Geology of the Pacific Northwest along their course. The larger cataract was that of the upper Grand Coulee, where the river roared over an waterfall. The eroding power of the water plucked pieces of basalt from the precipice, causing the falls to retreat and self-destruct by cutting through to the Columbia River valley near what is now the Grand Coulee Dam. The other major cataract is now known as Dry Falls. It started near Soap Lake in Washington State, where less resistant basalt layers gave way before the great erosive power of this tremendous torrent and waterfalls developed. As in the upper Grand Coulee, the
Grand Coulee Dam Clapp were pumpers, while many influential businessmen in Spokane associated with the Washington Water and Power Company (WWPC) were staunch ditchers. The pumpers argued that hydroelectricity from the dam could cover costs and claimed the ditchers sought to maintain a monopoly on electric power. The ditchers took several steps to ensure support for their proposals. In 1921, WWPC secured a preliminary permit to build a dam at Kettle Falls, about upstream from the Grand Coulee. If built, the Kettle Falls Dam would have lain in the path of the Grand Coulee Dam's reservoir, essentially blocking its construction. WWPC planted rumors