Glen Canyon Dam instals a new water intake system as Lake Powell approaches a record low

 By Carter Williams, KCL.com

January 15, 2023 7:09 PM

On July 18, 2022, the Glen Canyon Dam near Page, Arizona prevents Lake Powell's waters from rising. A new water intake system has just been installed by workers. Deseret News's Spencer Heaps

                             THE PAGE, Ariz. According to federal reclamation authorities, construction workers have completed a new water intake link at the Glen Canyon Dam to assist distribute water to neighbouring towns even if Lake Powell hits its "dead pool" level.

After several months of effort, the project was finished last month by the crews. If the reservoir drops to an elevation of 3,362 feet, water will still be available to inhabitants of Page and other areas of the Navajo Nation thanks to the new system. According to representatives of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, that is 8 feet below the level at which Lake Powell is regarded as a "dead pool."

It is located at a height of 3,480 feet and is the second backup collection system. One more backup system is situated 100 feet above the new system.

The project is being undertaken while Lake Powell's capacity has dropped to 23%. Later this month, it's predicted to fall below 3,522.2 feet elevation, which would be a new record low for the reservoir since it was initially filled.

According to Bob Martin, the agency's Upper Colorado Basin Region deputy power manager, "Our engineers and mechanical teams studied a variety of different solutions and we came up with a rather simple solution to a potentially significant problem for the people who rely on this water supply."

Federal officials said that although the cost of the project was not made public, the city of Page paid for the materials and labour. For the construction workers who were tasked with building the dam, the city of around 7,300 inhabitants was first founded in 1957. The city is also looking into a $46 million project to syphon Colorado River water a bit further upstream from the dam, according to a November NPR article.

Because the dam supplies Page and other neighbouring communities with electricity, the declining Lake Powell also raises the possibility of energy blackouts in the area. According to current forecasts, Bureau officials stated on Thursday that the reservoir might eventually fall below the minimum power pool of 3,490 feet.

As government authorities consider remedies for both of the West's dwindling reservoirs, Lake Powell and Lake Mead have served as drought's poster children. One of them is the potential for Lake Powell's downstream discharges to be reduced once more this year.

The recently finished project, according to Wayne Pullan, regional director for the Bureau of Reclamation's Upper Colorado Basin, is "evidence" of the organization's determination to address escalating challenges associated to the current drought.

Together, "we confront the effects of aridification," he remarked. "The Glen Canyon Dam's lower water intake gives enhanced water security—the assurance of a continuous, consistent water supply."

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