Removing the Barrier (Removing Lake Powell's Dam).

Essay by 1991xjCollege, UndergraduateA, December 2005

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The article I read was, "Let the River Run Through It" written by David R. Brower from the Sierra Club. It tells of how David Brower had the chance to stop the building of the Glen Canyon Dam and it was not necessary for the dam to be built in the first place. Over forty years ago in Northern Arizona the Glen Canyon Dam was built. This dam now holds the water of Lake Powell, and beneath the water is a canyon that many hikers and scenic seekers used to travel and enjoy. David R. Brower states, "we can reverse it now. We can drain Lake Powell and let the Colorado River run through the dam that created it, bringing Glen Canyon and the wonder of its side canyons back to life" (par 3). It is said that by draining Lake Powell, the beauty of the canyon will once again return to its original state.

Brower also stated that Glen Canyon Dam was built as a power project in order to raise money for the Colorado River Storage Project so that the U.S. Government could build useless dams (par 5). "A huge reservoir, absolutely not needed in this century, almost certainly not needed in the next, and conceivably never to be needed at all" (Brower par 2).

In many ways I do not agree with this idea of draining Lake Powell. The canyon beneath, that people used to hike, would never look the same as it did. Brower puts many claims and opinions in this article where facts would have backed up his argument. He had more facts published on the benefits that dams provide rather than facts of them being useless. The statement that dams are useless is just a claim. Brower also stated that the...