Poe Dam is a concrete gravity diversion dam on the North Fork Feather River, about 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Lake Oroville in Butte County, California in the United States. Completed in 1959, the dam is the lowermost component of the Pacific Gas and Electric Company's Feather River Canyon Power Project, a system of 10 hydroelectric stations along the North Fork.[3] The dam is 60 ft (18 m) high and 440 ft (130 m) long, with water flows controlled by four 50 ft × 41 ft (15 m × 12 m) radial gates.[1][4]
| Poe Dam | |
|---|---|
 The Poe Dam in March 2022 | |
  Location of Poe Dam in California | |
| Location | Butte County, California, United States |
| Coordinates | 39°48′34″N 121°25′57″W / 39.80944°N 121.43250°W |
| Opening date | 1953 |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Gated overflow dam |
| Impounds | North Fork Feather River |
| Height | 62 ft (19 m)[1] |
| Length | 441 ft (134 m)[1] |
| Reservoir | |
| Total capacity | 1,150 acre⋅ft (1,420,000 m3)[1] |
| Catchment area | 1,950 sq mi (5,100 km2)[1] |
| Power Station | |
| Installed capacity | 120 MW[2] |
| Annual generation | 536,397,000 KWh (2001–2012)[2] |
The dam diverts water through an 6.3-mile (10.1 km) tunnel to the 120 megawatt[2] Poe Powerhouse, located on the upper reaches of Lake Oroville. The powerhouse has a rated hydraulic head of 477 ft (145 m), generating about 500 million kilowatt hours annually.[5]
On November 8, 2018, the Camp Fire, a destructive wildfire that destroyed the nearby community of Concow and the town of Paradise and caused multiple deaths, originated close to Poe Dam at the location of downed power lines across the Feather River.[6] In an initial comment, PG&E stated that a cause of the fire had not been determined yet and that there would be an investigation.[6]
Poe Dam is a popular kayaking site.[6]
See also
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References
edit- ^ a b c d e "Dams Within the Jurisdiction of the State of California Listed Alphabetically By Name Of Dam" (PDF). Division of Safety of Dams. California Department of Water Resources. 2012. Retrieved 2013-06-16.
- ^ a b c "California Hydroelectric Statistics & Data". California Energy Commission. Archived from the original on 2018-02-26. Retrieved 2018-04-26.
- ^ "Poe Reservoir Sediment Study – Plumas County, California". Sediment Transport & Erosion Control. WRECO. Retrieved 2013-06-16.
- ^ "Feather River 'Stairway of Power'". Western Pacific Online. Retrieved 2019-03-01.
- ^ Indar, Josh (2003-05-01). "Power up! County rolls dice with PG&E for control of Poe hydro plant". Chico News & Review. Retrieved 2013-06-16.
- ^ a b c Gafni, Matthias (2018-11-09). "PG&E power lines may have sparked deadly Camp Fire, according to radio transmissions". The Mercury News. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
External links
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