At this point, most people have heard about or personally witnessed the severe drawdown of both of these reservoirs this summer and fall. The intent, as decided by the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon on September 1, 2021, was to increase juvenile spring Chinook and steelhead survival and passage through the reservoirs and past the dams. You can read about it here.
Whether it was the right decision to make, I have no idea! But, what I found the most interesting is that no one seemed to know about this decision before the negative outcomes resulted. It didn’t seem to gather interest until thousands of dead Kokanee Salmon began showing up along the shorelines of both lakes.
While this breed of fish tends to die off to a much smaller extent each year, due to the change in the water levels, this year was completely different and excessive! Reed Fischer, STEP biologist with Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife gave a very detailed explanation for this situation. “The bottom line is that they died as a result of barotrauma. Known as decompression sickness or ‘the bends’ in humans, barotrauma is a deadly experience that happens from a rapid change in depth and oversaturation of gas in the blood.”
But, this wasn’t the worst negative result from the drawdown.
The citizens of Sweet Home rely on Foster Reservoir for their water supply. Only a few days after the drawdown began, residents began to notice the discoloration of their water. In fact, it turned a light brown color. “City officials say the darker colored water is due to a greater turbidity in the water, which was caused because of a much lower water level in the reservoir building and the fill-up of debris and sediment.”
No one planned for or expected that to happen. The situation became headline news as the residents of Sweet Home could not use their water for drinking or cooking. It was also reported that residents pets, specifically dogs, were getting sick from drinking the water.
In a more simple explanation, the water level at Green Peter Reservoir was lowered too quickly! As a result, no one could cook with or drink the water. For a limited time, stations were set up in Sweet Home where residents could pick up free gallons of water. This outcome was completely unexpected. The water treatment plant in Sweet Home failed miserably!
Sweet Home city manager, Kelcey Young stated, “the conditions of the reservoir during the drawdown were too much for the equipment at Sweet Home’s water treatment plant to handle. So it’s actually not even the level of the drawdown that’s been such a challenge: it’s how many trees and branches and landslides, we’ve had a lot more dirt and a lot more debris and a lot more vegetation in our water. And so because of that, our filters, they’re not set up for something like this.”
Sweet Home’s Public Works department stated, “Testing showed light passed through water at around 350 nephelometric turbidity units, a measurement of opacity. The typical winter measurement is closer to 15 turbidity units.”
As a result, it was at least a month before the drinking water became completely clear again. And, that’s after “Sweet Home’s public works department used more chlorine to keep (the) drinking water clean. Meanwhile city residents said the water tasted like bleach and appeared colored with a yellow tint.” All of this was heavily reported by news agencies throughout the state.
The fact is that Sweet Home residents suffered an enormous cost due to their ineffective water treatment plant not being able to handle the demands placed upon it from the drawdown. And now, as Green Peter Reservoir is currently refilling again, talk has resumed regarding the excessive cost incurred throughout the drawdown.
“In November 2023, Linn County’s board of elected leaders directed staff to take legal action against the drawdown order, attempting to overturn the court’s injunction. State and local officials are now discussing a plan for having Oregon’s state governor, Tina Kotek, “cover the $45 million or more in chemical costs and wear and tear on Sweet Home’s drinking water system.” Personally, I agree with this plan. All of these negative effects were not only unexpected, but not even considered in the first place.
What changes may occur regarding the original court order are unknown at this point. However, the original court order states that the deep drawdowns will be implemented each fall until the injunction is lifted, which should occur at the end of December 2024, and perhaps even longer.
And finally, I want to share some comparison photos. These shots show “normal summer levels” and the court ordered drawdown. They are startling, for sure!
Green Peter Reservoir
From atop the dam.
Lower boat ramp at Thistle Creek.
Further down on lower boat ramp looking southward out into the lake.
Foster Lake
Sunnyside Campground Boat Launch
Foot bridge next to Lewis Creek County Park
Traffic bridge over Foster Lake
Every year, the reservoirs are kept at a lower level in the winter to reduce downstream flooding and are refilled in the spring. But those photos from Green Peter Reservoir are very startling. Will the original court order be modified or rescinded? I hope so!
I will update this post as changes are made.
One comment on “Drawdown of Green Peter Reservoir and Foster Lake”