GRAND COULEE DAM and the Planned Promised Land

GRAND COULEE DAM

and the Planned Promised Land

J.M. Syken

Course Outline

In this course, we will examine the creation of Grand Coulee Dam in eastern Washington State. As well, we will examine in depth and detail the Columbia Basin Project (CBP) of which the “Straight-Gravity” type dam was an integral and key component for this large hydroelectric power generation and land reclamation project. Our review will include the background for the CBP and the history of the Columbia Basin stretching back to the last ice age, the competing irrigation-only scheme, resistance and debate between the competing schemes and final resolution in favor of a low dam as a result of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers decision in the early 1930s. The merits of the projects, principle participants, politics, legislation and the role of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will be of particular interest. The decision to build a high dam (upon the low dam foundation) will also be discussed in detail.

Also, we will discuss the environmental impacts on the migration of Pacific salmon to their upstream spawning grounds on the Columbia River and the long-term effects of the inundation of the Columbia River Valley upstream from the dam as well as the destruction of Native American fisheries. This will include the creation of Lake Roosevelt – the dam’s reservoir, and its long-term impacts. The construction of the dam and its appurtenant works will be discussed in depth and detail including mobilization, infrastructure, housing, transportation, conveyance, machinery, equipment, supplies, labor relations, excavation, diversion of the river via cofferdams, concrete manufacture, placing and testing, spillway design, powerhouse/s design and construction, electrical production/distribution and need/purpose for a third power plant etc. The purpose, design, construction, distribution system etc. for the irrigation portion will also be highlighted and discussed in depth and detail.

This course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of the course materials.

Learning Objective

At the conclusion of this course, the student will:

Understand/appreciate the problem of insufficient rainfall in eastern Washington State resulting in the inability to make the fertile but parched soil productive as farmland;
Understand/appreciate the various schemes to provide the water which nature had not to the Columbia Basin lands;
Understand/appreciate the geological history of the Pacific Northwest, in particular the creation of the “Grand Coulee”;
Understand/appreciate the scheme to dam the Columbia River at the location where an ice-age glacier once dammed the river thus forming the Grand Coulee and the idea to repeat that with a concrete dam in the same location;
Understand/appreciate the impact on the Columbia Basin the dam would have for artificial irrigation of over one million acres of fertile basin land and the potential for tremendous amounts of hydroelectric power generation;
Understand/appreciate the need to deforest upstream land which would be inundated by the creation of the dam and the removal/relocation of whole towns, buildings, people and infrastructure as a result;
Understand/appreciate the part played by the WPA in the land clearing operations;
Understand/appreciate the immensity of the project including the key component of the dam as the largest man-made structure at the time of its creation;
Understand/appreciate the settlement of the Columbia Basin in the post-WWII years as the result of the irrigation project;
Understand/appreciate the detrimental effects of the dam on the Pacific salmon and other species which spawn in upstream tributaries of the Columbia River and the steps taken to try and mitigate the problem through fish hatcheries;
Understand/appreciate the importance of the Columbia River fisheries to the local Native American tribes, including the loss of an ancient way of life;
Understand/appreciate the power potential of a high dam on the Columbia River and the need to pump water into a feeder canal and balancing reservoir for the irrigation portion of the CBP;
Understand/appreciate the infrastructure necessary to distribute irrigation water to over a million acres of potential farmland;
Understand/appreciate the long struggle of proponents of the CBP, it’s origins during WWI and the opposition of the “power interests” in promoting an irrigation-only scheme of their own;
Understand/appreciate the role of the federal government in the form of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Dept. of the Interior and the presidential administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in creating the political support, legislation, financing, surveys, engineering, infrastructure etc. for the CBP;
Understand/appreciate the multiple aspects of the CBP including land reclamation, environmental impacts, creation and maintenance of the artificial lake/s etc.;
Understand/appreciate the choice of a “Straight-Gravity” type of dam, the construction sequence, design features (i.e. spillway, outlet tubes, control gates etc.):
Understand/appreciate the decision to build a high dam atop the completed initial low dam to maximize the hydroelectric power potential of the Columbia River;
Understand/appreciate the limits imposed on the height of the high dam so as not to cause flooding in Canada;
Understand/appreciate the cost in human lives and injury the dam took in the course of its original construction (1933-1942) and in the proceeding years;
Understand/appreciate the work force involved in building the CBP, wages, welfare, unionization, housing etc.;
Understand/appreciate the infrastructure required to begin actual construction including roads, bridges, cableways, towns, conveyors etc.;
Understand/appreciate the mobilization of men, materials and equipment for the project and the role of the Mason-Walsh-Kier-Atkinson (a/k/a “MWAK”) Company as General Contractor of the dam’s foundation;
Understand/appreciate the excavation challenges of the dam and how they were met including the use of an “Ice Dam” to control slides;
Understand/appreciate the unique design of the cofferdam system to both retain and divert the Columbia River during construction, the methods, materials and systems used and the difficulties encountered and overcome;
Understand/appreciate the manufacture and distribution of concrete and its component parts for the mass of the dam;
Understand/appreciate the use of railways, trestles and moveable cranes for the placement of concrete;
Understand/appreciate the need to cool the concrete and the use of “Lifts” to form the blocks which make up the dam;
Understand/appreciate the construction of the pumping plant and two powerhouses;
Understand/appreciate design/construction/installation of the electrical generating and water pumping equipment;
Understand/appreciate the critical role played by the dam during WWII for the generation of tremendous amounts of electricity required for aluminum refining;
Understand/appreciate the purpose/need for the construction of the third power plant, it’s tremendous power output and the role of master architect Marcel Breuer in its design;
Understand/appreciate the role of Lake Roosevelt for both a recreational and commercial activities and the problems encountered for both in the years after the completion of the dam and irrigation project; and
Understand/appreciate the long-term legacy of Grand Coulee Dam and the CBP for the creation of a “Planned Promised Land” in the northwestern U.S.

