Orme Dam facts for kids
The Orme Dam was a big idea for a dam in Arizona, USA. It was planned to help store water for the state. But building it would have caused a lot of problems for the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, a Native American community.
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The Story of Orme Dam
Arizona's Water Project
In 1968, the United States Congress approved a huge plan called the Central Arizona Project (CAP). This project aimed to bring more water to Arizona. Part of this plan was to build the Orme Dam. It would have been located where the Salt River and Verde River meet, not far from Phoenix.
People who supported the dam thought it was very important for Arizona's economy. They believed it would help the state grow by providing a steady water supply.
Problems with the Dam
The biggest problem with the Orme Dam was its location. If built, it would have flooded about 15,000 acres of land belonging to the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation. This was half of their total land! This impact on the Native American community was a major concern.
In 1977, US President Jimmy Carter suggested that the Orme Dam should not be built. He also wanted to stop two other projects on the Gila River. President Carter was worried about the negative effects and the high cost of these dams.
Finding a New Way
Even with President Carter's concerns, some politicians from Arizona pushed back. Senators Barry Goldwater and Dennis DeConcini, along with Representative John Rhodes, wanted to reconsider the dam. This led to a multi-million dollar study called the Central Arizona Water Control Study (CAWCS).
The CAWCS was started in 1979. The Secretary of the Interior, Cecil D. Andrus, asked the Bureau of Reclamation to find a different solution. In 1980, the study suggested not building any new large water storage dams on the Gila River. Because of recent floods, the study was expanded to also look at dams for flood control.
Plan 6: A Different Solution
Three years later, in 1983, the Bureau of Reclamation and the State of Arizona agreed on a new plan. This plan was called "Plan 6." It suggested four different projects instead of Orme Dam:
- Rebuilding the Stewart Mountain Dam.
- Building a new or larger Roosevelt Dam.
- Building the Cliff Dam on the Verde River.
- Building the New Waddell Dam on the Agua Fria River.
On November 6, 1981, the Secretary of the Interior, James G. Watt, officially recommended Plan 6. It was approved in April 1984.
The Orme Dam project was finally stopped in 1981. This happened after more than 10 years of discussions and legal challenges. People who were against the dam used a special report called an Environmental Impact Statement. This report helped show how much harm the dam would do to many endangered animals and plants in the area.
