Priest Rapids Dam is a

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

, concrete gravity

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

; located on the

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...

, between the Yakima Firing Range and the

Hanford Nuclear Reservation The Hanford Site is a decommissioned nuclear production complex operated by the United States federal government on the Columbia River in Benton County in the U.S. state of Washington. The site has been known by many names, including SiteW a ...

, and bridges

Yakima County Yakima County is a county in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 256,728. The county seat and largest city is Yakima. The county was formed out of Ferguson County in January 1865 and is named for the Yakam ...

and

Grant County Grant County may refer to: Places ;Australia * County of Grant, Victoria ;United States *Grant County, Arkansas *Grant County, Indiana * Grant County, Kansas *Grant County, Kentucky *Grant County, Minnesota *Grant County, Nebraska *Grant C ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. The dam is 24 miles south of the town of Vantage, and 47 miles northwest of the city of Richland. It is located at mile marker 397.1 from the mouth of the Columbia. It is owned by the

Grant County Public Utility District Public Utility District No. 2 of Grant County, or Grant County PUD, is a public utility district in north central Washington state. It is owned by its customers and governed by a Board of Commissioners elected by the customer-owners. Though it is ...

(PUD).

Priest Rapids Priest Rapids was a narrow, fast-flowing stretch of the Columbia River, located in the central region of the U.S. state of Washington. It was flooded by the construction of the Priest Rapids Dam in the 1950s. Before the dam's construction, the riv ...

, for which the dam was named, are now submerged beneath the dam's reservoir. Priest Rapids Dam is part of the Columbia River Basin system of dams.

History

After the disaster of 1949 Vanport Flood on the lower Columbia River, around

Vancouver, Washington Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, located in Clark County. Incorporated in 1857, Vancouver has a population of 190,915 as of the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Was ...

, and

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

, the federal government established the Priest Rapids Project under the

Flood Control Act of 1950 Title II of Public Law 516-81st Congress, which per Section 216 thereof may be cited as The Flood Control Act of 1950, was a law passed by the United States Congress authorizing flood control projects around the country. The Act was prompted in p ...

(Public Law 81-516; May 17, 1950). The

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

decided the project would not be a top priority, so the Grant PUD began looking at taking over the project from the USACE in 1952. With the passage of Public Law 83-544 in 1955, Congress gave Grant PUD the right to proceed. Revenue bonds were issued for construction to begin in July 1956, first generation occurred in 1959, and the dam was completed in 1961. Its reservoir is named Priest Rapids Lake, and extends 18 miles upstream to spillway of Wanapum Dam. Downriver from Priest Rapids Dam is

Hanford Reach The Hanford Reach is a free-flowing section of the Columbia River, around long, in eastern Washington state. It is named after a large northward bend in the river's otherwise southbound course. Hanford Reach is the only section of the Columbia i ...

, the only free-flowing, non-tidal stretch of the Columbia River in the United States. The initial license expired in 2005, after which the Grant County PUD operated the dam on yearly license extensions while negotiations for license extension proceeded. The

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is the United States federal agency that regulates the transmission and wholesale sale of electricity and natural gas in interstate commerce and regulates the transportation of oil by pipeline in ...

approved a license extension of 44 years for both this dam and the upstream Wanapum Dam on April 17, 2008. The license extension was conditioned upon programs to:Pratt, Christine.
"Feds approve new license for Grant PUD dams"
- ''

Wenatchee World ''The Wenatchee World'' is the leading daily newspaper in Wenatchee and East Wenatchee, Washington, United States. Serving Chelan, Douglas and other North Central Washington counties since 1905, ''The Wenatchee World'' prints on its front page t ...

'' - April 18, 2008"New license OK'd for Priest Rapids, Wanapum dams on Columbia"
-

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

- (c/o ''

Tri-City Herald The ''Tri-City Herald'' is a daily newspaper based in Kennewick, Washington, United States. Owned by The McClatchy Company, the newspaper serves southeastern Washington state, including the three cities of Kennewick, Pasco and Richland (which ...

'') - April 19, 2008 :* modernize the power generation capability of the dam :* monitor water quality :* improve wildlife habitat :* protect nearly 700 Wanapum Tribe archaeological sites in the vicinity :* enhance recreation with new campsites, picnic areas and trails

Problems

An explosion injured six employees on October 8, 2015. Grant County PUD was fined $35,000 for safety violations. Leaks have been discovered in the spillway monoliths. A "non-failure emergency" was declared, and the water level behind the dam was reduced by about three feet.

References

External links

Priest River Dam at Grant County PUD
{{Authority control Dams on the Columbia River Dams in Washington (state) Buildings and structures in Grant County, Washington Hydroelectric power plants in Washington (state) Buildings and structures in Yakima County, Washington United States local public utility dams Dams completed in 1959 Energy infrastructure completed in 1959 Energy infrastructure completed in 1961 Gravity dams 1959 establishments in Washington (state)

History

Problems

See also

References

External links