coli dam gene. The results of complementation studies indicated that like Dam of E. coli and unlike Dam of Vibrio cholerae, the Dam enzyme of S. marcescens plays an important role in mutation avoidance by allowing the mismatch repair enzymes to discriminate between the parental and newly synthesized strands during correction of replication errors. PMID:10383952
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Weed hosts Globodera pallida from Idaho
USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database
The potato cyst nematode, Globodera pallida (PCN), a restricted pest in the USA, was first reported in Bingham and Bonneville counties of Idaho in 2006. The US government and Idaho State Department of Agriculture hope to eradicate it from infested fields. Eradicating PCN will require depriving the n...
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Currents in monterey submarine canyon
Xu, J. P.; Noble, M.A.
2009-01-01
Flow fields of mean, subtidal, and tidal frequencies between 250 and 3300 m water depths in Monterey Submarine Canyon are examined using current measurements obtained in three yearlong field experiments. Spatial variations in flow fields are mainly controlled by the topography (shape and width) of the canyon. The mean currents flow upcanyon in the offshore reaches (>1000 m) and downcanyon in the shallow reaches (100-m amplitude isotherm oscillations and associated high-speed rectilinear currents. The 15-day spring-neap cycle and a ???3-day??? band are the two prominent frequencies in subtidal flow field. Neither of them seems directly correlated with the spring-neap cycle of the sea level.
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DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Ward, David L.
The authors report on their progress from April 1998 through March 1999 on determining the effects of mitigative measures on productivity of white sturgeon populations in the Columbia River downstream from McNary Dam, and on determining the status and habitat requirements of white sturgeon populations in the Columbia and Snake rivers upstream from McNary Dam. The study is a cooperative effort by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW; Report A), Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW; Report B), U.S. Geological Survey Biological Resources Division (USGS; Report C), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS; Report D), Columbia Rivermore » Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC; Report E), and the University of Idaho (UI; Report F). This is a multi-year study with many objectives requiring more than one year to complete. Therefore, findings from a given year may be part of more significant findings yet to be reported. Highlights of results of our work from April 1998 through March 1999 are given.« less
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Durning, Laura E.; Sankey, Joel B.; Davis, Philip A.; Sankey, Temuulen T.
2016-12-14
In May 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center acquired airborne multispectral high-resolution data for the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon, Arizona. The image data, which consist of four color bands (blue, green, red, and near-infrared) with a ground resolution of 20 centimeters, are available to the public as 16-bit geotiff files at http://dx.doi.org/10.5066/F7TX3CHS. The images are projected in the State Plane map projection, using the central Arizona zone (202) and the North American Datum of 1983. The assessed accuracy for these data is based on 91 ground-control points and is reported at the 95-percent confidence level as 0.64 meter (m) and a root mean square error of 0.36 m. The primary intended uses of this dataset are for maps to support field data collection and simple river navigation; high-spatial-resolution change detection of sandbars, other geomorphic landforms, riparian vegetation, and backwater and nearshore habitats; and other ecosystem-wide mapping.
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This memorandum requests approval for a time-critical removal action at the 27 residential properties that compose the Oak Canyon Site located in the Village of Paguate, Pueblo of Laguna, near Cibola County, New Mexico.
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Bedford, Ashton; Sankey, Temuulen T.; Sankey, Joel B.; Durning, Laura E.C.; Ralston, Barbara
2018-01-01
Tamarisk (Tamarix spp.) is an invasive plant species that is rapidly expanding along arid and semi-arid rivers in the western United States. A biocontrol agent, tamarisk beetle (Diorhabda carinulata), was released in 2001 in California, Colorado, Utah, and Texas. In 2009, the tamarisk beetle was found further south than anticipated in the Colorado River ecosystem within the Grand Canyon National Park and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Our objectives were to classify tamarisk stands along 412 km of the Colorado River from the Glen Canyon Dam through the Grand Canyon National Park using 2009 aerial, high spatial resolution multispectral imagery, and then quantify tamarisk beetle impacts by comparing the pre-beetle images from 2009 with 2013 post-beetle images. We classified tamarisk presence in 2009 using the Mahalanobis Distance method with a total of 2500 training samples, and assessed the classification accuracy with an independent set of 7858 samples across 49 image quads. A total of 214 ha of tamarisk were detected in 2009 along the Colorado River, where each image quad, on average, included an 8.4 km segment of the river. Tamarisk detection accuracies varied across the 49 image quads, but the combined overall accuracy across the entire study region was 74%. Using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) from 2009 and 2013 with a region-specific ratio of >1.5 decline between the two image dates (2009NDVI/2013NDVI), we detected tamarisk defoliation due to beetle herbivory. The total beetle-impacted tamarisk area was 32 ha across the study region, where tamarisk defoliation ranged 1–86% at the local levels. Our tamarisk classification can aid long-term efforts to monitor the spread and impact of the beetle along the river and the eventual mortality of tamarisk due to beetle impacts. Identifying areas of tamarisk defoliation is a useful ecological indicator for managers to plan restoration and tamarisk removal efforts.
