Elwha & Glines Dam–Off goes the power

Photographer/Filmmaker John Gussman sent me a few photos from this week’s shutdown of the dam. Enjoy. Next up, the tear down will begin this summer.

_MG_3759bThe press and engineers gather.

_MG_3774bThe computer tells the tale. 0 output.

 

_MG_3778bAnd the final log entry.

This marks a significant milestone in the work to re-establish the Elwha as a major salmon stream. The reasoning is simple yet the work hard and expensive: The government is doing this because the dam produces a small amount of electricity, it was built with no way to allow the migrating salmon to bypass the dam, and the river has a short run from the Straits into a major wilderness area, which will give the salmon a strong chance to survive and thrive.

Hopefully, we will be seeing wind and water turbines that can out produce this dam get setup over the next few years.

To purchase these or any of the other photos that John is taking, go to his web site:

https://www5843.ssldomain.com/elwhaimagebank/store/index.php?p=home

All photos are the property of John Gussman and cannot be reproduced beyond this blog without his written permission. Thanks John!

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