Results of the High Water Flows in the Grand Canyon were not as great as expected……..duh!

Latest Grand Canyon Flood Flow Shows Disappointing Results

Two months after the end of the latest Grand Canyon flood flow, results were

reported to the Technical Working Group of the Grand Canyon Adaptive
Management Program by the Glen Canyon Monitoring and Research Center in
Phoenix, Arizona last Wednesday.

Although it was hoped that the controlled high water flow would improve
habitat for native fish and restore eroded beaches, it was found that just
55% of the target beaches showed improvements, while 36% remained the same
and 9% were worse off. 25% of the sediment scientists had hoped to mobilize
and distribute with the flood never moved and there is no evidence of
improved nursery habitat for native fish.

Since 1963, 95% of sediment inflows to Grand Canyon National Park‘s river
corridor have been trapped behind Glen Canyon Dam. This has completely
transformed habitat conditions for Grand Canyon native fish, leading to the
extinction of the Colorado pikeminnow, razorback sucker, bonytail chub and
roundtail chub, and the endangerment of the humpback chub.

“Secretary [of the Interior] Salazar claimed that this was going to be ‘A
milestone in the history of the Colorado River‘, but like the three previous
experiments in 1996, 2004 and 2008, it too has shown that at best some
beaches are temporarily improved, but the long-term prognosis for the Grand
Canyon is a system without sediment,” says Living Rivers Conservation
Director John Weisheit.

The November 19th 2012 flood is the first to occur in a ten-year time window

that scientist have been granted to experiment with Glen Canyon Dam
operations. Additional controlled floods can be attempted if certain
conditions are met, mainly the existence of large amounts of sediment
entering the Colorado River from two tributary rivers that feed into the
upper part of Grand Canyon, the Paria and Little Colorado.

“Far too much public time and money is wasted on preparing for, publicizing,
executing and monitoring these useless floods that do nothing but perpetuate
a science welfare program masquerading as an endangered species recovery
effort,” adds Weisheit. “Scientist know, but won’t publicly state, that the
only real solution to addressing Grand Canyon’s sediment deficit is to
transport it around Glen Canyon Dam or decommission the dam altogether.”

For more information, see: Grand Canyon Monitoring and Research Center
www.gcmrc.gov, 928-556-7380. An entertaining and informative commentary blog
can be read at www.charliechub.com. Living Rivers is the parent organization
of River Runners for Wilderness and is based in Moab, Utah. The organization
seeks to promote restoration and revitalization of the rivers of the
Colorado Plateau damaged by dams, diversion and pollution. See more at
www.livingrivers.org.