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California State Waters Map Series--Hueneme Canyon and vicinity, California
Johnson, Samuel Y.; Dartnell, Peter; Cochrane, Guy R.; Golden, Nadine E.; Phillips, Eleyne L.; Ritchie, Andrew C.; Kvitek, Rikk G.; Greene, H. Gary; Krigsman, Lisa M.; Endris, Charles A.; Clahan, Kevin B.; Sliter, Ray W.; Wong, Florence L.; Yoklavich, Mary M.; Normark, William R.
2012-01-01
In 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within the 3-nautical-mile limit of California's State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection, integration, interpretation, and visualization of swath sonar data, acoustic backscatter, seafloor video, seafloor photography, high-resolution seismic-reflection profiles, and bottom-sediment sampling data. The map products display seafloor morphology and character, identify potential marine benthic habitats, and illustrate both the surficial seafloor geology and shallow (to about 100 m) subsurface geology. The Hueneme Canyon and vicinity map area lies within the eastern Santa Barbara Channel region of the Southern California Bight. The area is part of the Western Transverse Ranges geologic province, which is north of the California Continental Borderland. Significant clockwise rotation - at least 90° - since the early Miocene has been proposed for the Western Transverse Ranges, and the region is presently undergoing north-south shortening. This geologically complex region forms a major biogeographic transition zone, separating the cold-temperate Oregonian province north of Point Conception from the warm-temperate California province to the south. The map area, which is offshore of the Oxnard plain and west of and along the trend of the south flank of the Santa Monica Mountains, lies at the east end of the Santa Barbara littoral cell, characterized by west-to-east littoral transport of sediment derived mainly from coastal watersheds. The Hueneme Canyon and vicinity map area in California's State Waters is characterized by two major physiographic features: (1) the nearshore continental shelf, and (2) the Hueneme and Mugu Submarine Canyon system, which, in the map area, includes Hueneme Canyon and parts
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Dam operations may improve aquatic habitat and offset negative effects of climate change.
Benjankar, Rohan; Tonina, Daniele; McKean, James A; Sohrabi, Mohammad M; Chen, Quiwen; Vidergar, Dmitri
2018-05-01
Dam operation impacts on stream hydraulics and ecological processes are well documented, but their effect depends on geographical regions and varies spatially and temporally. Many studies have quantified their effects on aquatic ecosystem based mostly on flow hydraulics overlooking stream water temperature and climatic conditions. Here, we used an integrated modeling framework, an ecohydraulics virtual watershed, that links catchment hydrology, hydraulics, stream water temperature and aquatic habitat models to test the hypothesis that reservoir management may help to mitigate some impacts caused by climate change on downstream flows and temperature. To address this hypothesis we applied the model to analyze the impact of reservoir operation (regulated flows) on Bull Trout, a cold water obligate salmonid, habitat, against unregulated flows for dry, average, and wet climatic conditions in the South Fork Boise River (SFBR), Idaho, USA. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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California State Waters Map Series—Monterey Canyon and vicinity, California
Dartnell, Peter; Maier, Katherine L.; Erdey, Mercedes D.; Dieter, Bryan E.; Golden, Nadine E.; Johnson, Samuel Y.; Hartwell, Stephen R.; Cochrane, Guy R.; Ritchie, Andrew C.; Finlayson, David P.; Kvitek, Rikk G.; Sliter, Ray W.; Greene, H. Gary; Davenport, Clifton W.; Endris, Charles A.; Krigsman, Lisa M.; Dartnell, Peter; Cochran, Susan A.
2016-06-10
IntroductionIn 2007, the California Ocean Protection Council initiated the California Seafloor Mapping Program (CSMP), designed to create a comprehensive seafloor map of high-resolution bathymetry, marine benthic habitats, and geology within the 3-nautical-mile limit of California’s State Waters. The CSMP approach is to create highly detailed seafloor maps through collection, integration, interpretation, and visualization of swath bathymetry data, acoustic backscatter, seafloor video, seafloor photography, high-resolution seismic-reflection profiles, and bottom-sediment sampling data. The map products display seafloor morphology and character, identify potential marine benthic habitats, and illustrate both the surficial seafloor geology and shallow subsurface geology.The Monterey Canyon and Vicinity map area lies within Monterey Bay in central California. Monterey Bay is one of the largest embayments along the west coast of the United States, spanning 36 km from its northern to southern tips (in Santa Cruz and Monterey, respectively) and 20 km along its central axis. Not only does it contain one of the broadest sections of continental shelf along California’s coast, it also contains Monterey Canyon, one of the largest and deepest submarine canyons in the world. Note that the California’s State Waters limit extends farther offshore between Santa Cruz and Monterey so that it encompasses all of Monterey Bay.The coastal area within the map area is lightly populated. The community of Moss Landing (population, 204) hosts the largest commercial fishing fleet in Monterey Bay in its harbor. The map area also includes parts of the cities of Marina (population, about 20,000) and Castroville (population, about 6,500). Fertile lowlands of the Salinas River and Pajaro River valleys largely occupy the inland part of the map area, and land use is primarily agricultural.The offshore part of the map area lies completely within the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The
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178. Photocopy of Photograph, Twin Falls Canal Company. C. R. ...
178. Photocopy of Photograph, Twin Falls Canal Company. C. R. Savage, Photographer, March, 1905. FIRST FULL WATER OVER MILNER DAM, TWIN FALLS COUNTY, MILNER, IDAHO; SOUTHWEST VIEW OF SPILLWAY GATES. - Milner Dam & Main Canal: Twin Falls Canal Company, On Snake River, 11 miles West of city of Burley, Idaho, Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, ID
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36 CFR 7.4 - Grand Canyon National Park.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR
2014-07-01
... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Grand Canyon National Park. 7.4 Section 7.4 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR SPECIAL REGULATIONS, AREAS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 7.4 Grand Canyon National Park. (a) Commercial...
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36 CFR 7.4 - Grand Canyon National Park.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR
2012-07-01
... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Grand Canyon National Park. 7.4 Section 7.4 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR SPECIAL REGULATIONS, AREAS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 7.4 Grand Canyon National Park. (a) Commercial...
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36 CFR 7.4 - Grand Canyon National Park.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR
2011-07-01
... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Grand Canyon National Park. 7.4 Section 7.4 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR SPECIAL REGULATIONS, AREAS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 7.4 Grand Canyon National Park. (a) Commercial...
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36 CFR 7.4 - Grand Canyon National Park.
Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR
2013-07-01
... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Grand Canyon National Park. 7.4 Section 7.4 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR SPECIAL REGULATIONS, AREAS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 7.4 Grand Canyon National Park. (a) Commercial...
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77 FR 48950 - South Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-08-15
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service South Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The South Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Jerome, Idaho. The committee is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and...
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76 FR 50452 - South Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-08-15
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE South Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The South Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee will meet in Jerome, Idaho. The committee is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self...
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B-Plant Canyon Ventilation Control System Description
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
MCDANIEL, K.S.
1999-08-31
Project W-059 installed a new B Plant Canyon Ventilation System. Monitoring and control of the system is implemented by the Canyon Ventilation Control System (CVCS). This document describes the CVCS system components which include a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) coupled with an Operator Interface Unit (OIU) and application software. This document also includes an Alarm Index specifying the setpoints and technical basis for system analog and digital alarms.
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Measuring currents in submarine canyons: technological and scientific progress in the past 30 years
Xu, J. P.
2011-01-01
The development and application of acoustic and optical technologies and of accurate positioning systems in the past 30 years have opened new frontiers in the submarine canyon research communities. This paper reviews several key advancements in both technology and science in the field of currents in submarine canyons since the1979 publication of Currents in Submarine Canyons and Other Sea Valleys by Francis Shepard and colleagues. Precise placements of high-resolution, high-frequency instruments have not only allowed researchers to collect new data that are essential for advancing and generalizing theories governing the canyon currents, but have also revealed new natural phenomena that challenge the understandings of the theorists and experimenters in their predictions of submarine canyon flow fields. Baroclinic motions at tidal frequencies, found to be intensified both up canyon and toward the canyon floor, dominate the flow field and control the sediment transport processes in submarine canyons. Turbidity currents are found to frequently occur in active submarine canyons such as Monterey Canyon. These turbidity currents have maximum speeds of nearly 200 cm/s, much smaller than the speeds of turbidity currents in geological time, but still very destructive. In addition to traditional Eulerian measurements, Lagrangian flow data are essential in quantifying water and sediment transport in submarine canyons. A concerted experiment with multiple monitoring stations along the canyon axis and on nearby shelves is required to characterize the storm-trigger mechanism for turbidity currents.
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Wiele, S.M.
1998-01-01
A release from Glen Canyon Dam during March-April 1996 was designed to test the effectiveness with which the riparian environment could be renewed with discharges greatly in excess of the normal powerplant-restricted maximum. Of primary concern was the rebuilding of sand deposits along the channel sides that are important to the flora and fauna along the river corridor and that provide the only camp sites for riverside visitors to the Grand Canyon National Park. Analysis of the depositional processes with a model of flow, sand transport, and bed evolution shows that the sand deposits formed along the channel sides early during the high flow were affected only slightly by the decline in suspended-sand concentrations over the course of the controlled flood. Modeling results suggest that the removal of a large sand deposit over several hours was not a response to declining suspended-sand concentrations. Comparisons of the controlled-flood deposits with deposits formed during a flood in January 1993 on the Little Colorado River that contributed sufficient sand to raise the suspended-sand concentrations to predam levels in the main stem show that the depositional pattern as well as the magnitude is strongly influenced by the suspended-sand concentrations.
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78 FR 23741 - North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2013-04-22
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The North Central Idaho Resource Advisorsy Committee (RAC) will be meet in Grangeville, Idaho. The RAC is authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and...
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77 FR 51967 - North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-08-28
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The North Central Idaho RAC will be meeting via... held at the Nez Perce National Forest Supervisors Office, 104 Airport Road, Grangeville, Idaho. Written...
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75 FR 4523 - North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-01-28
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The North Central Idaho RAC will meet in Grangeville, Idaho. The committee is meeting as authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self...
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77 FR 43236 - North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2012-07-24
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The North Central Idaho RAC will meet in Grangeville, Idaho. The committee is meeting as authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self...
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75 FR 64691 - North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2010-10-20
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting. SUMMARY: The North Central Idaho RAC will meet in Potlatch, Idaho. The committee is meeting as authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self...
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76 FR 1594 - North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-01-11
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meetings. SUMMARY: The North Central Idaho RAC will meet in Grangeville, Idaho. The committee is meeting as authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self...
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76 FR 12933 - North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee
Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014
2011-03-09
... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service North Central Idaho Resource Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meetings. SUMMARY: The North Central Idaho RAC will meet in Grangeville, Idaho. The committee is meeting as authorized under the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self...
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Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area Transportation Feasibility Study
DOT National Transportation Integrated Search
2012-07-31
Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area is a popular Bureau of Land Management natural area located near Las Vegas, Nevada. Red Rock Canyon experiences heavy congestion on its Scenic Drive and associated parking areas, due to high volumes of visit...
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Atmospheric Science Data Center
2014-05-15
article title: Wildfires in Northwestern United States ... (MISR) image of smoke plumes from devastating wildfires in the northwestern United States. This view of the Clearwater and ... at JPL August 5, 2000 - Smoke plumes from wildfires in Idaho. project: MISR category: ...
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Environmental analysis of Lower Pueblo/Lower Los Alamos Canyon, Los Alamos, New Mexico
DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)
Ferenbaugh, R.W.; Buhl, T.E.; Stoker, A.K.
1994-12-01
The radiological survey of the former radioactive waste treatment plant site (TA-45), Acid Canyon, Pueblo Canyon, and Los Alamos Canyon found residual contamination at the site itself and in the channel and banks of Acid, Pueblo, and lower Los Alamos Canyons all the way to the Rio Grande. The largest reservoir of residual radioactivity is in lower Pueblo Canyon, which is on DOE property. However, residual radioactivity does not exceed proposed cleanup criteria in either lower Pueblo or lower Los Alamos Canyons. The three alternatives proposed are (1) to take no action, (2) to construct a sediment trap in lowermore » Pueblo Canyon to prevent further transport of residual radioactivity onto San Ildefonso Indian Pueblo land, and (3) to clean the residual radioactivity from the canyon system. Alternative 2, to cleanup the canyon system, is rejected as a viable alternative. Thousands of truckloads of sediment would have to be removed and disposed of, and this effort is unwarranted by the low levels of contamination present. Residual radioactivity levels, under either present conditions or projected future conditions, will not result in significant radiation doses to persons exposed. Modeling efforts show that future transport activity will not result in any residual radioactivity concentrations higher than those already existing. Thus, although construction of a sediment trap in lower Pueblo Canyon is a viable alternative, this effort also is unwarranted, and the no-action alternative is the preferred alternative.« less