UPDATE 1-Barge hits Oregon dam; traffic slow, no major damage

(Updates with river traffic resumed)

LOS ANGELES, May 15 (Reuters) - There was no major structural damage to The Dalles Dam and no fuel leaking into the Columbia River in Oregon after a fuel barge struck the dam early on Friday morning, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said.

Barge and tugboat traffic was stalled until about midday Friday and river traffic that had been waiting in queue was allowed to pass, said a spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard in Oregon.

The barge was carrying gasoline northbound on the river when it struck a navigational lock on the dam just after midnight. It was bound for Pasco, Washington, and got back under way by Friday afternoon.

The USCG said the damage to the double-hulled vessel was above the water line and not where gasoline had been stored.

About 10 million tons of commodities from fuel to wheat and other agricultural products pass through the dam each year, said Nanine Alexander of the Corps of Engineers.

The dam is a key point for monitoring river flow and water runoff, which indicates the amount of hydropower that will be available in the Pacific Northwest.

About 65 percent of the electricity delivered in the Pacific Northwest comes from hydropower plants dependent on the Columbia River flow. (Reporting by Bernie Woodall; editing by Jim Marshall, Toni Reinhold)