Water
Water to the Promised Land
As an aquifer declines, farmers hope for water promised 80 years ago.
LAST SUMMER as we stood in the middle of Brad Bailie’s onion fields just north of Connell, the discussion, as discussions seem to do in the Columbia Basin, turned to water.
Bailie ’95 pumps irrigation water from a well drilled down 800 feet. Neighbors have pushed wells down to 2,000 feet. At such depths, the water is often laden with salts and minerals. After a while of irrigating with this water, a crust can form over the soil surface. Farmers must use a variety of means to break up the crust, including … » More …
The Columbia Basin Project’s past and present
More about the Columbia Basin Project, its past, and its potential.
» More ...Summer busy time for Canadian canoe and kayak executive
Surrounded as she is by an inventory of 600 canoes and kayaks, one would think Pamela Robertson spends her summers on the water near her Waverley, Nova Scotia home.
She’d love to. But as vice president of Old Creel Canoe & Kayak Inc., she’s too busy. The Halifax-based company supplies 36 outlets and outfitting operations in Canada’s four Atlantic provinces-New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island.
“You’re working so hard from April through September,” she says, “you don’t have time to paddle yourself.”
The pleasant Canadian with short, black hair and rimless glasses earned a master’s degree in home economics at Washington State … » More …
Emerald winters, brown summers
How dry it is! Understanding the summer climate west of the Cascades baffles lots of residents. The “emerald green” attitude extends to believing that summer months wrap themselves in rain and mist just as winter does. However, our “modified Mediterranean” climate makes water planning as important in Seattle as it is in Spokane.
Summer of 2002 brought only 4.6 inches of rain at Sea-Tac (May 1 through November 1). September and October, usually good planting months, totaled only 1.08 inches combined. Another way to get perspective on this summer rainfall total-just imagine you’ve planted hybrid rhododendrons in April. They require about an inch per week, … » More …
Finally, the failure of the Teton Dam is explained
It took nearly 30 years--but now we know why.
» More ...Bridges, docks, and dams
Some of General Construction’s best work is under water
Ron Morford was only 19 when he built his first house. A quarter century later, he’s still in construction-only on a much larger scale. The president and district manager of General Construction Co. oversees projects in Washington, Oregon, California, and Alaska. Annual contracts total between $150 million and $200 million, making it one of the largest construction companies in Washington. The payroll includes 130 salaried staff, plus 400 to 500 laborers and craftsmen.
According to Morford, marine and heavy civil construction accounts for the bulk of the business. He lives on Bainbridge Island, not far from … » More …
Extreme Diversity—in Soap Lake
Lonely, Beautiful, and Threatened—Willapa Bay
Those wasted five gallons
As Americans, we freely water large, green lawns and take showers daily, using on average 100 gallons of water a day. We pay a fraction of a cent per gallon for water out of the tap, while a gallon of gasoline costs $2. Yet life cannot exist without water.
”Water is undervalued,” says Jim Clark (’75 B.S. Civil Engr.; ’76 M.S., Civil Engr.). “Whether it’s water in a stream or water going down a sewer, it’s all a valuable resource. I’d like people to think about that and consider that it is.”
Clark lectured a group of civil and environmental engineering faculty and students while … » More …