Remarks as Prepared for Delivery
For the Honorable Dirk Kempthorne
Secretary of the Interior
Glen Canyon Dam
March 5, 2008
Thank you Mary (Bomar), Bob (Johnson) and Mark (Myers)
I also want to recognize the work being done by our other bureaus:
- The Fish and Wildlife Service is represented by Southwest Regional Director Ben Tuggle and his staff.
- The Bureau of Indian Affairs is represented by Regional Environmental Protection Officer Amy Heuslin.
Thank you, and all who work with you, for your tireless work each day.
Here at Glen Canyon and downstream in Grand Canyon National Park, we are in the midst of not only one of the world’s great natural wonders, but also the most notable intersection of two of the primal forces of our planet: water and rock.
Over millions of years, these two forces have met here, the water relentlessly flowing over, crashing into, and molecule by molecule carving away the granite, the limestone and the other rock.
The Colorado River twists its way for 277 miles through the canyon, the great rock walls towering thousands of feet above its rapids.
Yet the river continues to evolve because of the forces of nature, including man. It has changed because of the incredible ingenuity of humankind to design and construct engineering marvels such as the Glen Canyon Dam.
No longer does the Colorado yield its greatest force against the rock, the power of floodwaters roaring down the canyon. And because of this, the canyon has changed. Its wildlife has changed. The intricate tapestry of this remarkable ecosystem formed over millions of years has been altered.
Today, we are here to set the river free once again. And through this experiment we hope to enhance the habitat in the canyon and its wildlife, and learn more about these complex natural systems.
The scientific experiment will be stunning both visually and scientifically.
In a moment, when I push the button and pull the lever, it will open giant valves to unleash a torrent of water down the Colorado River.
This experiment has been timed to take advantage of the highest sediment deposits in a decade and designed to better assess the ability of these releases to rebuild beaches that provide habitat for endangered wildlife and campsites for thousands of Grand Canyon National Park tourists.
The water will be released at a rate that would fill the Empire State Building within twenty minutes. It will transport enough sediment to cover a football field 100 feet deep with silt and sand.
As the water recedes, our scientists will be closely monitoring newly-created backwater habitat to better understand the role of these backwaters in the life cycle of endangered native fish.
This fall we will begin a second phase of this experiment by releasing steady flows from the dam for two months. And again we will closely monitor the effects on endangered fish in these backwaters.
This experiment and associated research is being undertaken cooperatively by scientists and resource managers from the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Geological Survey in consultation with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and state, tribal and private partners, all of whom make up the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Work Group.
The Adaptive Management Work Group has been in place for 11 years and I thank you for all the work you’ve done.
We are working together because all share a common goal of learning from today’s test and using that knowledge in the future.
Brenda Burman is my designee to the Glen Canyon Adaptive Management working group and has worked with our Interior agencies and external stakeholders to get us where we are today.
Many of you are aware that in 1996 the Department conducted a week-long high flow release. Since that time we've learned to shorten the length of the experiment and to better synchronize these high flow releases to the amount of available sediment.
To put it simply - we want to redeposit the sand that has been carried into the Canyon by storms that moved across the high plateaus over the past 2 years.
What exactly do we hope to accomplish with this experiment?
In a moment, when I open the jet tubes, the Glen Canyon Dam will release over 300,000 gallons of water per second for 60 hours; the equivalent of turning on 1.8 million garden hoses at the same time,
And, as that water flows downstream:
- USGS scientists will begin to study whether we are successfully rebuilding beaches throughout the 277-miles of Grand Canyon National Park.
- USGS and the Fish and Wildlife Service will monitor backwaters and observe the effects on species like the endangered humpback,
- The Park Service will monitor how the released sediment collects through the canyon, enhancing recreational opportunities,
- The Department of the Interior will assist various American Indian Tribes in monitoring culturally significant resources along the river,
- And, most importantly, we will demonstrate our commitment to preserving the unique treasures of the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River, while we fulfill our responsibility to provide water and power to the people of the Southwest United States.