Last week, crews officially wrapped up the deconstruction of Copco No. 2, the smallest dam blocking flows on the Klamath River.
The structure itself was removed by late September, with crews spending last month taking out the remaining diversion infrastructure, grading the river channel and performing erosion control in the area.
Regina Chichizola, executive director of Save California Salmon, said the section of the river with returned flows was already so much healthier looking.
“It seems like the river wants to heal,” she said.
Demolition of the dam began in June. More recently, trees were cut down that would have eventually died, and presented a hazard for future rafters and boaters.
The Klamath River Renewal Corporation, the entity responsible for removing the dams, says the flows are the first time in 98 years water will go through Ward’s Canyon, rather than to a diversion tunnel that fed it to a powerhouse 1.7 miles downstream.
Craig Tucker, a natural resources consultant, said he’s impressed with the speed of the crews, and that they are meeting deadlines. “The train’s running on time,” he said.
The remaining three dams are set to be removed by Nov. 2024, according to KRRC. Most deconstruction will happen during the summer, but first the reservoirs have to be slowly emptied to minimize the impact of sediment on fish and communities on the river. This will happen during January and February, when the least amount of fish are in the river.
The dam removal process is a culmination of decades of activism and tribal leadership.
“It’s not only the biggest river restoration that’s ever happened, we get to be involved in it,” said Chichizola, adding that because of advocacy and the commitment of the tribes, a generation of school children get to see the dam removal process.
Restoration is ongoing in tandem with dam removal.
Copco No. 2 was removed first as it would be in the way of the drawdown when the much larger Copco No. 1 is dismantled next year. Copco No. 2 was a diversion dam, so it did not have a large reservoir like other dams.
This year, coho salmon counts in the Klamath were abysmal. Many look to dam removal as a saving grace for species of native fish. Tucker and Chichizola were each hopeful dam removal will allow fish to flourish again. Tucker noted other dam removal projects have seen positive results quickly for fish.
“This whole thing has been a race against time, could we pull off the huge river restoration before the fish went extinct,” said Tucker.
According to KRRC, the project is fully funded. Funding sources include PacifiCorp customer surcharges and Proposition 1 water bond funds.
Sage Alexander can be reached at 707-441-0504
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