The complete press release is on the net at the BOR Upper Colorado site.
Flooding was much worse than what is stated above. 3 feet of water in the
floor below the powerplant.
>This was reported by Kimberly Murphy of Associated Press. This story made
>only page 9 of the local Ft. Collins paper and there has been no mention on
>the radio or TV news. After reading the book "Cadillac Desert" and the
>account of how close the BLM came to loosing Glen Canyon in '82, I wonder if
>we are hearing the whole truth.
>
>Does any one lurking out there know how close they really came to a major
>problem with the plumbing on the Colorado?
>
>The flow on the Green dropped from 6000+cfs to 2000+cfs and then they let
>surface water (much warmer) out over the spillway.
Flaming Gorge was releaseing 8600 cfs when the plumbing broke. Went down to
1000 cfs for awhile then upped to 2000 cfs using the spillway (warmer
water). At the time of the incedent Flaming Gorge was operated by "remote
control" from Glen Canyon Dam which could be why everything shut down so fast.
>This incident sounds much like the '82 high water year when Glen Canyon was
>close to being reclaimed by the river.
Actually it was in 1983 that Lake Powell was filled to 8 feet over full
(elevation of 3708 feet). Also it is the BOR (Bureau of Reclamation) that
controls the dams on the Green and Colorado Rivers.
>
>Of course; Charles Calhoun, regional director of BLM's Upper Colorado Region
>said "We don't feel we have a safety or a dam problem at all."
>
>Are there any studies of what happens if Flaming Gorge fails? Does the
>water then overflow Glen Canyon Dam and Hoover Dam?
The travel time for water on the Green River from Flaming Gorge to Lake
Powell is about 4 to 5 days depending on flow (it could be as long as 8 days
is there isn't any water from the Yampa and the flow is low). This would be
enough time to open Glen Canyon Dam up quite a bit if there were a problem.
I watch the flow and check up on things dealing with the Green and Colorado
Rivers above Lake Powell on a regular basis. The flow through Cataract
Canyon (my "local" canyon) is determined by runoff and dam releases
combined. Since this all ends up in Lake Powell, it directly effects the
releases from Glen Canyon Dam (hence the flow through Grand Canyon) and
should be of concern to all who boat there.
>
>#==Paddle Hard -- Laugh Often ========================#
># Jerry B. Trottmann
>
Carl Anderson
Moab, Utah
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