Owyhee Dam

Owyhee Dam (National ID # OR00582) is a concrete arch–gravity dam on the Owyhee River in Eastern Oregon near Adrian, Oregon, United States. Completed in 1932 during the Great Depression, the dam generates electricity and provides irrigation water for several irrigation districts in Oregon and neighboring Idaho. At the time of completion, it was the tallest dam of its type in the world, surpassed about two years later by the Lac du Chambon dam in France. The dam is part of the Owyhee Dam Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The dam impounds the river to create the Owyhee Reservoir, with storage capacity of nearly of water. The more than concrete arch–gravity dam is owned by the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and operated by the Owyhee Irrigation District. Haystack Rock Road is carried over the crest of the dam.

History In August 1927, the United States Congress authorized the building of a dam in the canyon of the Owyhee River."HIGHEST DAM IN THE WORLD: Government Going Ahead With Ambitious Oregon Project", The New York Times, August 7, 1927. Construction of the dam began in 1928 to provide water for irrigation projects. It was built on a foundation of massive rhyolite, massive pitchstone, and associated unmassive pitchstone agglomerate geologic formations adjacent to the Owyhee Mountains. A project of the Bureau of Reclamation, they hired General Construction Company from Seattle to build the dam.Terry, John. "Oregon’s Trails: Owyhee once set a record for dams", The Oregonian, June 24, 2007.

Former Oregonian and then United States President Herbert Hoover dedicated what was the highest dam of its type in the world on July 17, 1932.232 Hoover: "Message on the Dedication of Owyhee Dam", The American Presidency Project, University of Santa Barbara, Retrieved on February 4, 2008 Secretary of the Interior Ray Lyman Wilbur delivered Hoover's message at the dam."Looking Back, Looking Forward' — Owyhee Dam Celebrates its 75th Anniversary", People, Land & Water. Retrieved on February 4, 2008. Owyhee's construction served as a prototype for the larger Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, including the use of refrigeration to cool the concrete.By The Associated Press. "Boulder Dam Will Contain Huge Refrigerating System", The New York Times, June 19, 1933

The dam cost $6 million, with the total reclamation project costing $18 million."HIGHEST DAM IS DEDICATED: Secretary Wilbur Officiates at Ceremony in Owyhee, Ore.", The New York Times, July 18, 1932. Owyhee was designed by Frank A. Banks, who also designed other dams such as the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River.Neuberger, Richard L. "Man's Greatest Structure: Water runs over the Grand Coulee spillway. Its builder, who worked in silence, carries the President's citation: 'A fine job well done'," The New York Times, August 9, 1942. In the 1980s, electricity-generating capabilities were added to the dam.Terry, John. "Oregon’s Trails: 1920s dam got turbines during 1980s", The Oregonian, August 26, 2007. From 1990 to 1993, the dam was remodeled. Since the height of the dam made a fish ladder impractical, the dam closed off the Owyhee Chinook salmon runs that used to swim as far upstream as Nevada.Meehan, Brian T. "Lessons of the Past", The Oregonian, October 29, 1995. On September 23, 2010, the dam was added to the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Owyhee Dam Historic District.

Operations

Water stored at the reservoir is used to irrigate approximately for use in farming. Four different irrigation district utilize the water from Owyhee Reservoir. There are three hydro-power generating facilities at the reservoir added between 1985 and 1993, with seven-megawatt and five-megawatt turbines at the dam and power sold to the Idaho Power Company. Owyhee has a unique spillway located part way up the dam that utilizes a tunnel to send excess water to the river below during Spring run-off."The Glory Hole, Owyhee Dam’s unique spillway", The Oregonian, June 17, 1993. The United States Bureau of Reclamation owns the facility, and the Owyhee Irrigation District operates the dam.

Climate The following data are from the Western Regional Climate Center, accessed in March 2018. The record-high temperature was in July 2002 and the record low was in January 1962. Annual precipitation is low, averaging less than 10 inches per year, and diurnal temperature variation is very high in the summer.

Dimensions

Owyhee Dam is long at the crest, which is wide. The base of the dam is wide, with a height of . The crest elevation sits at above sea level and has a hydraulic height of . Total concrete used in this arch-gravity-style dam was .

The dam's spillway can allow per second of water flow, while its tunnel capacity is per second. The outlet works can allow up to per second. If full, the reservoir would hold of water, and is long.Lake Owyhee State Park. Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. Retrieved on February 4, 2008. The total drainage area of the dam and reservoir is in Eastern Oregon and western Idaho.

Owyhee Dam was the tallest dam in the world until the Lac du Chambon dam was built in France in 1934 at .Nicolas Janberg ICS, "Chambon Dam" Structurae, Retrieved December 18, 2009

Owyhee Dam

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