Jocassee Dam

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Jocassee Dam
Country United States
Location Pickens/Oconee Counties, South Carolina
Coordinates 34°57′36″N 82°55′10″W / 34.96000°N 82.91944°W / 34.96000; -82.91944Coordinates: 34°57′36″N 82°55′10″W / 34.96000°N 82.91944°W / 34.96000; -82.91944[1]
Opening date 1973
Owner(s) Duke Energy
Dam and spillways
Type of dam Embankment
Impounds Keowee River
Length 1,800 ft (550 m)[2]
Height 385 ft (117 m)[2]
Reservoir
Creates Lake Jocassee
Total capacity 1,185,000 acre·ft (1.462 km3)[3]
Catchment area 148 sq mi (380 km2)[4]
Power station
Commission date 1973–1975[2]
Turbines 4[2]
Installed capacity 710 MW[2]
Annual generation 811,000,000 KWh[2]

Jocassee Dam (often called Lake Jocassee Dam) is an embankment dam on the Keowee River, straddling the border of Pickens and Oconee Counties in South Carolina in the United States. The dam forms Lake Jocassee, which is fed by the Toxaway, Thompson, Horsepasture and Whitewater rivers, and serves primarily for hydroelectric power generation and flood control. The dam and reservoir are part of the Keowee-Toxaway Hydroelectric Project, owned and operated by Duke Energy.[5]

Completed in 1973, the dam is a zoned earth and rock fill structure, standing 385 feet (117 m) high with a crest length of 1,800 feet (550 m). At full pool, the reservoir has a storage capacity of 1,185,000 acre feet (1.462 km3),[3] encompassing 75 miles (121 km) of shoreline and 7,500 acres (3,000 ha). Floodwaters are released through a spillway controlled by two 40x32 foot (12x10m) gates, with a capacity of 45,700 cu ft/s (1,290 m3/s).[4]

The dam supports a 710 MW hydroelectric station, generating power from four turbines. Two of the turbines were installed in 1973, while the third and fourth units came online in 1975. The power station functions as a pumped-storage operation designed to provide peaking power, and generates an average of 811 million kilowatt hours per year.[2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Jocassee Dam". Geographic Names Information System, U.S. Geological Survey. 1992-09-01. Retrieved 2012-08-20. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 "Lake Jocassee and Jocassee Pumped Storage Facility". The Keowee-Toxaway Project. Duke Energy. Retrieved 2012-08-20. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Special Topics". South Carolina Water Assessment. South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved 2012-08-20. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Oconee Nuclear Station ISFSI Safety Analysis Report". United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 2000-12-31. Retrieved 2012-08-20. 
  5. ↑ "Keowee-Toxaway Hydroelectric Project Description". Duke Energy. Retrieved 2012-08-20. 
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