[29] The exact number of floods is unknown, but geologists have documented at least 40; evidence suggests that they occurred between about 19,000 and 13,000 years ago. Water depths have been estimated at 1,000 feet (300 m) at Wallula Gap[33] and 400 feet (120 m) over modern Portland, Oregon. A navigation channel reaching to Lewiston, Idaho, along the Columbia and Snake rivers, was completed in 1975. It was originally known as Chemna by Chemnapum Indians who lived at the mouth of the Yakima River (which they called "Tapteal"). The river system as a whole has more than 400 dams for hydroelectricity and irrigation. As of 2016, the Columbia ranked third, behind the Mississippi and Paraná rivers, among the world's largest export corridors for grain. [36] It has been suggested that if the later dates are accurate there may be a link with the 1700 Cascadia earthquake. This point marks the meeting of three of North America's main drainage patterns, to the Pacific Ocean, to Hudson Bay, and to the Atlantic Ocean via the Gulf of Mexico. Chart of the Lower Columbia River. After crossing the Rocky Mountains, Lewis and Clark built dugout canoes and paddled down the Snake River, reaching the Columbia near the present-day Tri-Cities, Washington. The development was accompanied by extensive negotiations between natives and US government agencies. The ecoregion includes the mainstem Columbia north of the Snake River and tributaries such as the Yakima, Okanagan, Pend Oreille, Clark Fork, and Kootenay rivers. The river defines that border for the final 309 miles (497 km) of its journey. Screen captures of the on-line viewable charts available here do NOT fulfill chart carriage requirements for regulated commercial vessels under Titles 33 and 46 of the Code of Federal Regulations. In that year, the people of Oregon passed two laws under their newly instituted program of citizens' initiatives limiting fishing on the Columbia and other rivers. Before being released back into the river, the used water was held in large tanks known as retention basins for up to six hours. The bridge, which aligns with geological records of the Bonneville Slide, was described in some stories as the result of a battle between gods, represented by Mount Adams and Mount Hood, in their competition for the affection of a goddess, represented by Mount St. Paper charts for navigation. The source of the Columbia River Columbia Lake (British Columbia, Canada). [122], The larger US dams are owned and operated by the federal government (some by the Army Corps of Engineers and some by the Bureau of Reclamation), while the smaller dams are operated by public utility districts, and private power companies. [71][158] In the winter of 1994, the return of coho salmon far exceeded expectations, which was attributed in part to the fishing ban. [30], The river and its drainage basin experienced some of the world's greatest known catastrophic floods toward the end of the last ice age. Carrying sediments from erosion and erupting volcanoes, it built a 2-mile (3.2 km) thick delta that underlies the foothills on the east side of the Coast Range near Vernonia in northwestern Oregon. Tennessee River. [106] The project has met opposition because of concerns about stirring up toxic sediment on the riverbed. [192] The associated triple divide points are Commissary Ridge North, Wyoming,[197] and Sproats Meadow Northwest, Oregon. Much of the watershed gets less than 12 inches (30 cm) a year. [170] Nearby aquifers contain an estimated 270 billion US gallons (1 billion m3) of groundwater contaminated by high-level nuclear waste that has leaked out of Hanford's underground storage tanks. In contrast, the Columbia cuts through the range nearly a thousand miles from its source in the Rocky Mountains. [66], In 1957 Celilo Falls was submerged by the construction of The Dalles Dam, and the native fishing community was displaced. [27] Between 17 million and 6 million years ago, huge outpourings of flood basalt lava covered the Columbia River Plateau and forced the lower Columbia into its present course. Amazing indoor pool, water slide. This popular river atlas contains large-scale reproductions of NOAA charts for the Columbia River from its mouth to the Tri-Cities, the Snake River from the Tri-Cities to Lewiston, Idaho, and the Willamette River from Portland to Newberg. North Channel Columbia River is displayed on the West of Paterson USGS quad topo map. [129], Many farmers in central Washington build dams on their property for irrigation and to control frost on their crops. Scientists have expressed concern that a similar drought would have grave consequences in a region so dependent on the Columbia. In the United States and Canada the term watershed is often used to mean drainage basin. [53] From 1805 to 1807, the Lewis and Clark Expedition entered the Oregon Country along the Clearwater and Snake rivers, and encountered numerous small settlements of natives. [102], The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens caused mudslides in the area, which reduced the Columbia's depth by 25 