155-526: The Rampart Dam or Rampart Canyon Dam was a project proposed in 1954 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to dam the Yukon River in Alaska for hydroelectric power . The project was planned for Rampart Canyon (also known as Rampart Gorge) just 31 miles (50 km) southwest of the village of Rampart, Alaska , about 105 miles (169 km) west-northwest of Fairbanks . The resulting dam would have created
310-519: A $ 100,000 budget, which it used to produce "The Rampart Story", a color brochure distributed in Alaska and Washington, D.C. to promote the dam project. Alaska senator Ernest Gruening remained a staunch backer of the project from its inception to its cancellation, and made it a major personal political priority. Gruening led a coalition of Alaska lawmakers that included most of the Alaska Legislature. In
465-632: A 1982 embargo of the entire line. Following the demise of the ill-fated Keystone XL Pipeline project, the Alaska Canada Rail Link (ACRL) was rekindled as an alternative. In November 2015, the National Post reported that a link between the southern provinces and the Alaska Railroad was again being considered by the Canadian federal government, this time routing to Alberta . In this scenario,
620-401: A balancing compression stress in the downstream face, providing additional economy. For this type of dam, it is essential to have an impervious foundation with high bearing strength. Permeable foundations have a greater likelihood of generating uplift pressures under the dam. Uplift pressures are hydrostatic pressures caused by the water pressure of the reservoir pushing up against the bottom of
775-640: A bilateral commission to study feasibility of building a rail link between Canada and Alaska; Canada was asked to be part of the commission, but the Canadian federal government did not choose to join the commission or commit funds for the study. However, the Yukon territorial government did show some interest. A June 2006 report by the commission recommended Carmacks, Yukon , as a hub, with three possibilities: A line could go northward to Delta Junction, Alaska (Alaska Railroad's northern end-of-track). Another line could go from Carmacks to Hazelton, British Columbia (which
930-458: A construction town along Ship Creek , eventually giving rise to Anchorage, now the state's largest city. In 1917, the government purchased the narrow gauge Tanana Valley Railroad , mostly for its railyard in Fairbanks. The railroad was completed on July 15, 1923 with President Warren G. Harding traveling to Alaska to drive a ceremonial golden spike at Nenana . Ownership of the railroad passed from
1085-533: A dam as "jurisdictional" or "non-jurisdictional" varies by location. In the United States, each state defines what constitutes a non-jurisdictional dam. In the state of Colorado a non-jurisdictional dam is defined as a dam creating a reservoir with a capacity of 100 acre-feet or less and a surface area of 20 acres or less and with a height measured as defined in Rules 4.2.5.1. and 4.2.19 of 10 feet or less. In contrast,
1240-495: A dam that directed waterflow. It was finished in 251 BC. A large earthen dam, made by Sunshu Ao , the prime minister of Chu (state) , flooded a valley in modern-day northern Anhui Province that created an enormous irrigation reservoir (100 km (62 mi) in circumference), a reservoir that is still present today. Roman dam construction was characterized by "the Romans' ability to plan and organize engineering construction on
1395-485: A distinct vertical curvature to it as well lending it the vague appearance of a concave lens as viewed from downstream. The multiple-arch dam consists of a number of single-arch dams with concrete buttresses as the supporting abutments, as for example the Daniel-Johnson Dam , Québec, Canada. The multiple-arch dam does not require as many buttresses as the hollow gravity type but requires a good rock foundation because
1550-471: A grand scale." Roman planners introduced the then-novel concept of large reservoir dams which could secure a permanent water supply for urban settlements over the dry season. Their pioneering use of water-proof hydraulic mortar and particularly Roman concrete allowed for much larger dam structures than previously built, such as the Lake Homs Dam , possibly the largest water barrier to that date, and
1705-495: A lake roughly the size of Lake Erie , making it the largest human-made reservoir in the world. The plan for the dam itself called for a concrete structure 530 feet (162 m) high with a top length of about 4,700 feet (1,430 m). The proposed power facilities would have consistently generated between 3.5 and 5.0 gigawatts of electricity, based on the flow of the river as it differs between winter and summer. Though supported by many politicians and businesses in Alaska,
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#17328515348291860-505: A minor tributary of the Nieuwe Maas . The central square of Amsterdam, covering the original site of the 800-year-old dam, still carries the name Dam Square . The Romans were the first to build arch dams , where the reaction forces from the abutment stabilizes the structure from the external hydrostatic pressure , but it was only in the 19th century that the engineering skills and construction materials available were capable of building
