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River bounces back after world’s largest-ever dam removal

The Elwha River quickly cleared itself of debris after dams’ demolition.
Winding view of Elwha river, site of the former Lake Mills, south of the Glines Canyon Dam in 2012.

A lake in Washington state has been replaced by the free-flowing River Elwha, which was unleashed by a dam-removal project some two decades in the making. Chris Wilson/WP via Getty

Freed from two large dams, a small river in Washington state has efficiently flushed vast amounts of mud, sand and gravel towards the sea.

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Nature 564, 305 (2018)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-07707-0

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