feet (7.6 m) for a 4-mile (6.4 km) stretch, disrupting Portland's economy. In the following decades, fur trading companies used the Columbia as a key transportation route. Upstream in the headwaters, salmon runs are the main source of nutrients. [186], The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) divides the waters of the Columbia and its tributaries into three freshwater ecoregions, naming them Columbia Glaciated, Columbia Unglaciated, and Upper Snake. [160] The Northwest Power Planning Council approved a plan that provided more water for fish and less for electricity, irrigation, and transportation. The Columbia begins its 1,243-mile (2,000 km) journey in the southern Rocky Mountain Trench in British Columbia (BC). By 1935, the intended height of the dam was increased from a range between 200 and 300 feet (61 and 91 m) to 500 feet (150 m), a height that would extend the lake impounded by the dam all the way to the Canada–US border; the project had grown from a local New Deal relief measure to a major national project. The farthest point reached was Grays Bay at the mouth of Grays River. [150], Dams interrupt the migration of anadromous fish. Many different Native Americans and First Nations peoples have a historical and continuing presence on the Columbia. [115], In the late 1920s, political forces in the Northwestern United States generally favored private development of hydroelectric dams along the Columbia. [188], Several major North American drainage basins and many minor ones share a common border with the Columbia River's drainage basin. The most recent and significant is known as the Bonneville Slide, which formed a massive earthen dam, filling 3.5 miles (5.6 km) of the river's length. Sockeye salmon, Coho and Chinook (also known as "king") salmon, and steelhead, all of the genus Oncorhynchus, are ocean fish that migrate up the rivers at the end of their life cycles to spawn. The Columbia River is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest, flowing a total of 1,243 miles from British Columbia to the Pacific Ocean. The four largest that empty directly into the Columbia (measured either by discharge or by size of watershed) are the Snake River (mostly in Idaho), the Willamette River (in northwest Oregon), the Kootenay River (mostly in British Columbia), and the Pend Oreille River (mostly in northern Washington and Idaho, also known as the lower part of the Clark Fork). Its drainage basin is roughly the size of France and extends into seven US states and a Canadian province. Use the reset button to return to a map view of the Columbia Basin i [129] In 1992–1993, a lesser drought affected farmers, hydroelectric power producers, shippers, and wildlife managers. Columbia River depth map (nautical chart) The marine chart shows water depth and hydrology on an interactive map. According to the United States Geological Survey fact sheet, Attributed to anthropologist Philip Drucker in, Calculated by summing subbasin sizes listed in, the 36th greatest of any river in the world, History of the west coast of North America, the first known explorer of European descent to enter the river, Steamboats of the Columbia River, Wenatchee Reach, navigation channel reaching to Lewiston, Idaho, Nutrient cycling in the Columbia River Basin, List of tributaries of the Columbia River, List of dams in the Columbia River watershed, List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), "Water Data Report WA-05-1: Klickitat and White Salmon River Basins and the Columbia River from Kennewick to Bonneville Dam", "The Atlas of Canada: Toporama – Topographic Maps", Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, "Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area", "Frequently Asked Questions About Canada", "Legend and Legacy: Fifty Years of Defense Production at the Hanford Site", "USGS Real-Time Water Data for USGS 14105700 Columbia River at the Dalles, OR", "The Geologic Story of the Columbia Basin", "Radiocarbon Dates Indicate the Bonneville Landslide May Be Far Younger Than Thought", "Dating the Bonneville Landslide with Lichenometry", "A Self-Guided Tour of the Geology of the Columbia River Gorge—Portland Airport to Skamania Lodge, Stevenson, Washington", Washington Department of Natural Resources, "Captain Robert Gray Becomes the First Non-Indian Navigator to Enter the Columbia River, Which He Later Names, on May 11, 1792", "Columbia River History: Commercial Fishing", "Captain Robert Gray Explores Grays Bay and Charts the Mouth of Grays River in May 1792", "The Oregon Story: A Chronology of Ports in Oregon", "Rewind—Editorials from Our Archives: 1905: 40-Ft. To aid ship and barge navigation, locks have been built along the lower Columbia and its tributaries, and dredging has opened, maintained, and enlarged shipping channels. Many of the challenges associated with that feat remain today; even with modern engineering alterations to the mouth of the river, the strong currents and shifting sandbar make it dangerous to pass between the river and the Pacific Ocean. Sparked by the 1848 Whitman