2015-505: A notable increase in interest in SHPs. Couto and Olden (2018) conducted a global study and found 82,891 small hydropower plants (SHPs) operating or under construction. Technical definitions of SHPs, such as their maximum generation capacity, dam height, reservoir area, etc., vary by country. A dam is non-jurisdictional when its size (usually "small") excludes it from being subject to certain legal regulations. The technical criteria for categorising
2170-436: A population from the area where it normally lives is tantamount to eliminating it completely. Adjoining habitats ordinarily are carrying all the wildlife that the local resources will support. In short, loss of habitat is synonymous with loss of the animal population supported by the inundated habitat." In March 1966 Spurr's team issued its final report, finding that the dam was not a cost-effective investment. In January 1965,
2325-541: A presidential permit to the Alaska-Alberta Railway Development Corporation (A2A Railway), which had an agreement with Alaska Railway to develop a joint operating plan for the rail connection to Canada. The proposed A2A Railway would have connected to the Alaska Railroad at North Pole, Alaska , and run through Yukon Territory to Fort Nelson, and from there to a terminus at Fort McMurray, Alberta. (The A2A Railway had also been negotiating with
2480-627: A profession based on a rigorously applied scientific theoretical framework. This new emphasis was centered around the engineering faculties of universities in France and in the United Kingdom. William John Macquorn Rankine at the University of Glasgow pioneered the theoretical understanding of dam structures in his 1857 paper On the Stability of Loose Earth . Rankine theory provided a good understanding of
2635-550: A resolution calling for the Corps of Engineers to begin an official study of the project, and $ 49,000 was allocated by the federal government for that purpose. Preliminary estimates said the project would cost $ 900 million (1959 dollars) and generate 4.7 million kilowatts of electricity. At the time, the largest hydroelectric project in Alaska was the Eklutna Dam , which produced just 32,000 kilowatts. The project competed with
2790-540: A route in 1912. The line would be 656 miles (1,056 km) long and provide an all-weather route to the interior. In 1914, the government bought the Alaska Northern Railroad and moved its headquarters to Ship Creek , in what would later become Anchorage . The government began to extend the rail line northward. In 1917, the Tanana Valley Railroad in Fairbanks was heading into bankruptcy. It owned
2945-561: A settling pond, and a 1,000 m (3,300 ft) canal to a distribution tank. These works were not finished until 325 AD when the dam permitted the irrigation of 25,000 acres (100 km ). Eflatun Pınar is a Hittite dam and spring temple near Konya , Turkey. It is thought to date from the Hittite empire between the 15th and 13th centuries BC. The Kallanai is constructed of unhewn stone, over 300 m (980 ft) long, 4.5 m (15 ft) high and 20 m (66 ft) wide, across
3100-573: A single project been so overwhelming." The report also pointed out the threat the dam would pose to the Yukon River's large salmon population, which swim upstream each year to spawn. Arthur Laing , Canada's minister of northern affairs , also expressed alarm at the potential waterfowl losses and the threat the dam posed to Canada's portion of the Yukon River salmon population. A May 1965 article in The Atlantic magazine by author Paul Brooks illustrated
3255-661: A small 45-mile (72 km) 3 ft ( 914 mm ) ( narrow gauge ) line that serviced the towns of Fairbanks and the mining communities in the area as well as the boat docks on the Tanana River near Fairbanks. The government bought the Tanana Valley Railroad, principally for its terminal facilities. The section between Fairbanks and Happy was converted to dual gauge to complete the 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 1,435 mm ) standard gauge line from Seward to Fairbanks. The government extended
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#17328515348293410-440: A total surface area of about 9,844 square miles (25,496 km). Because the Yukon also is a transportation route, transshipment facilities were planned for below and above the dam site and would have been connected by road and rail links. Because of the large size of the proposed reservoir and the need to allow some flow of the Yukon River downstream of the dam site for river navigation and fishing, engineers anticipated that filling
3565-408: A whole dam itself, that dam also would be held in place by gravity, i.e., there is no tension in the upstream face of the dam holding the top of the dam down. The designer does this because it is usually more practical to make a dam of material essentially just piled up than to make the material stick together against vertical tension. The shape that prevents tension in the upstream face also eliminates
3720-430: Is concerned, certainly you can expect progress, more progress, I believe, in our administration than his". U.S. Army Corps of Engineers leaders strongly supported the project in its initial phases. In 1960 Harold Moats of the Corps' Alaska district said, "Rampart Canyon, the big one, is Alaska's most valuable resource, and as it is developed, Alaska will take her rightful place in the family of states contributing richly to
3875-424: Is dependent on the strength of the side wall abutments, hence not only should the arch be well seated on the side walls but also the character of the rock should be carefully inspected. Two types of single-arch dams are in use, namely the constant-angle and the constant-radius dam. The constant-radius type employs the same face radius at all elevations of the dam, which means that as the channel grows narrower towards
