Taming the Columbia River Sands
Government agricultural experts launch a multi-year project to stabilize the shifting dunes along the Columbia River.
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Officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture believe they can prevent the shifting of sands along the Columbia River. W.J. Spillman, an agrostrologist, is on the coast investigating experiments that mirror methods used in Europe for over 200 years. At Fort Stevens, officials are attempting to transplant beach grass, while above The Dalles, they are placing brush heaps in a checkerboard pattern to hold soil for winter rye seeding. The goal is to build up a root structure deep enough to survive the summers, as beach grass roots can grow ten feet deep.
“The brush fences prevent the shifting of sands and even after the rye has died in the summer the roots clinging in the sand have the tendency to hold it.”
Efforts to combat soil erosion and manage the Columbia River’s volatile ecosystem have been a constant focus of state agricultural policy for generations, echoing today's climate-resilience challenges.
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