Pine Flat Dam facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Pine Flat Dam |
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| Country | United States |
| Location | Fresno County, California |
| Coordinates | 36°49′56″N 119°19′34″W / 36.83222°N 119.32611°W |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | 1947 |
| Opening date | 1954 |
| Owner(s) |  U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sacramento District |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Concrete gravity |
| Impounds | Kings River |
| Height | 440 ft (130 m) |
| Length | 1,840 ft (560 m) |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Pine Flat Lake |
| Total capacity | 1,000,000 acre⋅ft (1.2 km3) |
| Inactive capacity | 45,379 acre⋅ft (0.055974 km3) |
| Catchment area | 1,545 sq mi (4,000 km2) |
| Surface area | 5,970 acres (2,420 ha) |
| Maximum water depth | 429 ft (131 m) |
| Normal elevation | 955 ft (291 m) (max) |
| Power station | |
| Operator(s) | Kings River Conservation District |
| Hydraulic head | 424 ft (129 m) |
| Turbines | 3x 55MW Francis |
| Installed capacity | 165 MW |
| Annual generation | 387,256,000 KWh (2001–2012) |
| Website U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Pine Flat Lake Project |
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The Pine Flat Dam is a huge concrete dam on the Kings River in Fresno County, California, United States. It stands about 28 miles (45 km) east of Fresno. The dam is 440 feet (130 m) tall. It creates Pine Flat Lake, which is one of California's largest reservoirs. This lake is in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, near Kings Canyon National Park.
The main job of Pine Flat Dam is to control floods. It also helps with irrigation (watering crops), makes electricity, and offers fun recreation activities. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) built the dam. Construction started in 1947 and finished in 1954. Since then, the dam has saved millions of dollars by preventing flood damage. It has also helped farming grow a lot in the Kings River area. In 1984, it also started making electricity.
Contents
History of Pine Flat Dam
Early Ideas for the Dam
People first thought about building a dam on the Kings River in the 1890s. An engineer named J.B. Lippincott suggested it. By 1914, farmers and water groups strongly supported the idea. They formed the Kings River Water Association (KRWA) in 1927. This group helped share the river water for watering about 958,000 acres (388,000 ha) of farmland in the San Joaquin Valley. In 1937, the KRWA asked the government for help to build a big dam at Pine Flat.
Starting in 1938, two government groups wanted to build the dam: the USACE and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). The USBR, with support from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, wanted the dam to be part of its Central Valley Project. This project aimed to use Central Valley rivers for irrigation. The USACE disagreed. They felt the dam's main purpose should be flood control. Some farmers also didn't want the dam to be part of the Central Valley Project. This was because of rules that limited how much water individual farmers could get. Many local farmers owned more land than these rules allowed.
Building the Dam
On May 27, 1947, the USACE started building Pine Flat Dam. Over 2,000 people came to the ceremony. Governor Earl Warren set off the first dynamite blast. To bring building materials to the site, a temporary railroad was built. Concrete was mixed on a train car and pumped into place. In November 1950, floods hit the construction site. This caused a lot of damage in the San Joaquin Valley. This was the last major flood on the Kings River before the dam was finished. If the dam had been ready, it would have prevented much of the damage.
In 1951, workers built a temporary wall to move the Kings River to one side of the canyon. This allowed them to build the dam's base. Later, the river was sent through special gates at the bottom of the dam. This allowed the northern part of the dam to be built. The main part of Pine Flat Dam was built in 37 tall concrete sections. These sections were held by temporary steel frames until the concrete dried.
By 1953, the dam was tall enough to start holding back the river. Pine Flat Lake began to fill up. The dam cost $42.3 million, which was more than expected. On May 22, 1954, the Pine Flat Dam was officially opened. About 3,000 people attended. Some people felt that because of earlier disagreements, it didn't feel like "their dam" to celebrate.
Life After Construction
Less than two years after it was finished, Pine Flat Dam stopped a huge flood in November 1955. The Kings River had a very high flow into the lake. In January 1969, the dam released the most water ever. This was after another big flood. The dam has greatly helped reduce flood damage. This has allowed more river water to be used for farming. However, this also caused the large Tulare Lake wetlands to shrink a lot. By 1960, the lake, which used to be nearly 500,000 acres (200,000 ha), was reduced to less than 27,000 acres (11,000 ha).
During the 1969 floods, local people wanted floodwaters from Pine Flat Lake to be sent to the Tulare lakebed. But a large company owned most of the land in the irrigation district. This company voted against sending the water there. This protected their crops but caused flooding in other areas. People whose homes were destroyed sued. They argued that only allowing landowners to vote on water issues was unfair. In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that a private company could control the irrigation district. They said flood control was not a main government job in this case.
In the early 1970s, the Kings River Conservation District (KRCD) planned new dams and power plants. Only one part of this plan was built: the Jeff L. Taylor Pine Flat Power Plant. It started working in 1984 at the base of Pine Flat Dam.
After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, Pine Flat Dam was closed to the public. This was because it is so important for flood protection. Officials worried about the damage if the dam were to be attacked.
How the Dam Works
Pine Flat Dam is a strong concrete dam. It is 440 feet (130 m) tall from its base. The lake it creates, Pine Flat Lake, can hold 1,000,000 acre-feet (1.2 km3) of water. It covers 5,970 acres (2,420 ha) and stretches 21 miles (34 km) up the river. The dam has a spillway with six large gates. These gates can release a lot of water during floods. The dam also has a power plant with three turbines. These turbines can make 165 MW of electricity. The plant produces enough power for about 47,000 homes each year.
The dam's main job is flood control. About half of the lake's capacity is kept empty for flood protection. The dam protects about 300 square miles (780 km2) of land from floods. Dam operators try to keep the water flow downstream below a certain level. However, in years with very heavy rain, they sometimes have to release more water than this limit. For example, in the 1969 floods, more water than the lake's entire capacity flowed over the spillway. On average, 200,000 acre-feet (0.25 km3) of water is spilled each year. This means less water for irrigation and sometimes causes flooding. Because of this, there are plans to make the dam taller. This would allow it to hold more water, especially for flood control. It would also help with irrigation and making more electricity.
The dam also helps keep water flowing in the Kings River during dry summers. This is important for wildlife. An agreement in 1964 set a minimum amount of water that must be released. This helps protect fish and other animals in the river.
Images for kids
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Pine Flat Dam
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Pine Flat Lake