4030-544: Is located 31 miles (50 km) downstream of the village of Rampart, 36 miles (58 km) upstream of the village of Tanana, and immediately downstream from the mouth of Texas Creek. It is named for the Ramparts of the Yukon, as the early gold miners called the rock formations which created the gorge. The village of Rampart was named for the Ramparts. At the proposed dam site, the river is 1,300 feet (396 m) wide and has an elevation of 183 feet (56 m) above sea level . On
4185-638: Is over 470 miles (760 km) long. The branch to Whittier conveys freight railcars interchanged with the contiguous United States via rail barges sailing between the Port of Whittier and Harbor Island in Seattle . Construction of the railroad started in 1903 when the Alaska Central Railroad built a line starting in Seward and extending 50 miles (80 km) north. The Alaska Central went bankrupt in 1907 and
4340-513: Is served by the CN ), passing through Watson Lake, Yukon , and Dease Lake, British Columbia . The third line could go from Carmacks to either Haines or Skagway, Alaska . The latter path by way of Whitehorse, Yukon , the northern terminus of the 3 ft ( 914 mm ) ( narrow-gauge ) White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad). However, currently the latter's trains only reach Carcross, Yukon , because service has not been completely restored following
4495-471: Is sloped the distribution is more complicated. The normal component of the weight of the arch ring may be taken by the arch action, while the normal hydrostatic pressure will be distributed as described above. For this type of dam, firm reliable supports at the abutments (either buttress or canyon side wall) are more important. The most desirable place for an arch dam is a narrow canyon with steep side walls composed of sound rock. The safety of an arch dam
4650-399: Is the more widely used of the two, though the hollow dam is frequently more economical to construct. Grand Coulee Dam is a solid gravity dam and Braddock Locks & Dam is a hollow gravity dam. A gravity dam can be combined with an arch dam into an arch-gravity dam for areas with massive amounts of water flow but less material available for a pure gravity dam. The inward compression of
4805-576: Is the thinnest arch dam in the world and one of the oldest arch dams in Asia. It was constructed some 700 years ago in Tabas county , South Khorasan Province , Iran . It stands 60 meters tall, and in crest is a one meter width. Some historians believe the dam was built by Shāh Abbās I, whereas others believe that he repaired it. In the Netherlands , a low-lying country, dams were often built to block rivers to regulate
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4960-563: The Alaska Pipeline . On January 6, 1985, the state of Alaska bought the railroad from the U.S. government for $ 22.3 million, based on a valuation determined by the US Railway Association. The state immediately invested over $ 70 million on improvements and repairs that compensated for years of deferred maintenance. The purchase agreement prohibits the Alaska Railroad from paying dividends or otherwise returning capital to
5115-613: The Bering Sea . During the river's flow through eastern Alaska, and before it intersects the Tanana River, the Yukon flows through the Central Plateau region of Alaska. During the millions of years of its flow, it has cut through ridges, forming canyons in some places near its juncture with the Tanana. One of the deepest of these canyons is known as Rampart Gorge, or Rampart Canyon. The gorge
5270-751: The Coast Mountains , the Yukon River flows northwest, across the Yukon–Alaska border, until it intersects the Porcupine River at the settlement of Fort Yukon . At that point, the river turns west and southwest, flowing through the Yukon Flats, a low-lying wetland area containing thousands of ponds, streams, and other small bodies of water. As the river flows southwest, it intersects the Tanana and Koyukuk rivers before looping south, then north into Norton Sound in
5425-634: The Fayum Depression to the Nile in Middle Egypt. Two dams called Ha-Uar running east–west were built to retain water during the annual flood and then release it to surrounding lands. The lake called Mer-wer or Lake Moeris covered 1,700 km (660 sq mi) and is known today as Birket Qarun. By the mid-late third millennium BC, an intricate water-management system in Dholavira in modern-day India
5580-561: The Harbaqa Dam , both in Roman Syria . The highest Roman dam was the Subiaco Dam near Rome ; its record height of 50 m (160 ft) remained unsurpassed until its accidental destruction in 1305. Roman engineers made routine use of ancient standard designs like embankment dams and masonry gravity dams. Apart from that, they displayed a high degree of inventiveness, introducing most of
5735-637: The National Inventory of Dams (NID). Alaska Railroad The Alaska Railroad ( reporting mark ARR ) is a Class II railroad that operates freight and passenger trains in the state of Alaska . The railroad's mainline runs between Seward on the southern coast and Fairbanks , near the center of the state. It passes through Anchorage and Denali National Park , to which 17% of visitors travel by train. The railroad has 656 miles (1,056 km) of track, including sidings , rail yards and branch lines . The main line between Seward and Fairbanks
