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  • ‘Man Overboard’: Dredge vessel crew saves woman swept away by Columbia River

    It was the sound – something like a scream – that first caught their attention.

  • Army water regulators await torrent of winter moisture set to blast the Pacific Northwest

    A stream of atmospheric rivers will be flowing through parts the Pacific Northwest at the beginning of December, drastically changing the region’s most recent crisp, dry autumn – a seemingly strange occurrence. The National Weather Service’s (NWS) Portland office is predicting that up to three atmospheric rivers will pummel the region, bringing a very active weather pattern that will dump plenty of rain at lower elevations and snow to the Cascades.

  • Pacific lamprey returns eclipsing other years

    *Our initial news release referenced adult Pacific Lamprey returns were 170 percent higher than the 10-year-average and then referenced the 10-year-average being 41,414 which is actually closer to 154 percent. The 170 percent number came from using the 2022 Annual Fish Passage Report, which references completed counts over ten years from 2013-2022. This average is 37,425. This has been updated online and addressed in other forums. Please excuse this mistake. Adult returns are indeed 252 percent higher than the four-year-average. Also, note these counts are daytime counts and lamprey passage numbers are still probably closer to 165,314 total fish. Pacific lamprey, an ancient, eel-like fish species, are seeing returns 170 percent higher than the 10-year average (2013-2022) at Bonneville Lock and Dam this year. Lamprey numbers are also 252 percent higher than the four-year average, according to biologists responsible for reporting the number of fish counted as they migrate upstream past mainstem Columbia and Snake River dams.

  • Federal water managers announce public information sessions about post-September 2024 Columbia River Treaty operations

    How the United States uses reservoir space in Canada changes on September 16, 2024, from the high degree of structure and control of flows coming across the border from Canada experienced over the last 60 years under the Columbia River Treaty, to an operation that increases the uncertainty of those flows. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) will hold four virtual public information sessions in September and October to begin informing the public about the potential changes.

  • Drastic difference between air and water temperature could kill

    With the onset of record-breaking heat across much of the Pacific Northwest, it’s imperative that people wear life jackets while swimming, boating and fishing. While air temperatures may be high, water temperatures can be much lower and can be deadly, according to water safety statistics.

  • Juvenile salmon benefit from spring spill

    In April, the Northwestern Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers started spilling water on the Snake and Columbia rivers to help juvenile salmon migrate downstream. We met up with Julie Ammann, Reservoir Control Center chief at Bonneville Lock & Dam to check it out.

  • Water managers begin spring spill to benefit juvenile salmon

    Federal water managers will begin spilling hundreds of thousands of gallons of water over spillways instead of through turbines during annual “spring spill” operations at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ dams on the lower Snake and Columbia rivers.

  • A step towards navigable waters: A history of McNary Lock and Dam

    As people moved into the Pacific Northwest, communities grew around the rivers, especially the Columbia and Snake. Back then, the rivers were temperamental and hard to navigate. However, there was a vision to create a river highway, one that would allow barges to carry cargo from the Pacific Ocean to the confluence of the Snake and Clearwater rivers, 465 miles inland.

  • Frigid temps increase power demand while Army dams balance needs

    With frigid temperatures and near record-setting snow accumulation in some areas of the Pacific Northwest, Army dams responded by producing power to keep the lights and heat on. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has 21 dams in the Columbia and Willamette river basins that ramp up power production to keep the grid stable during high demands.

  • Sediment Mobility, Closure Depth, and the Littoral System – Oregon and Washington Coast

    Abstract: Forty years ago, the depth of closure concept was introduced to provide a systematic, process-based approach to evaluate seasonal changes in cross-shore profiles and sediment mobility in the nearshore. This study aims to extend that theory by directly considering wave-asymmetry in the nearshore environment. This technical note introduces a methodology to calculate wave induced dispersal of dredged material placed in nearshore sites and summarizes analyses validating the approach using data from the South Jetty Site at the Mouth of the Columbia River. This investigation highlights the notion of a cross-shore gradient in nearshore placement effectiveness of dredged material that can assist project managers plan and execute sustainable sediment management practices at coastal inlets.