Columbia Plateau - wikipedia Columbia Plateau This article is about the geographic feature. For the associated ecoregion, see Columbia Plateau ( ecoregion ). The Columbia Plateau covers much of the Columbia River Basalt Group, shown in green on this map. The Washington cities of Spokane, Yakima and Pasco, and the Oregon city of Pendleton, lie on the Columbia Plateau. The Columbia Plateau is a geologic and geographic region that lies across parts of the U.S. states of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. It is a wide flood basalt plateau between the Cascade Range and the Rocky Mountains, cut through by the Columbia River. In one of various usages, the term `` Columbia Basin '' refers to more or less the same area as the Columbia Plateau. Contents 1 Geology 2 Flora 3 Geography 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Geology Main article : Columbia River Basalt Group During late Miocene and early Pliocene times, a flood basalt engulfed about 63,000 square miles ( 160,000 km ) of the Pacific Northwest, forming a large igneous province. Over a period of perhaps 10 to 15 million years, lava flow after lava flow poured out, ultimately accumulating to a thickness of more than 6,000 feet ( 1.8 km ). As the molten rock came to the surface, the Earth 's crust gradually sank into the space left by the rising lava. The Columbia River Basalt Group consists of seven formations : The Steens Basalt, Imnaha Basalt, Grande Ronde Basalt, Picture Gorge Basalt, Prineville Basalt, Wanapum Basalt, and Saddle Mountains Basalt. Many of these formations are subdivided into formal and informal members and flows. The subsidence of the crust produced the large plateau -- a large, slightly depressed lava plain sometimes also known as the Columbia Basin. The ancient Columbia River was forced into its present course by the northwesterly advancing lava. The lava, as it flowed over the area, first filled the stream valleys, forming dams that in turn caused impoundments or lakes. Entities found in these lake beds include fossil leaf impressions, petrified wood, fossil insects, and bones of vertebrate animals. Flora Part of the Columbia Plateau is associated with the Columbia Plateau ecoregion, part of the ' Nearctic temperate and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands ' ecoregion of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome. Geography Washington cities in the Columbia Plateau include : Davenport Reardan Kennewick Moses Lake Pasco Pullman Richland Spokane Walla Walla Yakima Goldendale Deer Park Oregon cities in the Columbia Plateau include : Hermiston Hood River Pendleton The Dalles Milton - Freewater See also Grand Coulee Channeled scablands Interior Plateau References Jump up ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System : Columbia Plateau Jump up ^ Floyd, Ben, et al. `` Glossary Archived 2005 - 03 - 22 at the Wayback Machine. ''. ( 1998 ) Hanford Reach Protection and Management Program Interim Action Plan Archived 2007 - 09 - 27 at the Wayback Machine... Prosser, Washington : Benton County Planning Department. ^ Jump up to : Description : Columbia Plateau Columbia River Basalt. United States Geological Survey, accessed October 9, 2007. Jump up ^ http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/observatories/cvo/cvo_columbia_river_basalt.html External links Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Columbia River Plateau. USGS Page on Columbia Plateau Geology of Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area ( source of much of this page ) Guide to digital documents and photographs about the Columbia River area. Columbia River Basin Ethnic History Archive State of Idaho Boise ( capital ) Topics Index Bibliography Geography Government Delegations Governors History Images People Symbols Tourist attractions Seal of Idaho Society Crime Culture Demographics Economy Education Politics Regions Boise metropolitan area Cache Valley Central Idaho Columbia River Plateau Eastern Idaho Great Basin Inland Empire Magic Valley North Central Idaho Idaho Panhandle Palouse Southern Idaho Southwestern Idaho Treasure Valley Wasatch Range Wood River Valley Yellowstone Larger cities Boise Nampa Meridian Idaho Falls Pocatello Caldwell Coeur d'Alene Twin Falls Lewiston Post Falls Rexburg Moscow Eagle Smaller cities Kuna Ammon Chubbuck Mountain Home Hayden Blackfoot Garden City Jerome Burley Counties Ada Adams Bannock Bear Lake Benewah Bingham Blaine Boise Bonner Bonneville Boundary Butte Camas Canyon Caribou Cassia Clark Clearwater Custer Elmore Franklin Fremont Gem Gooding Idaho Jefferson Jerome Kootenai