Hayes River, Lost River, Lillian River, Little River
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The Elwha is one of several rivers in the Pacific Northwest that hosts all five species of native Pacific salmon (chinook, coho, chum, sockeye, and pink salmon), plus four anadromoustrout species (steelhead, coastal cutthroat trout, bull trout, and Dolly Varden char). From 1911 to 2014, dams blocked fish passage on the lower Elwha River. Before the dams, 400,000 adult salmon returned yearly to spawn in 70 miles (110km) of river habitat. Prior to dam removal, fewer than 4,000 salmon returned each year in only 4.9 miles (7.9km) of habitat below the lower dam. The National Park Service removed the two dams as part of the $325 million Elwha Ecosystem Restoration Project. Dam removal work began in September 2011 and was completed in August 2014.[4] The river has already carried sediment to its mouth, creating 70 acres of estuary habitat at the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
The first documented use of the name Elwha River dates to Henry Kellett's 1846 map.[5]
After receiving the tributaries Delabarre and Godkin creeks, the Elwha River flows northward. The Hayes River joins in Press Valley, where the Hayes River Ranger Station is located. Lost River joins near the northern end of Press Valley, after which the Elwha crosses into Clallam County, Washington.
The river is the site of the largest dam removal project in history.[7][8] The Elwha Ecosystem Restoration project is the second largest ecosystem restoration project the National Park Service has attempted, after the Everglades. The Elwha River Ecosystem and Fisheries Restoration Act of 1992 was signed by the first President Bush after it was passed by Congress. The project was projected to cost $350 million.[9] The act authorized the Secretary of the Interior to acquire and remove the two dams on the river and restore the ecosystem and native anadromous fisheries.
The removal of the 108-foot (33m) tall Elwha Dam and the 210-foot (64m) tall Glines Canyon Dam began in September 2011. Two downstream water treatment facilities were completed in early 2010 to protect the water supply for the city of Port Angeles and the fish hatcheries from silt and sediment that would wash downstream once the dams were removed. In order to protect fish stocks below the dams during removal, the dams were taken out over a three-year period, pausing to ensure there would be no silt in the river while salmon spawned downstream.
The Elwha Dam was completely dismantled in March 2012. Restoration of the area around the dam followed, including tens of thousands of native plants started in local greenhouses. The removal of the Glines Canyon Dam was completed in August 2014.[4][10]
Salmon will naturally recolonize the 70 miles (110km) of habitat in Olympic National Park. The area once under the reservoirs is being revegetated to prevent erosion and speed up ecological restoration of the area. Because almost all of the Elwha's watershed is in a national park, the river should become relatively pristine, with few of the issues of agricultural runoff and water heating that affect other salmon river habitat in the Pacific Northwest. Model projections by the Park Service show that up to 392,000 fish will fill 70 miles of habitat, theoretically matching the "pre-dam peak".[9]
By late December 2012, about 10percent of the estimated 25,000,000 cubic yards (19,000,000m3) of sediment that had been caught behind the river's two dams had collected at the Elwha's mouth, forming sandbars. With the Elwha Dam removed, the sediment had been pushed downstream as heavy rainfall produced faster-moving flows in the free-running river.[10] By November 2014, 30 percent of the stored sediment had been carried to the mouth of the river, creating 70 acres (28 hectares) of new estuary habitat for a wide variety of shellfish and other species.[4]
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article Elwha_River, and is written by contributors.
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