Sandy River Marmot Dam -Field Trip-

Sandy River. Photo by Yesenia Solis.

The Salmon River Marmot Dam last for 77 years, it was built on the 1930 and removed on 2007. The non-profit organization Western River Conservancy bought the land from Portland General Electric (PGE) and donated to the government. Now this area is a federal land property. Dam license needs to be renewing every 50 years. The PGE sold the land because it was shipper for them to remove the dam and sell the land than relicenses the dam and invest on it to comply with the new laws implemented during this 50 years period.

Some buildings set by PGE up on the river in the flat area were also destroyed to replant the area. After some site preparation Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), Western red cedar (Thuja plicata) were planting to test what can be plant in the area and the two species survived. This planting was a volunteer work by agency office worker that dedicate a volunteer day to the field. On the top of the road, the route to the ex-dam area, there is a young forest because of the timber production, and fish and gravel subtraction until 1999. 

 Western red cedar Thuja plicate by Yesenia Solis

There is not first generation in this area because this is a pretty young forest and where it might happen a first generation process the Nature Conservancy organization have been working preparing the site to plant some natives to restore the habitat, and to make this side, where the buildings were located, look like the other side, a green and beautiful forest. Walking on the bridge, built on the dam time, it was visible to see the river migration lines that at this time was heading to the left site and when big storms comes this moves because of the volcanic soil and sediments bring from Mt. Hood.

The water of Sandy River comes directly from the melt ice of Mt. Hood and the water in this area, the ex-dam place, bring clean sediments because up stream there is a population of few thousand people and it is a great habitat for fish, specially for Salmons. The dam removal was a great fact to the Salmon adaptation from salt water to salt water, but also the removal creates a problem with the breeding between wild Salmon and hatchery Salmon because the salmons that grows in the hatchery has less DNA diversity and are less likely to adapt putting the Salmon population on danger. When the dam existed they had the opportunity to classified the hatchery salmons and sent it to pond in the hatchery, but without the dam this opportunity it is gone.

In the forested area I saw different species of trees that dominate the canopy of the area and the understory as well. Species such as Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), Western red cedar (Thuja plicata), Red alder (Alnus rubra), and Big leaf maple (Acer macrophyllum) that dominate the over story, and Vine maple (Acer circinatum), Sword fern (Polystichum munitum), and moss that have the understory to their own.