Ice Harbor Lock and Dam is a

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

, concrete gravity

run-of-the-river Run-of-river hydroelectricity (ROR) or run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation plant whereby little or no water storage is provided. Run-of-the-river power plants may have no water storage at all or a limited amou ...

dam in the

northwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each s ...

United States. On the lower

Snake River The Snake River is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest region in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, in turn, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean. The Snake ...

in southeastern

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, it bridges Walla Walla and Franklin counties. Located northeast of Burbank and east of Pasco,

river mile A river mile is a measure of distance in miles along a river from its mouth. River mile numbers begin at zero and increase further upstream. The corresponding metric unit using kilometers is the river kilometer. They are analogous to vehicle ro ...

9.7, the dam's name comes from a tiny bay in the river where boats once tied up to wait for upstream ice-jams to break up. Construction began in June 1955; the main structure and three generators were completed in 1961, with an additional three generators finished in 1976. Generating capacity is 603 megawatts, with an overload capacity of 693 MW. The spillway has ten gates and is in length.

Dam system

Built and operated by the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

Corps of Engineers, Ice Harbor Dam is part of the

Columbia River Basin The Columbia River drainage basin is the drainage basin of the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. It covers . In common usage, the term often refers to a smaller area, generally the portion of the drainage basin t ...

system of dams.

Visitor center

Inside the dam on the south side of the river is a large visitor center that has been recently updated to include a new film "The Snake - River of Life" and a new modern interactive touch screen kiosk with information on the dam and recreational opportunities in the area. The visitor center also has a fish ladder viewing room which offers an excellent view of migrating salmon,

steelhead Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the common name of the anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout or redband trout (O. m. gairdneri). Steelhead are native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific basin in Northeast Asia and ...

, and shad. Due to security, visitors must pass through the security gate to gain access.

Surrounding water bodies

Lake Sacajawea, named for Sacajawea, is formed behind the dam. The lake stretches to the base of

Lower Monumental Dam Lower Monumental Lock and Dam is a hydroelectric, concrete, run-of-the-river dam in the northwest United States. Located on the lower Snake River in southeast Washington, it bridges Franklin and Walla Walla counties; it is south of Kahl ...

, upstream. The Wallula Channel, formed from the backup of Snake River entering the

Columbia River The Columbia River ( Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia ...

just southeast of Pasco, runs downstream from the base of the dam. ; Navigation lock * Single-lift * wide * long

Climate

The record for the highest temperature in Washington state, at , was tied at Ice Harbor Dam on August 5, 1961. The record, which was shared with Wahluke ( in 1928), was eventually surpassed on June 29, 2021, when Hanford reached .

Northwest Infrastructure Proposal

Since 2019 Representative Mike Simpson (R), representing central and eastern Idaho, has been working on and presenting the $33 billion ''Columbia Basin Fund'', as a way to restore the endangered Columbia-Snake basin salmon, including the Snake River sockeye salmon, and steelhead. The plan was released in February 2021. The ultimate goal of the plan is to remove or breach (partial removal) four dams on the lower Snake River. This would involve the Ice Harbor,

Lower Granite Dam Lower Granite Lock and Dam is a concrete gravity run-of-the-river dam in the northwest United States. On the lower Snake River in southeastern Washington, it bridges Whitman and Garfield counties. Opened in 1975, the dam is located south of ...

Little Goose Dam Little Goose Lock and Dam is a hydroelectric, concrete, run-of-the-river dam in the northwest United States, on the lower Snake River in southeast Washington. At the dam, the river is the border between Columbia and Whitman counties; it is ...

, and the

beginning with the farthest inland or Lower Granite Dam. The fund would include creating alternate energy plans that would have to be implemented and finished first before any dam removal. The plan has brought together an extensive coalition of organizations, local, state, national and international, as well as the

Yakama Nation The Yakama Indian Reservation (spelled Yakima until 1994) is a Native American reservation in Washington state of the federally recognized tribe known as the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation. The tribe is made up of Klikitat, ...

Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation are the federally recognized confederations of three Sahaptin-speaking Native American tribes who traditionally inhabited the Columbia River Plateau region: the Cayuse, Umatilla, and ...

, Shoshone-Bannock Tribe, and the

Nez Perce Tribe The Nez Percé (; autonym in Nez Perce language: , meaning "we, the people") are an Indigenous people of the Plateau who are presumed to have lived on the Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest region for at least 11,500 years.Ames, K ...

, in a proposed ''Northwest State and Tribal Fish and Wildlife Council", in support of the plan. The

Bonneville Power Administration The Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) is an American federal agency operating in the Pacific Northwest. BPA was created by an act of Congress in 1937 to market electric power from the Bonneville Dam located on the Columbia River and to cons ...

advocates for keeping the dams even though the power from the four dams are considered surplus. and others oppose as written. Opposition from 17 environmental groups is the proposed license extension to 35 years for the other dams in the Columbia Basin as well as a moratorium on salmon-related lawsuits. Washington Governor

Jay Inslee Jay Robert Inslee (; born February 9, 1951) is an American politician, lawyer, and economist who has served as the 23rd governor of Washington since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a member of the U.S. House of Represen ...

and Senator

Patty Murray Patricia Lynn Murray (; born October 11, 1950) is an American politician and educator who is the senior United States senator from Washington since 1993. A member of the Democratic Party, Murray was in the Washington State Senate from 1988 to ...

are in opposition stating that any proposal needs a "science-based," "community-driven" approach. The Whitehouse, through the White House Council on Environmental Quality, released two reports that looks at the possibility of dam removal. U.S. Representatives.

Dan Newhouse Daniel Milton Newhouse (born July 10, 1955) is an American politician and agricultural scientist serving as the U.S. representative for . The district covers much of the central third of the state, including Yakima and the Tri-Cities. Before hi ...

Cathy McMorris Rodgers Cathy Anne McMorris Rodgers (born May 22, 1969) is an American politician who is the U.S. representative for , which encompasses the eastern third of the state and includes Spokane, the state's second-largest city. A Republican, McMorris Rodgers ...

, and

Jaime Herrera Beutler Jaime Lynn Herrera Beutler ( ; born November 3, 1978) is an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2023. The district is in southwestern Washington, lying across the Columbia River from Oregon's Portland met ...

, all from Washington,

Cliff Bentz Cliff Stewart Bentz (born January 12, 1952) is an American lawyer, rancher, and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Oregon's 2nd congressional district. A member of the Republican Party, he is the ranking member on the House Natur ...

of Oregon,

Russ Fulcher Russell Mark Fulcher (born March 9, 1962) is an American businessman and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Idaho's 1st congressional district since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he represented the 21st district in the ...

of Idaho, and

Matt Rosendale Matthew Martin Rosendale Sr. (born July 7, 1960) is an American politician and businessman from Montana. A member of the Republican Party, he is the U.S. representative for Montana's at-large congressional district, elected in 2020. Prior to t ...

of Montana, referred to the report as biased. More than $17 billion has been spent on the recovery of the fish since they were classified as endangered species in 1991 but the efforts to reach sustainable levels has been called a failure. An association of river commercial groups commissioned a study concluded that dam removal would jeopardize already fragile local and regional economies and that the needed train and trucking increase would require up to $2 billion in road and rail improvements.

References

External links

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Ice Harbor Lock and Dam

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Ice Harbor Visitor Center.

{{Snake River Dams Dams in Washington (state) Buildings and structures in Franklin County, Washington Hydroelectric power plants in Washington (state) Buildings and structures in Walla Walla County, Washington United States Army Corps of Engineers dams Dams completed in 1962 Energy infrastructure completed in 1962 Dams on the Snake River Gravity dams