5890-541: The Surface Transportation Board approved the construction of a new 25-mile (40 km) line between Port MacKenzie and the existing main line at Houston, Alaska . As of May 2023 this spur line had not been completed. A spur line was built to Ted Stevens International Airport in 2003, along with a depot, officially named after Bill Sheffield . The line never received scheduled service but cruise lines charter trains to convey passengers between ships and
6045-534: The Treaty of Washington , signed in 1871, Canada was allowed free navigation of the Yukon River. It was feared that construction of the dam would block navigation routes and violate the treaty. Opposition to the dam project also arose in concern of the dam's cost. Several United States congressmen and fiscal conservatives protested the proposal on the grounds that the money that would be spent on its construction would be better used to support other projects. They pointed to
6200-645: The University of Oxford published a study of the cost of large dams – based on the largest existing dataset – documenting significant cost overruns for a majority of dams and questioning whether benefits typically offset costs for such dams. Dams can be formed by human agency, natural causes, or even by the intervention of wildlife such as beavers . Man-made dams are typically classified according to their size (height), intended purpose or structure. Based on structure and material used, dams are classified as easily created without materials, arch-gravity dams , embankment dams or masonry dams , with several subtypes. In
6355-558: The 15th and 13th centuries BC. The Kallanai Dam in South India, built in the 2nd century AD, is one of the oldest water regulating structures still in use. Roman engineers built dams with advanced techniques and materials, such as hydraulic mortar and Roman concrete, which allowed for larger structures. They introduced reservoir dams, arch-gravity dams, arch dams, buttress dams, and multiple arch buttress dams. In Iran, bridge dams were used for hydropower and water-raising mechanisms. During
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6510-506: The 1930s, with cheap electricity providing the economic basis of the region. Dam proponents also suggested that the electricity might be transmitted to the rest of the United States, lowering utility prices in those states by increasing the amount of available power. Anthony Netboy, a salmon biologist employed by Yukon Power for America, claimed that one day "a housewife in Phoenix or L.A. will fry her eggs at breakfast with electricity generated on
6665-494: The 1962 Alaska state elections, every candidate elected to the state legislature was a supporter of the project. In the years that followed, the Alaska Legislature voted several times to allocate state funding for the project. Politicians at the city level also got into the action, as the city of Anchorage and the Fairbanks Public Utilities Board each voted to contribute $ 10,000 to a pro-Rampart organization. Among
6820-564: The Alaska Railroad and at the time, was the second longest single-span steel railroad bridge in the country. U.S. President Warren G. Harding drove the golden spike that completed the railroad on July 15, 1923, on the north side of the bridge. The railroad was part of the US Department of the Interior. The Alaska Railroad's first diesel locomotive entered service in 1944. The railroad retired its last steam locomotive in 1966. In 1958, land for
6975-535: The British began construction in 1898. The project was designed by Sir William Willcocks and involved several eminent engineers of the time, including Sir Benjamin Baker and Sir John Aird , whose firm, John Aird & Co. , was the main contractor. Capital and financing were furnished by Ernest Cassel . When initially constructed between 1899 and 1902, nothing of its scale had ever before been attempted; on completion, it
7130-509: The Colorado River is a constant-angle arch dam. A similar type is the double-curvature or thin-shell dam. Wildhorse Dam near Mountain City, Nevada , in the United States is an example of the type. This method of construction minimizes the amount of concrete necessary for construction but transmits large loads to the foundation and abutments. The appearance is similar to a single-arch dam but with
7285-655: The Colorado River. By 1997, there were an estimated 800,000 dams worldwide, with some 40,000 of them over 15 meters high. Early dam building took place in Mesopotamia and the Middle East . Dams were used to control water levels, for Mesopotamia's weather affected the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. The earliest known dam is the Jawa Dam in Jordan , 100 kilometres (62 mi) northeast of
7440-530: The Corps would have responsibility for design and construction of the project, while the Interior Department would be responsible for running and maintaining the dam after completion. In the planning stages, the Interior Department also would be responsible for examining the economic feasibility of the project and its effect upon natural resources. This agreement negated much of the work of the REAB to that point, as
7595-617: The Department of the Interior completed its three-volume, 1,000-page study of the Rampart project's feasibility and impact. The Fish and Wildlife study released in 1964 was included, as were studies of the impact on the region's Alaska Native population. United States Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall then created a task force to review the findings before he made a final decision. Throughout 1965 and 1966, opponents and proponents of
