The Klamath River flows 257 miles (414 km) through Oregon and northern California in the United States, emptying into the Pacific Ocean. By average discharge, the Klamath is the second largest river in California after the Sacramento River. It drains an extensive watershed of almost 16,000 square miles (41,000 km2) that stretches from the arid country of south-central Oregon to the temperate rainforest of the Pacific coast. Unlike most rivers, the Klamath begins in the high desert and flows toward the mountains – carving its way through the rugged Cascade Range and Klamath Mountains before reaching the sea. The upper basin, today used for farming and ranching, once contained vast freshwater marshes that provided habitat for abundant wildlife, including millions of migratory birds. Most of the lower basin remains wild, with much of it designated wilderness. The watershed is known for this peculiar geography, and the Klamath has been called "a river upside down" by National Geographic magazine.
The Elwha River is a 45-mile (72 km) river on the Olympic Peninsula in the U.S. state of Washington. From its source at Elwha snowfinger in the Olympic Mountains, it flows generally north to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Most of the river's course is within the Olympic National Park.
Rindge Dam is a 100-foot-tall (30 m) dam on Malibu Creek in the Santa Monica Mountains of Southern California. Located in Malibu Creek State Park, it sits just northeast of Malibu Canyon Road, and is partially visible from the turnouts south of the tunnel. The dam, a major obstacle to river wildlife, is due to be removed with demolition work beginning in 2025 and finishing in 2035.
The Link River Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Link River in the city of Klamath Falls, Oregon, United States. It was built in 1921 by the California Oregon Power Company (COPCO), the predecessor of PacifiCorp, which continues to operate the dam. The dam is owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
Condit Hydroelectric Project was a development on the White Salmon River in the U.S. state of Washington. It was completed in 1913 to provide electrical power for local industry, and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as an engineering and architecture landmark.
The Elwha Dam was a 108-ft high dam located in the United States, in the state of Washington, on the Elwha River approximately 4.9 miles (7.9 km) upstream from the mouth of the river on the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
The Klamath Basin is the region in the U.S. states of Oregon and California drained by the Klamath River. It contains most of Klamath County and parts of Lake and Jackson counties in Oregon, and parts of Del Norte, Humboldt, Modoc, Siskiyou, and Trinity counties in California. The 15,751-square-mile (40,790 km2) drainage basin is 35% in Oregon and 65% in California. In Oregon, the watershed typically lies east of the Cascade Range, while California contains most of the river's segment that passes through the mountains. In the Oregon-far northern California segment of the river, the watershed is semi-desert at lower elevations and dry alpine in the upper elevations. In the western part of the basin, in California, however, the climate is more of temperate rainforest, and the Trinity River watershed consists of a more typical alpine climate.
Glines Canyon Dam, also known as Upper Elwha Dam, built in 1927, was a 210-foot (64 m) high concrete arch dam built on the Elwha River within Olympic National Park, Clallam County, Washington.
Dam removal is the process of demolishing a dam, returning water flow to the river. Arguments for dam removal consider whether their negative effects outweigh their benefits. The benefits of dams include hydropower production, flood control, irrigation, and navigation. Negative effects of dams include environmental degradation, such as reduced primary productivity, loss of biodiversity, and declines in native species; some negative effects worsen as dams age, like structural weakness, reduced safety, sediment accumulation, and high maintenance expense. The rate of dam removals in the United States has increased over time, in part driven by dam age. As of 1996, 5,000 large dams around the world were more than 50 years old. In 2020, 85% percent of dams in the United States are more than 50 years old. In the United States roughly 900 dams were removed between 1990 and 2015, and by 2015, the rate was 50 to 60 per year. France and Canada have also completed significant removal projects. Japan's first removal, of the Arase Dam on the Kuma River, began in 2012 and was completed in 2017. A number of major dam removal projects have been motivated by environmental goals, particularly restoration of river habitat, native fish, and unique geomorphological features. For example, fish restoration motivated the Elwha Ecosystem Restoration and the dam removal on the river Allier, while recovery of both native fish and of travertine deposition motivated the restoration of Fossil Creek.
