Chief Joseph Dam

Chief Joseph Dam is a 5,962 foot (1,817.2 m) long hydroelectric dam spanning the Columbia River, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) upriver from Bridgeport, Washington, USA. The dam was authorized as Foster Creek Dam and Powerhouse for power generation and irrigation by the River and Harbor Act of 1946. The River and Harbor Act of 1948 renamed the project Chief Joseph Dam in honor of the Nez Perce chief who spent his last years in exile on the Colville Indian Reservation. Like the nearby Grand Coulee Dam, Chief Joseph Dam completely blocks salmon migration on the upper Columbia River.

Construction began in 1949, with the main dam and intake structure completed in 1955. Installation of the initial generating units was completed in 1958. Eleven additional turbines were installed between 1973 and 1979, and the dam and lake were raised 10 feet (3 m), boosting the capacity 2,620 MW, making Chief Joseph Dam the second largest hydropower producer in the United States.[1]

The dam is 545 miles (877 km) upriver from the mouth of the Columbia at Astoria, Oregon. It is operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Chief Joseph Dam Project Office, and the electricity is marketed by the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA).

The reservoir behind the dam is named Rufus Woods Lake, and runs 51 miles (82 km) up the river channel. Bridgeport State Park, on the lake, is adjacent to the dam.

Chief Joseph Dam is a run-of-the-river dam which means the lake behind the dam is not able to store large amounts of water. Water flowing to Chief Joseph Dam from Grand Coulee Dam must be passed on to Wells Dam at approximately the same rate. With 27 main generators in the powerhouse, it has the hydraulic capacity of 213,000 cubic feet per second (6,030 m³/s).

In the event more water flows to Chief Joseph Dam than could be used for power generation, the spillway gates would be opened to pass the excess water. With an average annual flow rate of 108,000 cfs (3,058 m³/s), the Columbia River seldom exceeds the powerplants capability to pass water, and spilling of water is infrequent at Chief Joseph Dam.

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Science & Technology

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