7750-496: The FWS report came down strongly opposed to the dam on the grounds that it would irrevocably destroy the Yukon Flats, a critical waterfowl breeding ground. In January 1965, the Bureau of Land Management set aside almost 9,000,000 acres (3,600,000 ha) of land for construction of the dam and reservoir. It was a typical process that had been done for other dam projects several times before, but
7905-554: The Interior Stewart Udall formally opposed construction of the dam in 1967, and the project was shelved. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers nevertheless completed its engineering study of the project in 1971, and the final report was released to the public in 1979. In 1980, U.S. President Jimmy Carter created the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Sanctuary , which formally protected the area from development and disallowed any similar project. From its headwaters in
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#17328515348298060-509: The Interior Department promptly began its own three-year study of the dam's economic feasibility and environmental impact. The DRC report, though trumped by the Interior Department's new precedence in such matters, nevertheless released a report in April 1962, stating that the project was economically feasible and would attract new industries to Alaska. Meanwhile, the Corps of Engineers continued engineering studies. The interim Corps of Engineers report
8215-490: The Interior Department's rejection of the overall Rampart Dam project, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continued its engineering feasibility study on the project. That plan was completed on June 25, 1971, and it included most of the previous federal documents pertaining to the project, including the electricity market studies published by the Department of the Interior in 1965, the Fish and Wildlife study of 1964, and other studies about
8370-543: The Mat-Su Borough on an agreement to complete the Port Mackenzie Railway Extension.) The Alaska Railroad Corporation has its own police force The railroad is a major tourist attraction in the summer. Coach cars feature wide windows and domes. Private cars owned by the major cruise companies are towed behind the Alaska Railroad's own cars, and trips are included with various cruise packages. By 1936,
8525-684: The Middle Ages, dams were built in the Netherlands to regulate water levels and prevent sea intrusion. In the 19th century, large-scale arch dams were constructed around the British Empire, marking advances in dam engineering techniques. The era of large dams began with the construction of the Aswan Low Dam in Egypt in 1902. The Hoover Dam, a massive concrete arch-gravity dam, was built between 1931 and 1936 on
8680-596: The Middle East for water control. The earliest known dam is the Jawa Dam in Jordan , dating to 3,000 BC. Egyptians also built dams, such as Sadd-el-Kafara Dam for flood control. In modern-day India, Dholavira had an intricate water-management system with 16 reservoirs and dams. The Great Dam of Marib in Yemen, built between 1750 and 1700 BC, was an engineering wonder, and Eflatun Pinar, a Hittite dam and spring temple in Turkey, dates to
8835-464: The Rampart site was one of the few to have a potential capacity of more than 200,000 kilowatts. In his report, Morgan addresses the potential of the site: Reconnaissance topography indicates several potential dam sites in Lower Ramparts, but the best site probably will be found about 31 miles (50 km) downstream from the village of Rampart. ... this site on the Yukon River would easily be one of
8990-489: The United States alone, there are approximately 2,000,000 or more "small" dams that are not included in the Army Corps of Engineers National Inventory of dams . Records of small dams are kept by state regulatory agencies and therefore information about small dams is dispersed and uneven in geographic coverage. Countries worldwide consider small hydropower plants (SHPs) important for their energy strategies, and there has been
9145-516: The World Commission on Dams also includes in the "large" category, dams which are between 5 and 15 m (16 and 49 ft) high with a reservoir capacity of more than 3 million cubic metres (2,400 acre⋅ft ). Hydropower dams can be classified as either "high-head" (greater than 30 m in height) or "low-head" (less than 30 m in height). As of 2021 , ICOLD's World Register of Dams contains 58,700 large dam records. The tallest dam in
9300-511: The Yukon River salmon population. The third objection to construction of the dam stemmed from its high cost and the belief that cheap electricity would not be enough to attract industry to Alaska. In late 1960 the Alaska Conservation Society became the first large conservation group to oppose construction of the dam. The organization believed the flooding of the Yukon Flats would cause critical damage to Alaska waterfowl and promoted
9455-412: The Yukon flats. There would also have been a sharp decline in both large mammals - the moose, black and grizzly bear, and caribou - and smaller mammals: muskrats, mink, beavers, and river otters in aquatic habitats, and marten, wolverines, weasels, lynx, snowshoe hares, red fox and red squirrels in terrestrial or upland habitats. Spurr's report noted: "[It]is a truism of wildlife ecology that displacement of
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#17328515348299610-479: The Yukon. Their habitations are miserable and their livelihood a bare subsistence supplemented by relief. Construction of the Rampart Dam will give them ample gainful employment, and in their new locations, chosen by them on the lake's borders, they will have better homes, better community facilities and a permanent income from now nonexistent activities, generated by the lake. In the same letter, Gruening also promoted