The Elwha Ecosystem Restoration Project is a 21st-century project of the U.S. National Park Service to remove two dams on the Elwha River on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state, and restore the river to a natural state. It is the largest dam removal project in history and the second largest ecosystem restoration project in the history of the National Park Service, after the Restoration of the Everglades. The controversial project, costing about $351.4 million, has been contested and periodically blocked for decades. It has been supported by a major collaboration among the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, and federal and state agencies.
The John C. Boyle Dam is a hydroelectric dam located in southern Oregon, United States. It is on the upper Klamath River, south (downstream) of Keno, and about 12 miles (19 km) north of the California border. Originally developed and known as Big Bend, the John C. Boyle dam and powerhouse complex was re-dedicated to honor the pioneer hydroelectric engineer who was responsible for the design of virtually all of the Klamath Hydroelectric Project.
The Klamath River is a river in southern Oregon and northern California in the United States. This article describes its course.
Searsville Dam is a masonry dam in San Mateo County, California that was completed in 1892, one year after the founding of Stanford University, and impounds Corte Madera Creek to form a reservoir known as Searsville Reservoir or Searsville Lake. Searsville Dam is located in the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve and is owned and operated by Stanford University. Neighboring cities include Woodside and Portola Valley, California.
The 2002 Klamath River fish kill occurred on the Klamath River in California in September 2002. According to the official estimate of mortality, about 34,000 fish died. Though some counts may estimate over 70,000 adult chinook salmon were killed when returning to the river to spawn, making it the largest salmon kill in the history of the Western United States. Besides the chinook salmon, other fish that perished include: steelhead, coho salmon, sculpins, speckled dace, and Klamath smallscale sucker.
Iron Gate Dam is an earthfill hydroelectric dam on the Klamath River in northern California, outside Hornbrook, California, that opened in 1964. The dam blocks the Klamath River to create the Iron Gate Lake Reservoir. It is the lowermost of a series of power dams on the river, the Klamath River Hydroelectric Project, operated by PacifiCorp. It also poses the first barrier to migrating salmon in the Klamath. The Iron Gate Fish Hatchery was placed just after the dam, hatching salmon and steelhead that are released back into the river.
Copco Lake was an artificial lake on the Klamath River in Siskiyou County, California, near the Oregon border. The lake's waters were impounded by the Copco Number 1 Dam, which was completed in 1922 as part of the Klamath River Hydroelectric Project.
John C. Boyle Reservoir is an artificial impoundment behind John C. Boyle Dam on the Klamath River in the U.S. state of Oregon. The lake is 16 miles (26 km) west-southwest of Klamath Falls along Oregon Route 66.
Cottonwood Creek is a major stream and tributary of the Sacramento River in Northern California. About 68 miles (109 km) long measured to its uppermost tributaries, the creek drains a large rural area bounded by the crest of the Coast Ranges, traversing the northwestern Sacramento Valley before emptying into the Sacramento River near the town of Cottonwood. It defines the boundary of Shasta and Tehama counties for its entire length. Because Cottonwood Creek is the largest undammed tributary of the Sacramento River, it is known for its Chinook salmon and steelhead runs.
The Klamath River Hydroelectric Project is a series of hydroelectric dams and other facilities on the mainstem of the Klamath River, in a watershed on both sides of the California-Oregon border.
Un-Dam the Klamath (#UnDamtheKlamath) is a social movement in the United States to remove the dams on the Klamath River primarily because they obstruct salmon, steelhead, and other species from accessing the upper basin which provides hundreds of miles of spawning habitat. The dams have also significantly harmed Hupa, Karuk, Klamath, and Yurok lifeways and communities. Copco #1, Copco #2, Iron Gate and J.C. Boyle are the four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River that are being advocated for removal.