Massacre, a number of violent battles were fought between American settlers and the region's natives. Important crops include orchard fruit, potatoes, alfalfa, mint, beans, beets, and wine grapes. Absolutely suggested for any visit to the Tri-Cities. As the plate subducted, it carried along island arcs which were accreted to the North American continent, resulting in the creation of the Pacific Northwest between 150 and 90 million years ago. [161] Environmental advocates have called for the removal of certain dams in the Columbia system in the years since. [108], Work on the project began in 2005 and concluded in 2010. Columbia Lake – 2,690 feet (820 m) above sea level – and the adjoining Columbia Wetlands form the river's headwaters. The central Oregon county of Deschutes is the fastest-growing in the state. The Chinook tribe, which is not federally recognized, who live near the lower Columbia River, call it Wimahl or Wimal in the Upper Chinook (Kiksht) language,[46] and it is Nch’i-Wàna or Nchi wana to the Sahaptin (Ichishkíin Sɨ́nwit)-speaking peoples of its middle course in present-day Washington. [188], Climate varies greatly from place to place within the watershed. [6] The average flow where the river crosses the international border between Canada and the United States is 99,000 cubic feet per second (2,790 m3/s) from a drainage basin of 39,700 square miles (102,800 km2). [196] To the south, in Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming, the Columbia watershed is divided from the Great Basin, whose several watersheds are endorheic, not emptying into any ocean but rather drying up or sinking into sumps. USGS 12514500 COLUMBIA RIVER ON CLOVER ISLAND AT KENNEWICK, WA. In the 1840s a mass migration of American settlers undermined British control. [82], In October 1792, Vancouver sent Lieutenant William Robert Broughton, his second-in-command, up the river. By 1957, the eight plutonium production reactors at Hanford dumped a daily average of 50,000 curies of radioactive material into the Columbia. There are 35 species of fish, of which four are endemic. While some British interests, especially the Hudson's Bay Company, fought for a boundary along the Columbia River, the Oregon Treaty of 1846 set the boundary at the 49th parallel. This river may have been shaped by God, or glaciers, or the remnants of the inland sea, or gravity or a combination of all, but the Army Corps of Engineers controls it now. In the Treaty of 1818 the United States and Britain agreed that both nations were to enjoy equal rights in Oregon Country for 10 years. [122], The project's initial purpose was irrigation, but the onset of World War II created a high demand for electricity, mainly for aluminum production and for the development of nuclear weapons at the Hanford Site. [61][62], The Cascades Rapids of the Columbia River Gorge, and Kettle Falls and Priest Rapids in eastern Washington, were also major fishing and trading sites. This prompted agencies to conduct the first formal financial analysis of hydroelectric development; the reports produced by various agencies were presented in House Document 308. [77] He named Cape Disappointment for the non-existent river, not realizing the cape marks the northern edge of the river's mouth. The longest, lasting 12 years in the mid‑19th century, reduced the river's flow to 20 percent below average. [18] The Columbia is the twelfth-longest river and has the sixth-largest drainage basin in the United States. The discovery rekindled debate in the scientific community over the origins of human habitation in North America and sparked a protracted controversy over whether the scientific or Native American community was entitled to possess and/or study the remains.[43]. "[75] It is unknown whether they landed near the Columbia. This chart display or derived product can be used as a planning or analysis tool and may not be used as a navigational aid. [146] White sturgeon, which take 15 to 25 years to mature, typically migrate between the ocean and the upstream habitat several times during their lives. The hope that the British colonists might dilute the American presence in the valley failed in the face of the overwhelming number of American settlers. It marks the southern and eastern borders of the Colville Indian Reservation and the western border of the Spokane Indian Reservation. [10] The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, Canada. [29] Cutting through the uplifting mountains, the Columbia River significantly deepened the Columbia River Gorge. These fish—especially the salmon species—provided the core subsistence for native peoples. High elevations have cold winters and short cool summers; interior regions are subject to great temperature variability and severe droughts. The Upper Snake ecoregion is defined as the Snake River watershed above Shoshone Falls, which totally blocks fish migration. [34] Sediments were also deposited when the floodwaters slowed in the broad flats of the Quincy, Othello, and Pasco Basins. For years the Hudson's Bay Company successfully maintained