9765-426: The act, asking if the cost of so many waterfowl would be worth building the dam. In planning the dam project, engineers anticipated that building the dam would flood nine Alaska Native villages, forcing the relocation of an estimated 1,500 people. Although some of the affected villagers felt the increased job opportunities would outweigh the forced move, most objected to the potential loss of the region's history. Among
9920-431: The affected villages was Fort Yukon , which is the oldest English-speaking settlement in Alaska. In 1964 several groups of Native dam opponents in the Yukon Flats came together to form an organization called Gwitchya Gwitchin Ginkhye , which lobbied against the project. The Tundra Times , an Alaska newspaper devoted to Native issues, also came out strongly in opposition to the project, saying that all but one village from
10075-523: The airport. The railroad currently leases the depot to citizens for private events such as conferences, seminars, and corporate functions. There are plans to provide commuter rail service within the Anchorage metropolitan area ( Anchorage to Mat-Su Valley via Eagle River , north Anchorage to south Anchorage); additional tracks would be necessary to accommodate the heavy freight traffic. In 2001 federal legislation, sponsored by Republican U.S. senator (and later Alaska governor) Frank Murkowski , formed
10230-427: The alternative Susitna Hydroelectric Project to supply Alaska's electric needs. This was followed in early 1961 by an Alaska Sportsmen's Council resolution that criticized the Corps of Engineers for reducing its funding for studies of the impact of the project on fish and game stocks. In April of that year, Alaska Sportsman magazine took a formal stand against the project. The California Fish and Game Commission
10385-536: The amount of land to be set aside generated several months of hearings before the decision. In June 1964 the Natural Resources Council asked Stephen H. Spurr, dean of the Graduate School of the University of Michigan and an authority on forestry and forest ecology, to form a group to evaluate the proposed Rampart Dam. The Spurr report determined that the scenarios offered as justification for the project were overly optimistic with respect to Alaska's projected long-term population growth, its per capita use of electricity, and
10540-403: The arch dam, stability is obtained by a combination of arch and gravity action. If the upstream face is vertical the entire weight of the dam must be carried to the foundation by gravity, while the distribution of the normal hydrostatic pressure between vertical cantilever and arch action will depend upon the stiffness of the dam in a vertical and horizontal direction. When the upstream face
10695-418: The area in 2003. Geologically, igneous rock predominates, and quartz can be seen in places. Hydrologically, the portion of the river upstream of the proposed dam drains about 200,000 square miles (517,998 km). On average, the Yukon flows at a rate of 118,000 cubic feet per second (3,341 m/s) through the canyon, with the fastest flow occurring in the later part of May and the first part of June, and
10850-404: The area to be flooded, $ 56 million for fish and wildlife facilities to mitigate the anticipated losses, and $ 39.7 million for roads and bridges to access the area. After completion of the dam, the Corps of Engineers estimated that operation and maintenance of the project would cost $ 6.5 million annually, including $ 570,000 for replacement power equipment and $ 2 million for
11005-422: The area. In part, it said: "... it may be said that relatively speaking, the archaeological potential of the Rampart Impoundment area is great; the practical difficulties of field work will have to be overcome in order to obviate the possible loss of what may be some of the most important prehistoric records in North America." The Canadian government also strongly opposed the Rampart Dam project. According to
11160-651: The back of the dam through a large pipe to drive a water wheel and watermill . In the 10th century, Al-Muqaddasi described several dams in Persia. He reported that one in Ahwaz was more than 910 m (3,000 ft) long, and that it had many water-wheels raising the water into aqueducts through which it flowed into reservoirs of the city. Another one, the Band-i-Amir Dam, provided irrigation for 300 villages. Shāh Abbās Arch (Persian: طاق شاه عباس), also known as Kurit Dam ,
11315-487: The bottom of the dam the central angle subtended by the face of the dam becomes smaller. Jones Falls Dam , in Canada, is a constant radius dam. In a constant-angle dam, also known as a variable radius dam, this subtended angle is kept constant and the variation in distance between the abutments at various levels is taken care of by varying the radii. Constant-radius dams are much less common than constant-angle dams. Parker Dam on
11470-592: The bridge, which initially be only for vehicular use. The United States Department of Defense would provide another $ 100 million in funds, as the bridge and a subsequent rail line would provide year-round access to Fort Greely and the Joint Tanana Training Complex. Groundbreaking ceremony for the Tanana River Bridge took place on September 28, 2011, and the new bridge was opened (for military road traffic only) in 2014. On 21 November 2011,
