Canyon Dam (California)

Canyon Dam

Spillway of Canyon Dam
Location of Canyon Dam in California
Country United States
Location Plumas County, near Westwood, California
Coordinates 40°10′24″N 121°05′25″W / 40.17333°N 121.09028°W / 40.17333; -121.09028Coordinates: 40°10′24″N 121°05′25″W / 40.17333°N 121.09028°W / 40.17333; -121.09028
Opening date 1927
Owner(s) PG&E
Dam and spillways
Type of dam Earthfill
Impounds North Fork Feather River
Height 130 ft (40 m)
Length 1,250 ft (380 m)
Reservoir
Creates Lake Almanor
Total capacity 1,308,000 acre·ft (1.613×109 m3)
Catchment area 503 sq mi (1,300 km2)
Surface area 28,160 acres (11,400 ha)
Power station
Hydraulic head 356 ft (109 m)
Installed capacity 41 MW
Annual generation 156,100,000 KWh

Canyon Dam (National ID # CA00327m also known as Lake Almanor Dam[1]) is an embankment dam on the North Fork Feather River in northern California, 16 mi (26 km) southwest of Westwood. Located about 8 miles (13 km) southeast of Chester, the dam forms Lake Almanor, a large and shallow reservoir surrounded by the Sierra Nevada mountains.

First constructed in 1910 by the Great Western Power Company as part of the Upper North Fork Feather River Project, the dam was originally planned to be built of masonry but was later changed to an earthfill design. The dam's primary purpose was to store water for the Western Canal Company, an irrigation district in the Central Valley and a subsidiary of Great Western. The dam provided flows for a hydroelectric plant about 40 miles (64 km) downstream at the Big Bend Powerhouse, today submerged by the reservoir behind Oroville Dam. Canyon Dam was modified in 1927 and 1962 to increase its usable storage. Today the dam and reservoir, owned by Pacific Gas and Electric, supply water to the 41 megawatt Butt Valley Powerhouse[2] and provide summer flow for six hydroelectric plants on the North Fork Feather River downstream.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Dams Within the Jurisdiction of the State of California (H-M)" (PDF). California Department of Water Resources, Division of Safety of Dams. Retrieved October 22, 2012.
  2. ↑ "Almanor Dam (Canyon Dam) And Lake Almanor". Project 2105 Committee. Retrieved 2011-11-04.
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