Tearing down Klamath dams: The largest dam demolition
I took a tour with the Corps of Engineers earlier this week at a dam on the Snake River. Apparently it isn&#x27;t that difficult to get a tour, which I recommend to any member of the public. My politics are very progressive, but like so many issues, the dams have been reduced to sound bytes rather than comprehensive understanding.<p>I came away with an even greater feeling that this is a topic too complicated to just take a side, but rather the best possible outcomes happen when stakeholders work together. We need the fish, the energy, the irrigation, the flood control, and the ease of barge-based agricultural transportation. There is serious effort put into protecting wildlife (IE: fish) with very, very good outcomes. I think it&#x27;s easy to assume that the pro-dam crowd is anti-environment, which couldn&#x27;t be farther from the truth.<p>What really solidified for me this week is that these dams have a defined lifetime. Many are reaching the end of that lifetime, but the technology to replace them with something else isn&#x27;t really there yet. Given the net benefit and the massive costs of replacement, it&#x27;s very clear to me we are better letting them run their natural lives rather than removing prematurely. As each reaches a point where it is no longer viable, that is when and where we should consider other options.<p>Something I haven&#x27;t seen discussed anywhere, but to me is almost obvious - these various wave generators we see in discussion for off-shore use. Is there a way that technology can be used in the Columbia, Snake, etc without the need for a dam? At the same time too often in these discussions there are other issues overlooked - like how much Washington &#x2F; Oregon wheat goes down the river on barges that would otherwise be tractor trailers on the highways. Lots of problems to solve.