HEALTH MANAGEMEN.. Workers start dismantling dams in Washington

Teams begin dismantling the two dams on the Elwha River on Washington's Olympic Peninsula Thursday. By some measures, this is the largest dam-remove project ever - and at 210 feet, one of the dams, the highest dam is certainly ever taken off. The process is a very difficult thing - on engineering, ecology and politics - but environmentalists hope this project marked the beginning of the end of the era of large dams in the American West. Those who like big dams, for economic reasons, have to worry about the same thing. Michele Norris talks to NPR's Martin caste.

MELISSA BLOCK, host: people are good at the construction of dams. There are an estimated 75,000 to American rivers. But we have not much exercise, remove it. In the State of Washington is now changing.
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BLOCK: Workers have begun to cut the highest dam in the concrete on the 210-foot tall Glines Canyon Dam, ever taken off. It is part of an ambitious dam remove project on the River ELWA in the Olympic National Park. NPR Martin caste migrated a good look at the demolition work at a job above the River, and he is now on the line with us. See Martin, what from your Vista you?
MARTIN KASTE: well, actually I'm sitting on a piece of old driftwood, an old log, which was probably deforested in the 1920s when here, this dam was built. The Lake is slowly descending and a number of workers are side of the reservoir on a barge here on the other hand upstream and they are – they have just begun jack hammers, into the concrete itself. You begin to book to the top of it. And what they do leave dam down, is slowly but surely, notch in the next few months the water come in small doses.
MICHELE NORRIS, host: You know how you for us to continue to paint this picture, help us understand why so much work to take needs one of these massive structures.
KASTE: Well, we, on the radio, hoped there would be the way of them only where what is thing, it would be a great scene bubbles. But you can not do because it's almost a century worth of sediment, which is set up behind the dam. And the sediment, dirt and mud, his tight, beautiful valley would go careening. And in fact could kill it, you try to save the River, the.
NORRIS: Why remove them these dams, anyway?
KASTE: Well, it is about restoration. The Elwha River flows through the Olympic National Park. It's a nice place. But this dam has in fact performed, which is formerly a tremendous salmon run. Several species of salmon that come directly from the Pacific Ocean. This was their first stop in the Puget Sound. And there are stories of 100-pound salmon to spawn in the River come.
Of course the two dams that are on this River have made since the 1920s impossible, more than four miles to get up it. Quite simply a push against the concrete wall. So it has a nice, very productive salmon spawning River removed. But it is also only restore, which is a very natural spot.
This is the Olympic National Park. This is a river that had never large development, so that to bring back to their natural state of the Park.
NORRIS: You know, when I hear you speak about one hundred years of sediment, I wonder if it really possible, River dammed and return it in its natural state.
KASTE: This is the big question. This is why so many people are watching this. There are dozens and dozens of scientists, which in fact are building their careers to this project, because this is a perfect test case, a wonderful situation controls where you can see whether you can restore a flow as follows.
A factor, a factor on this river the dams are unnatural. And they want every aspect of this monitor and find out if it is possible. As it is, means that much for other dam projects remove or potential removal of dam projects around the country.
NORRIS: Congress adopted legislation authorize this dam removal in 1992. Why has it taken so long to reach up to moment to finally the process?
KASTE: It really is policy. The politics of dam-removal is complicated, especially in the West, where dams traditionally as a symbol of progress, of economic vitality were seen. And you know, in the 1990s there was resistance to take them, even if it is not too much power to produce. There is some concern among people in parts of the West, that this really only one large dam removal project harbinger of perhaps more cause for controversy is dam remove projects in the future.
Many eyes are River-feeds on the Snake River in the Columbia. These are very controversial dams; They have been tied up in lawsuits for years, and the question is, well, if this goes well, the people concerned want to these dams for economic reasons are that it could be the next.
NORRIS: Martin caste, thank you.
KASTE: Gern happen.
NORRIS:, the NPR Martin is caste. He is on the Glines Canyon Dam on the River Elwha in the Olympic National Park in the U.S. State of Washington.

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