Latah Lemhi Lewis Lincoln Madison Minidoka Nez Perce Oneida Owyhee Payette Power Shoshone Teton Twin Falls Valley Washington State of Oregon Salem ( capital ) Topics History Geography Fauna Climate Pioneers People Governors Government Delegations Constitution Congress Ballot measures Elections Parks Fair Symbols Oregon Trail Beaches Lakes Rivers Misc. Society Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Gambling Politics Regions Western Northwest Oregon Oregon Coast Portland Metro Tualatin Valley Willamette Valley Eastern Harney Basin High Desert Palouse Treasure Valley Central Oregon Southern Rogue Valley Shared The Cascades Columbia Gorge Columbia River Columbia Plateau Great Basin Mount Hood Corridor Trout Creek Mountains Metro areas Albany -- Corvallis Bend -- Redmond Eugene -- Springfield Medford -- Ashland Portland Salem -- Keizer Largest cities Portland Salem Eugene Gresham Hillsboro Beaverton Bend Medford Springfield Corvallis Albany Tigard Lake Oswego Keizer Grants Pass Oregon City McMinnville Redmond Tualatin West Linn Woodburn Forest Grove Newberg Wilsonville Roseburg Klamath Falls Ashland Milwaukie Sherwood Happy Valley Central Point Canby Hermiston Pendleton Counties Baker Benton Clackamas Clatsop Columbia Coos Crook Curry Deschutes Douglas Gilliam Grant Harney Hood River Jackson Jefferson Josephine Klamath Lake Lane Lincoln Linn Malheur Marion Morrow Multnomah Polk Sherman Tillamook Umatilla Union Wallowa Wasco Washington Wheeler Yamhill State of Washington Olympia ( capital ) Topics Cities Towns Census - designated places Federal lands Indian reservations History Geography Earthquakes People Music Parks Highways Symbols Tourist attractions Society Culture Crime Demographics Economy Education Politics Politics Government Law Governors Legislature Legislative districts Senate House Legislative initiatives Popular initiatives Congressional delegation Congressional districts City governments State agencies Agriculture Archaeology and Historic Preservation Commerce Corrections Early Learning Ecology Employment Security Enterprise Services Financial Institutions Fish and Wildlife Health Higher Education Coordinating Board Information Services Labor and Industries Licensing Military Natural Resources Parks Institute for Public Policy Public Stadium Authority Public Disclosure Commission Retirement Systems Revenue Services for the Blind Social and Health Services Transportation Utilities and Transportation Regions Western Kitsap Peninsula Long Beach Peninsula Olympic Peninsula Puget Sound San Juan Islands Skagit Valley Eastern / Inland Central Washington Columbia Plateau Methow Valley Okanogan Country Palouse Yakima Valley Shared Cascade Range Columbia Gorge Columbia River Largest cities Seattle Spokane Tacoma Vancouver Bellevue Kent Everett Renton Yakima Federal Way Spokane Valley Kirkland Bellingham Kennewick Auburn Pasco Marysville Lakewood Redmond Shoreline Richland Metropolitan areas Greater Seattle Greater Spokane Tri-Cities Wenatchee metropolitan area Greater Portland and Vancouver Counties Adams Asotin Benton Chelan Clallam Clark Columbia Cowlitz Douglas Ferry Franklin Garfield Grant Grays Harbor Island Jefferson King Kitsap Kittitas Klickitat Lewis Lincoln Mason Okanogan Pacific Pend Oreille Pierce San Juan Skagit Skamania Snohomish Spokane Stevens Thurston Wahkiakum Walla Walla Whatcom Whitman Yakima Coordinates : 45 ° 59 ′ 58 '' N 119 ° 00 ′ 05 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 45.99944 ° N 119.00139 ° W ﻿ / 45.99944 ; - 119.00139 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Columbia_Plateau&oldid=807223361 '' Categories : Columbia River Physiographic provinces Large igneous provinces Volcanism of Washington ( state ) Miocene volcanism Pliocene volcanism Plateaus of the United States Landforms of Idaho Landforms of Oregon Landforms of Washington ( state ) Regions of Oregon Regions of Washington ( state ) Landforms of Umatilla County, Oregon Landforms of Hood River County, Oregon Landforms of Wasco County, Oregon Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Coordinates on Wikidata Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikivoyage Bân - lâm - gú Български Català Čeština Español Esperanto Français 한국어 Հայերեն Italiano עברית Қазақша Кыргызча 日本 語 Polski Русский Slovenčina Türkçe Українська Tiếng Việt 粵語 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 26 October 2017, at 17 : 53. 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Question: where is the columbia plateau located on a map
Answer: across parts of the U.S. states of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho