News Release Archive

Floating Safety Barrier Contract Awarded at Grand Coulee Dam

Media Contact: Craig Sprankle, (509) 633-9503, csprankle@pn.usbr.gov
John Redding, jredding@pn.usbr.gov

For Release: March 06, 2007

A contract to replace a 6,500-foot safety barrier at Grand Coulee Dam has been awarded by the Bureau of Reclamation. Metalite Industries, Inc., of Spokane, Wash., will furnish and install the barrier for $545,000, according to officials at Reclamation.

The barrier replaces an older log boom located just upstream of Grand Coulee Dam that keeps boats on Lake Roosevelt back a safe distance. The new boom will be made of a series of 20-foot long, foam-filled aluminum pontoons developed by Metalite. Work is expected to begin within two months and should be completed by the end of June.

Grand Coulee Dam was completed in 1942 and serves as a multipurpose facility providing water for irrigation, recreation, fish and wildlife, hydroelectric power production, and also flood control.

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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.