Lower Eklutna Dam Removal
Coming together to reconnect a salmon stream.
In the most ambitious river restoration project ever attempted in Alaska, The Conservation Fund, the Native Village of Eklutna and Eklutna Inc. completed the 5 year, $7.5 million effort to remove the Lower Eklutna River dam.
The Lower Eklutna River dam was built in 1928 as part of Alaska’s first hydroelectric project. Located in a dramatic 400-foot deep canyon, access to the dam site was a severe challenge during the construction and later demolition of the dam. In construction, a tram cart delivered concrete down the cliff face to the workers below. This hardy crew worked throughout an entire Alaskan winter to complete the dam in a year’s time.
The dam was 70 feet wide, 100 feet tall and 9 feet thick at the its base. This structure pooled and diverted water through a half-mile tunnel to a generating station nearby. Power ran by wire to Anchorage until the early 1950s when it was decommissioned and ultimately abandoned.
Repeated studies over several decades recommended the removal of the Lower Eklutna River dam as an essential first step in restoring the Eklutna River.
The Conservation Fund with key partners, Eklutna Inc. and HDR worked together toward the removal of 90% of the dam structure in 2017, the remainder of which was removed in the Spring of 2018. Where most major dam removals take decades to complete, this project went from concept to completion in only three years.
The dam removal faced noteworthy technical challenges. The structure was located in a 400-foot deep canyon with sheer walls and no road access. Accessing the dam involved the installation of the state’s largest crane and construction of a dramatic 500-step aluminum staircase into the canyon. Additionally, a seventy-foot deep accumulation of 300,000 cubic yards of silt, sand, and gravel had built up behind the dam following its abandonment.
At the Eklutna River, Alaskans recognized the problems created by an ill-considered dam and are collaborating to fix those problems.
We hope this project will be a reminder to Alaskans that salmon and dams are generally incompatible.
Funding for the $7.5 million project was provided largely by The Conservation Fund, with additional financial support from the Rasmuson Foundation, the M.J Murdock Charitable Trust, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Open Rivers Fund of the Hewlett Foundation, Resources Legacy Fund, the Marnell Corporation, the Alaska Sustainable Salmon Fund, Patagonia, Orvis, Wells Fargo and the Alaska Community Foundation.