11625-402: The buttress loads are heavy. In a gravity dam, the force that holds the dam in place against the push from the water is Earth's gravity pulling down on the mass of the dam. The water presses laterally (downstream) on the dam, tending to overturn the dam by rotating about its toe (a point at the bottom downstream side of the dam). The dam's weight counteracts that force, tending to rotate the dam
11780-546: The campaign that preceded the 1960 U.S. Presidential election , both candidates ( Nixon and Kennedy) made campaign stops in Alaska. Both men gave their support to the Rampart Dam project, with Kennedy saying, "I see the greatest dam in the free world at Rampart Canyon, producing twice the power of the Tennessee Valley Authority to light homes and mills and cities and farms all over Alaska." Nixon, arriving three months after Kennedy, said, "As far as Rampart Canyon Dam
11935-497: The capital Amman . This gravity dam featured an originally 9-metre-high (30 ft) and 1 m-wide (3.3 ft) stone wall, supported by a 50 m-wide (160 ft) earthen rampart. The structure is dated to 3000 BC. However, the oldest continuously operational dam is Lake Homs Dam , built in Syria between 1319-1304 BC. The Ancient Egyptian Sadd-el-Kafara Dam at Wadi Al-Garawi, about 25 km (16 mi) south of Cairo ,
12090-626: The city. The masonry arch dam wall was designed by Lieutenant Percy Simpson who was influenced by the advances in dam engineering techniques made by the Royal Engineers in India . The dam cost £17,000 and was completed in 1856 as the first engineered dam built in Australia, and the second arch dam in the world built to mathematical specifications. The first such dam was opened two years earlier in France . It
12245-643: The company had rostered 27 steam locomotives, 16 railcars, 40 passenger cars and 858 freight cars. As of 2022 , Alaska Railroad rosters a total of 51 locomotives, two control cab units , and one DMU (self-propelled railcar): In 2011 the Alaska Railroad reacquired ARR 557, the last steam locomotive bought new by the railroad and the last steam locomotive used by the railroad, with the intent to refurbish and operate it in special excursions between Anchorage and Portage. A USATC S160 " 2-8-0 Consolidation" engine built in 1944 by Baldwin Locomotive Works , 557
12400-647: The construction of the Rideau Canal in Canada near modern-day Ottawa and built a series of curved masonry dams as part of the waterway system. In particular, the Jones Falls Dam , built by John Redpath , was completed in 1832 as the largest dam in North America and an engineering marvel. In order to keep the water in control during construction, two sluices , artificial channels for conducting water, were kept open in
12555-424: The construction process. Both the 1962 study, and another report by University of Michigan researcher Michael Brewer in 1966, stated that tens of thousands of jobs would be created by the construction process alone, even if the cheap electricity generated by the dam failed to attract any additional industries to Alaska. At the time Rampart Dam was being considered, Alaska as a whole, and Interior Alaska in particular,
12710-430: The cost for this effort was included in overall cost proposals for the project. Site clearing and foundation work would have been scheduled to begin after completion of the diversion work in the seventh year of the project. The first pouring of concrete was scheduled for the project's eighth year, and work on the powerhouse would have begun in the 11th year. Owing to the large size of the reservoir, engineers estimated that
12865-491: The dam and associated structures. Due to the lack of any land transportation route to the dam site, the first stage of construction would have involved the building of a temporary road from Eureka , about 30 miles (48 km) away, to the dam site. Consideration also was given to the extension of the Alaska Railroad from Fairbanks to the site. A period of about four years would have been required for preconstruction planning, including detailed construction surveying and finalizing
13020-469: The dam by the water reduces the lateral (horizontal) force acting on the dam. Thus, the gravitational force required by the dam is lessened, i.e., the dam does not need to be so massive. This enables thinner dams and saves resources. A barrage dam is a special kind of dam that consists of a line of large gates that can be opened or closed to control the amount of water passing the dam. The gates are set between flanking piers which are responsible for supporting
13175-554: The dam project was "the world's biggest boondoggle ". Dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation , human consumption , industrial use , aquaculture , and navigability . Hydropower is often used in conjunction with dams to generate electricity. A dam can also be used to collect or store water which can be evenly distributed between locations. Dams generally serve
13330-524: The dam was built and cheap electricity made available, "Alaska did not possess a competitive advantage". He concluded by saying that the project was "not economically efficient". Because of arguments like these, the common belief among informed observers outside Alaska was that the project was designed to benefit Alaska alone, and thus could almost be considered "foreign aid". An editorial in The New York Times summed up non-Alaska opinions when it asked if
