Elk Creek dam in Oregon, US will remain for at least one more year. Congressman Greg Walden blocked the US Army Corps of Engineers from breaching the unfinished dam in 2000. Instead of decommissioning the dam as planned, the Corps will maintain the Elk Creek project and provide transport for fish around the dam. Walden’s move gives Congress and the Corps a year to find solutions that will address federal and local needs.
Construction on the Elk Creek dam began in the early 1980s, but was halted due to lawsuits by environmental groups. When work stopped only a third of the dam was complete and it had cost US$108M.