Intended Audience

This course is intended for architects, engineers and other design professionals.

Benefit to Attendees

The attendee/s will gain an intimate knowledge, understanding and insight into the creation of Grand Coulee Dam - one of the engineering wonders of the world, and its associated reclamation project.

Course Introduction

The course includes an in-depth PowerPoint presentation and the viewing of videos.

Course Content

In this course, you are required to view/study the following slideshow and the materials contained in the web pages:

GRAND COULEE DAM and the Planned Promised Land (printable handout in PDF, 45 MB, see Note A below for downloading instruction)

GRAND COULEE DAM and the Planned Promised Land (non-printable slideshow for screen-viewing only, 100 MB, see Note A below for downloading instruction)

Archival/Documentary Film:

TITLE: The Columbia (1949)
LINK: https://archive.org/details/gov.fdr.353.3.4
DURATION: 21:09
TITLE: Grand Coulee Dam: A Man-Made Marvel (2014)
LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU4qw9zYX9Y#t=18
DURATION: 42:36
TITLE: Powering one Corner of the World (U.S.B.R. 1987)
LINK: https://archive.org/details/gov.ntis.ava19490vnb1.3
DURATION: 07:50
TITLE: How it Works: John W. Keys III Pump-Generating Plant
LINK:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kuLpIUeAqHs&list=PLvHsnLEo5Rt5blnQPG6s8TGgLZQ1O0U63
DURATION: 1:01

Note A: Please click on the above underlined hypertext to view, download or print the document for your study. Because of the large file size, we recommend that you first save the file to your computer by right-clicking the mouse and choosing "Save Target As ...", and then open the file in Adobe Acrobat Reader from your computer.

Course Summary

When the good citizens of eastern Washington State thought about the future of the region in the early years of the 20th Century, inevitably their thoughts turned to water. The soil was fertile but, unlike coastal regions of the Northwest, the lack of adequate rainfall inland left the lands of the Columbia Basin (an area twice the size of the State of Delaware) a dream unrealized. But what if the last ice age (whereby a massive glacial dam blocked the natural course of the mighty Columbia River scouring out a “Grand Coulee,” now high and dry after the melting of the glacier returned the river to its natural course) could be re-invented in concrete, thus blocking the river once again and forming a large artificial lake behind it? Then, the spring and summer floods, coinciding with the planting season, could/would supply an area of over a million acres with the water nature hadn’t provided. It would be a “Planned Promised Land,” with the additional benefit of providing employment to thousands during the Great Depression and massive amounts of clean, cheap and plentiful hydroelectric power for the war effort and beyond. The dream of transforming a wasteland to a land of fruit and honey had been realized with the creation of Grand Coulee Dam and “America’s Greatest Power Stream” had been harnessed for the service of mankind.

Related Links

For additional technical information related to this subject, please visit the following websites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Coulee_Dam

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_River

http://www.usbr.gov/pn/grandcoulee/

https://archive.org/details/MightyCo1947
(The Mighty Columbia River, 1947 – 09:59)

https://archive.org/details/tmp_Agricult
Agriculture – New Farms From Grand Coulee – 01:37)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nsHKl5LpzI
(Film: Look to the River - 20.33)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGzQxAZQqt8
(Uncle Sam…the Greatest Builder (09:45)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9m43V7M2rTE
(Film: Caterpillar Diesel Tractor [1937] - 18:51)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42CFGwtk5rk
(Film: Giant of the Earthmovers - 10:25)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UygIoZTOSrU&t=1s
(Film - 5 Worst Dam Failures in History - 11:17)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x6DRBURPlxI
(Film: The Untold Stories of the Great Depression - 1:21:38)

Quiz

Once you finish studying the above course content, you need to take a quiz to obtain the PDH credits.

DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered architect and/or professional engineer/surveyor. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.