COLUMBIA RIVER

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COLUMBIA RIVER
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TRIVIA ?S

• How did the Columbia River get its name?

It is named after the Columbia Rediviva, the
first ship from the western world known to have
traveled up the river.
How long is the Columbia River?
1243 miles with a drainage basin of 258,000
miles. It is the 12th longest river in the U.S.
How many hydroelectric power plants are there
along the river?
14, it is the largest hydro-producing river in
North America
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COLUMBIA RIVER WATERSHED
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• How many acres does the Columbia River Drain?

250,000 of land
What percentage of the electricity used in the
Pacific Northwest comes from Hydropower?
60
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Dams

• 14 Major Dams on the Columbia itself
• 55 major projects on the Columbia its
  tributaries
• Bonneville Power Administration (under the US
  Department of Energy) produces 40 of all power
  in the NW. Of that 80 is hydro power
• Also assist with flood control, 1932 flood killed
  32 people in Portland when the when the dike
  surrounding Vanport failed.

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Anadromous Fish

• Those fish that reproduce and rear fish in fresh
  water and migrate downriver to the Pacific Ocean
• Some may travel up to 1440 km during their life
  cycle
• Includes Fall, Spring and Summer Chinook Salmon,
  Sockeye and Coho Salmon, Pacific Lamprey and
  Steelhead Trout

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Native Fish- Commonly consumed

• 6 species of salmon
• Lamprey
• White Sturgeon
• Smelt
• Rainbow Trout
• Mountain Whitefish
• Walleye
• Largescale Bridgelip Sucker

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Toxins found in commonly consumed fish species

• Pesticides found in higher concentrations in
  whole body walleye, whitefish, and trout compared
  to anadromous fish. Perhaps due to those fish
  not migrating long distances
• Higher levels of organic toxins including PCBs,
  found in those fish with higher fat content, such
  as the lamprey
• Zinc was the most commonly found inorganic toxin.
  Zinc is naturally occurring in the soil and
  water.
• The most recent study in the late 1990s to
  survey all toxins found the levels to be
  comparable with surveys in the 1980s

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Invasive Species

• Amur Goby from Asia potentially introduced
  through ship ballast or released from household
  aquaria
• Zebra Mussel
• Hydrilla
• Chinese Mitten Crab
• Snapping Turtle

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Variety of Habitats

• Rainfalls averages 25 cm to 250 cm
• Altitudes from sea level to 3900 m
• Moist old growth forests in the west
• Dry and arid steppe habitat in the east
• 609 known species of fish and wildlife
• 3800 species of invertebrates have been
  identified with the possibility of 20,000 more to
  be fully described

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Fish Profiles

• White Sturgeon
• Up to 3750 kg
• up to 6 m long is the largest fish in the
  Columbia
• 10-14 scutes present ahead of dorsal fin

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SOCK EYE SALMON

• Sockeye Salmon are long distance travelers,
  traveling more than 7,000 miles
• Listed as endangered in portions of their range
  (Snake River Columbia River)
• Up to 70 cm long
• Up to 12 pounds

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Bull Trout

• Up to 103 cm in length
• Up to 14.5 kg
• Federally Threatened, State Species of Concern

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Pacific Lamprey

• No true fins, jaws or bones
• Can reach 76 cm