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Man-made Floods in the Grand Canyon
Scientists are making a mess in the Grand Canyon. They're flooding the place, and they say it's a good thing. That's because since the Glen Canyon Dam was built on the Colorado River, there haven't been any natural floods through the giant canyon. It's natural every spring for snow to melt, rain to fall, and rivers to flood.
At first, this seems like a good thing. Floods can be a huge problem. They can ruin crops, wash away homes, and wreck bridges. That's only part of what floods do though. They also send lots of mud and dirt down the river. This mud is called silt, and it's an important part of the ecosystem of the river.
In the Grand Canyon, the silt made a good hiding place for small fish. It also made sandbars and beaches where plants could grow. Since the river was dammed, 98% of the silt has been lost. Some plants and animals are dying out. Now we're flooding the river again to try and fix the problem.
More than 300,000 gallons of water gushed per second for three days last week when workers opened the gates. The water rose 15 feet in some places. Even so, it was only a mini-flood, but Grand Canyon National Park Superintendent Steve Martin is hoping it will be enough.
I'm Adelbert and that's what happened in science this week!
Photo: AP
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