Prior to securing the Bull Run as a water source, early Portland residents used well water and surface water from the Willamette River or local creeks. The Water Bureau maintains eight river crossing lines on the Willamette River, which bisects Portland and runs north. Additionally, the City of Portland owns hydroelectric plants at Dams 1 and 2 and at Mt. Tabor. The Portland Water Bureau's watershed protection program meets the federal and state requirements established for unfiltered public water systems. The watershed is closed to public use to ensure protection of the natural environment.
Closure also minimizes the potential for human contamination of the drinking water.
Timber harvesting has occurred on about 24 percent of the Bull Run watershed. The City of Portland cleared the area for Reservoir 1 in 1927 and removed timber within and surrounding Reservoir 2 between about 1956 and 1958. The US Forest Service began harvesting timber in the Bull Run watershed in 1958. The only timber harvest in the watershed since 1984 has been salvage of trees blown down by severe windstorms. There has been no logging since 1993 and no future timber sales have been planned.