An environmental storm is brewing in the lower 100 miles of the Deschutes River, Oregon’s queen of trout and steelhead waters.
At its epicenter is Round Butte Dam and a water-mixing tower, installed by Portland General Electric in 2009-10 to return the lower river to pre-dam conditions and create passage conditions to restore salmon and steelhead runs.
Water in Lake Billy Chinook, created by Round Butte Dam, comes from three tributaries, Metolius, Deschutes and Crooked rivers and is somewhat layered. The tower is meant to create a closer mix to Pre-Round Butte days.
But is it functioning? Or instead, a death blow to a vibrant, well-established ecosystem? Ask a lawyer.
LINK (via: Oregon Live)
The Deschutes River Alliance just published their 2016 Lower Deschutes Water Quality Report and it’s pretty clear that the Round Butte Dam is having an impact on the lower Deschutes.
Here it is in a nutshell.
DRA’s 2016 Lower Deschutes River Water Quality Report clearly establishes that, in just seven years of operation, the Selective Water Withdrawal tower at Pelton-Round Butte has severely degraded water quality and threatens aquatic life below the Project.
See you court!
