What is Grand Coulee Dam?
Q: What is Grand Coulee Dam?
A: Grand Coulee Dam is a dam on the Columbia River in the United States state of Washington. It forms Lake Franklin D. Roosevelt and is operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
Q: How tall and long is Grand Coulee Dam?
A: Grand Coulee Dam is 168 metres (551 ft) high and 1,592 metres (5,223 ft) long.
Q: What does the dam provide for Central Washington?
A: The dam provides water for agriculture in Central Washington through a system known as the Columbia Basin Project, which pumps water from Lake Roosevelt to Banks Lake to irrigate about 2,700 square kilometres (670,000 acres) of fertile farmland.
Q: What other benefits does it provide?
A: In addition to providing water for agriculture, Grand Coulee also produces hydroelectricity and provides flood control for the lower Columbia River as well as recreational boating and fishing on Lake Roosevelt.
Q: How much electricity can it produce at full load?
A: At full load the dam can produce 6,809 megawatts or enough for 5 million typical American households.
Q: How did it help during World War II?
A: During World War II, Grand Coulee provided much needed power for factories throughout the country.
Q: What negative impacts has its construction had?
A: As a consequence of its construction, large tracts of Native American lands were flooded and salmon are no longer able to migrate to upper parts of the Columbia River system.