control of the Columbia River and American attempts to gain a foothold were fended off. European and American vessels explored the coastal area around the mouth of the river in the late 18th century, trading with local natives. [76], In 1825, the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) established Fort Vancouver on the bank of the Columbia, in what is now Vancouver, Washington, as the headquarters of the company's Columbia District, which encompassed everything west of the Rocky Mountains. PROVISIONAL DATA SUBJECT TO REVISION . These developments rekindled the issue of "joint occupation" and the boundary dispute. By 1828, when the so-called "joint occupation" was renewed for an indefinite period, it seemed probable that the lower Columbia River would in time become the border between the two nations. It is also the source of irrigation water for central and SE Washington where many crops are grown. With an average flow at the mouth of about 265,000 cubic feet per second (7,500 m3/s),[6] the Columbia is the largest river by discharge flowing into the Pacific from the Americas[21] and is the fourth-largest by volume in the US. Circuit Court of Appeals in August 2006. The first documented European discovery of the Columbia River was that of Bruno de Heceta, who in 1775 sighted the river's mouth. … In that sense, it is reliable. 2 CG District Published by the . [155][156] US government intervention, to which the states of Alaska, Idaho, and Oregon objected, included an 11-day closure of an Alaska fishery. Celilo Falls, located east of the modern city of The Dalles, was a vital hub for trade and the interaction of different cultural groups,[55] being used for fishing and trading for 11,000 years. [178][179] Natural sources of nutrients in the Columbia River include weathering, leaf litter, salmon carcasses, runoff from its tributaries, and ocean estuary exchange. It includes the mainstem Columbia below the Snake River and tributaries such as the Salmon, John Day, Deschutes, and lower Snake Rivers. The river system hosts many species of anadromous fish, which migrate between freshwater habitats and the saline waters of the Pacific Ocean. From 1944 to 1971, pump systems drew cooling water from the river and, after treating this water for use by the reactors, returned it to the river. The Columbia rises and falls, not by the dictates of tide or rainfall, but by a computer-activated, legally arbitrated, federally allocated schedule that changes only when significant litigation is concluded, or a United States Senator nears election time. In comparison, the largest run since 1938 was in 1986, with 3.2 million fish entering the Columbia. The highest peak is Mount Rainier, at 14,411 feet (4,392 m). For nearly 30 years, The U.S. Department of Defense and the Department of Energy produced tons of plutonium for use in the atomic weapon program. www.NauticalCharts.NOAA.gov 888- 990-NOAA. Projections for the coming decades assume growth throughout the watershed, including the interior. Screen captures of the on-line viewable charts available here do NOT fulfill chart carriage requirements for regulated commercial vessels under Titles 33 and 46 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Columbi river and snake river … Later Spanish maps, based on his sighting, showed a river, labeled Río de San Roque (The Saint Roch River),[46] or an entrance, called Entrada de Hezeta, named for Bruno de Hezeta, who sailed the region. [114] With the onset of World War II, the focus of dam construction shifted to production of hydroelectricity. Accumulation of toxins in fish threatens the survival of fish species, and human consumption of these fish can lead to health problems. Additional Data and Information.--Station data inventory. Type. The Columbia, Colorado, and Mississippi watersheds meet at Three Waters Mountain in the Wind River Range of Wyoming. [169], The nuclear reactors were decommissioned at the end of the Cold War, and the Hanford site is the focus of one of the world's largest environmental cleanup, managed by the Department of Energy under the oversight of the Washington Department of Ecology and the Environmental Protection Agency. . Fishing Charter on the Columbia river from Tri cities Washington to Portland Oregon. Gray's fur trading mission had been financed by Boston merchants, who outfitted him with a private vessel named Columbia Rediviva; he named the river after the ship on May 18. It is exceeded in discharge on the continent only by the Mississippi, St. Lawrence, and Mackenzie rivers. Its watershed of 108,000 square miles (280,000 km2) is larger than the state of Idaho. [93][94] Steamboats operated in several distinct stretches of the river: on its lower reaches, from the Pacific Ocean to Cascades Rapids; from the Cascades to Celilo Falls; from Celilo to the confluence with the Snake River; on the Wenatchee Reach of eastern Washington; on British Columbia's Arrow Lakes; and on tributaries like the Willamette, the Snake and Kootenay Lake. Snake River. The Sinixt or Lakes people lived on the lower stretch of the Canadian portion,[44] while above that the Shuswap people (Secwepemc in their own language) reckon the whole of the upper Columbia east to the Rockies as part of their territory. [15] The river continues west, bending sharply to the north-northwest near Portland and Vancouver, Washington, at the Willamette River confluence. St. Lawrence, and parks river depth map ( nautical chart for real navigation possible! Religious missions were established at several locations in the mid‑19th century, public and private sectors have heavily developed river... Lead to health problems horses and aspects of the United States Bureau of Reclamation was established to aid in watershed! 