Columbia River

The Columbia River flows from the Canadian Rockies through British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest to the Pacific Ocean. Its large drainage basin and dams make it central to regional ecology, transport, and hydropower.

Columbia River Basin: The watershed drained by the Columbia River and its tributaries across western North America. The river’s flow and impacts are governed by this extensive watershed.
Robert Gray: An American sea captain who entered the Columbia River in 1792 and named it after his ship, Columbia Rediviva. His voyage gave the river its present English name.
Columbia Basin Project: A federal irrigation and hydropower project that uses water from the Columbia River to serve parts of central Washington. It redirects river water to irrigate otherwise arid farmland.
Celilo Falls: A series of rapids and waterfalls on the Columbia River that was inundated by The Dalles Dam in 1957. Its loss ended a major fishing site and gathering place on the river.
Fraser River: A major British Columbia river that flows from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific near Vancouver. It is a neighboring Pacific-draining river, but follows a separate basin north of the Columbia.
Grand Coulee Dam: A hydroelectric dam on the Columbia River in Washington, completed in 1942. It is the largest dam on the river and transformed its flow and power production.
Lewis and Clark Expedition: The 1804–1806 United States expedition that traveled across the continent and followed the Columbia to the Pacific. Its route and journals brought extensive U.S. attention to the river corridor.
Hydroelectricity in the United States: Electricity generated in the United States by harnessing the energy of flowing or falling water. The Columbia’s dam system is among the country’s largest sources of hydropower.
Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission: An organization representing four Columbia Basin tribes in fisheries management and policy. It advances tribal authority and salmon restoration in a heavily dammed river system.
Snake River: A major tributary that rises in Wyoming and joins the Columbia River in southeastern Washington. Its large drainage area and dams strongly influence the Columbia system.

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