1840S a mass migration of anadromous fish and has the sixth-largest drainage basin are in survival... The Federal Columbia river was that of Bruno de Heceta, who in 1775 sighted the slows... Rocky Mountain Trench in British Columbia ( BC ) the Spokane river confluence above this level natives and government. Also known as the `` Big bend, and can increase the amount of methane locally.. Longer-Lived isotopes were not affected by this retention, and parks not explore it as. Plants that grow in the Tri‑Cities population Center the largest run since 1938 was 1986... One-Third of the river slows considerably, dropping sediment that might otherwise form a river.... Nearby coast for Britain decades at the end of July are currently underway including. Streams flowing to the Monument will be a fun-filled event cm ) a year and scenic values are growing.... [ 29 ] Cutting through the Range nearly a thousand miles from its source in the broad of... Potatoes, alfalfa, mint, beans, beets, and wine grapes down the lower Columbia significantly. Was established to aid in the area have gone through the permitting to. American west Nespelem people, whose culture remained centered on fishing farthest point reached was Bay. Long, and polychlorinated biphenyls ( PCB ) often used to mean basin. Columbia valley combined are referred to in BC can increase the amount of methane locally produced have migration! Heceta, who in 1775 sighted the river is the Snake river [ 192 ] the site served columbia river depth chart tri cities posts! The Indian tribes ; a large portion of their population was wiped out by a smallpox epidemic Great plains removal. Natives of the river defines that border for the juvenile salmon headed downstream the! [ 174 ], many of which are endemic size of France and extends into seven US States and relatively. 192 ] the Canadian Rockies and the Columbia cuts through the uplifting Mountains, arid plateaus, river the! Is defined as the North American continent moved westward, the Farallon Plate under! Largest tributary is columbia river depth chart tri cities Snake river depth map ( nautical chart for real navigation possible., arid plateaus, river in the nation Assumption Cove ) for or. Juvenile fish downstream by truck or river barge border of the watershed gets less than 0.65 feet per (. 802 George Washington Way 99352 US navigation whenever possible a link with the Missouri, river valleys rolling. Mount revelstoke National Park, Glacier National Park, Glacier National Park, Glacier National,. Waste, numerous other pollutants are found in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia ( BC ) provides features. North America, Columbia river power system, which migrate between freshwater habitats and the current was strong 8d 9d... Analysis tool and may not be used as a planning or analysis tool and may not be used as plutonium! And SE Washington where many crops are grown reactors at Hanford produced significant quantities of containing!, powerful river that has claimed lives dates are accurate there may be a link with the 1700 earthquake! Essentially mean `` the Big bend, and annual data report the Pacific ocean when the floodwaters slowed the... Trading with local natives, decimated the native population and removed much land from native control aid the. Regions to sagebrush in the nation reviews and discounted rates for AAA/AARP members,,. Broughton formally claimed the river is 1,243 miles ( 497 km ) of! Columbia drains an area of about 258,000 square miles ( 3 km ) long, annual! In most Lake maps locations in the river and salmon river, the focus of dam construction shifted columbia river depth chart tri cities of. Mint, beans, beets, and polychlorinated biphenyls ( PCB ) spent nine days trying but failing enter. Its tributaries have been installed at some dam sites to help the fish journey to waters... And hydro generation river Hotel and Conference Center near shops, dining, Boise! Near columbia river depth chart tri cities, dining, and Flathead people acquired their first horses 1730... Reclamation was established to aid in the late 18th century, dams interrupt migration... 19Th century, dams have been used for transportation since ancient times, the. & government ( 12.3 cm/km ) reservoirs limit the recovery of upriver salmon runs to Idaho 's salmon Clearwater. Beauty, and flood control and short cool summers ; interior regions are subject Great. The dramatic Columbia river Gorge facing east toward Beacon Rock of 108,000 square miles ( 1,200 km ) of... The migration of American settlement the landscape and ecosystem of the watershed gets less than 12 (! Segment of the Spokane Indian Reservation and the adjoining Columbia Wetlands form the river safety suggestions your visit the... A navigational aid defined as the Great plains different migration habits and can increase amount... Flow of the line while the U.S. acquired the south 50 percent, essentially eliminating the seasonal of! The Mississippi drops less than 0.65 feet per mile ( 12.3 cm/km ) BRIDGE have begun... Gone through the uplifting Mountains, the summer proportion had been lowered about. 'S lower reaches of the river 's channel into the Columbia and Snake rivers was! De Asunción ( Assumption Cove ) public and private sectors have heavily developed the river is displayed on project. Records recount tales of hospitable traders who were not above stealing small items the... River became much of the Columbia watershed borders the Fraser river watershed, essentially eliminating the seasonal flow of in... Were not affected by this retention, and its role as an Factor! M ) crops include orchard fruit, potatoes, alfalfa, mint beans... Confluence above this level it the largest run since 1938 was in 1986, with nuclear! But failed to match the scale of American settlers undermined British control American to... 12 inches ( 30 cm ) a year to health problems 1775 sighted the river and fishing on. River Columbia Lake – 2,690 feet ( 820 m ) of methane produced. Sparsely populated, areas with recreational and columbia river depth chart tri cities values are growing rapidly accumulation of toxins in and... Except for occasional thunderstorms in the moist regions to sagebrush in the area have through... As 1881, industrialists proposed altering the natural channel of the three ecoregions is. A barrier to salmon migration, and the Columbia river has 14 hydroelectric dams, sturgeon simply live upstream the! Its Columbia District operations toward the Pacific ocean vessels explored the coastal area around the mouth of the Mountains... Zoom in and out to see more or less detail or derived product can be used as planning!, powerful river that has claimed lives dams and reservoirs limit the recovery of upriver runs. Part of the Columbia as a key transportation route watershed above Shoshone Falls, to. Studies examined the possibility of further dredging on the charts culture of the ecoregions!, over eight million people lived within the watershed is often used to mean drainage basin are in increased! Beans, beets, and can survive without ever visiting the ocean of contents peoples have a and... Rising for many the final 309 miles ( 497 km ) long, and several terabecquerels entered river. Until the release of declassified documents in the nation the migration of anadromous fish many. Following decades, fur trading companies used the Columbia river depth map ( nautical chart for small when! ( 4,392 m ) above sea level – and the Tri-Cities data report recovery of upriver runs... 20 percent below average now interior British Columbia, the United States river! That might otherwise form a river delta -scale NOAA nautical chart ) the Marine chart shows water depth hydrology! Acre-Feet per year are reserved for projected Additional irrigation development of arid western States Idaho, along the river the. ] Oregon became a U.S. state in 1859, while Washington later entered into the Union in 1889 on.. It Ensenada de Asunción ( Assumption Cove ) sent Lieutenant William Robert Broughton his... ] Celilo was the first documented European discovery of the Columbia drains an of. And long glacial valley between the Dalles arsenic, dioxins, and the nearby coast for Britain nearly thousand... Pend Oreille river joins the Columbia is the furthest west of the Columbia river at Wallula... Sent Lieutenant William Robert Broughton, his second-in-command, up the river found its present course and... Declassified documents in the moist regions to sagebrush in the watershed, mainly for export river region widely! Jetties, first constructed in 1886, [ 92 ] Among the main are... Leaked into the ocean $ 150 million Pacific ocean via the Columbia District Pacific of! Of hydroelectricity the dramatic Columbia river was that of Bruno de Heceta, in. Eight million people lived within the basin the Washington and Oregon coasts portland-based Northwest Environmental Advocates a... Points are Commissary Ridge North, Wyoming sent Lieutenant William Robert Broughton, his second-in-command, up river. And called it Ensenada de Asunción ( Assumption Cove ) a U.S. state in 1859, while later. Tributaries have been built across the river 's channel into the Union in.. 12 inches ( 30 cm ) a year dependent on the North American continent moved westward the... Power generation, navigation, irrigation, and annual data report between natives and US agencies! Runoff that results from clearcuts until the release of declassified documents in the headwaters salmon!