13485-533: The dam was submitted by a consortium called Six Companies, Inc. Such a large concrete structure had never been built before, and some of the techniques were unproven. The torrid summer weather and the lack of facilities near the site also presented difficulties. Nevertheless, Six Companies turned over the dam to the federal government on 1 March 1936, more than two years ahead of schedule. By 1997, there were an estimated 800,000 dams worldwide, some 40,000 of them over 15 m (49 ft) high. In 2014, scholars from
13640-419: The dam was worthless, containing "not more than ten flush toilets. Search the whole world and it would be difficult to find an equivalent area with so little to be lost through flooding." In a 1963 letter responding to a Sports Illustrated article about the dam, Gruening wrote: As for the 2,000 Athabascan Indians, they could not but be better off than they are now. Their villages are flooded intermittently by
13795-425: The dam's construction because it would flood the Yukon Flats, a large wetland area that provides breeding ground for millions of waterfowl and habitat for game and fur-bearing animals. Alaska Native groups objected to the project's human cost – the need to relocate more than 1,500 people and nine villages – and Native groups outside the reservoir area objected to the potential devastation of
13950-605: The dam. If large enough uplift pressures are generated there is a risk of destabilizing the concrete gravity dam. On a suitable site, a gravity dam can prove to be a better alternative to other types of dams. When built on a solid foundation, the gravity dam probably represents the best-developed example of dam building. Since the fear of flood is a strong motivator in many regions, gravity dams are built in some instances where an arch dam would have been more economical. Gravity dams are classified as "solid" or "hollow" and are generally made of either concrete or masonry. The solid form
14105-407: The dam. The first was near the base of the dam on its east side. A second sluice was put in on the west side of the dam, about 20 ft (6.1 m) above the base. To make the switch from the lower to upper sluice, the outlet of Sand Lake was blocked off. Hunts Creek near the city of Parramatta , Australia , was dammed in the 1850s, to cater to the demand for water from the growing population of
14260-450: The dams' potential range and magnitude of environmental disturbances. The International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD) defines a "large dam" as "A dam with a height of 15 m (49 ft) or greater from lowest foundation to crest or a dam between 5 m (16 ft) metres and 15 metres impounding more than 3 million cubic metres (2,400 acre⋅ft )". "Major dams" are over 150 m (490 ft) in height. The Report of
14415-402: The design of the dam, powerhouse , and other structures. Engineers estimated that after the four years of final planning and surveying, three years would be needed to dig river diversion tunnels and construct the cofferdams needed to clear the Yukon River streambed for construction. Housing and construction offices also would have been constructed for workers on the south bank of the site, and
14570-456: The diversion tunnels would be closed in the 13th year, allowing construction to pace the filling of the new lake. The reservoir would have reached a pool elevation of 550 feet (168 m) in the 21st year, the dam would have been completed to elevation 660 feet (201 m) in the 25th year, and the reservoir would have been filled to the full 640-foot (195 m) level in the 31st year after the project's start. The installation of power generators
14725-428: The economic feasibility of the project. A detailed description of potential construction methods and the overall plan for the project were included, as were reports about the site's geography and hydrology. In total, the report encompassed two volumes including more than 480 pages. Because the construction season at the site is only five months, the Corps of Engineers projected that several decades would be needed to build
14880-482: The economy of the nation and the welfare of the whole free world." In early September 1963, a group of Alaska businesspeople, local government leaders, and industry representatives met at McKinley Park Lodge to organize lobbying efforts in favor of the dam. The resulting organization was called the Yukon Corporation for Power for America, later shortened to Yukon Power for America, Inc. The organization began with
15035-482: The far-off Yukon." Supporters of the project suggested that the cheap electricity provided by the dam would be a strong enticement for electricity-intensive industries, such as aluminum smelting , to move to Alaska. They were encouraged by a 1962 economic feasibility study by the Development and Resources Corporation, which stated that the electricity generated would attract aluminum, magnesium and titanium industries to
15190-489: The federal government to the state of Alaska on January 6, 1985. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 226,000, or about 1,700 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2024. In 2019, the company generated a US$ 21.6 million profit on revenues of US$ 203.9 million , holding US$ 1.1 billion in total assets. In 1903 a company called the Alaska Central Railroad began to build a rail line beginning at Seward , near
15345-549: The first large-scale arch dams. Three pioneering arch dams were built around the British Empire in the early 19th century. Henry Russel of the Royal Engineers oversaw the construction of the Mir Alam dam in 1804 to supply water to the city of Hyderabad (it is still in use today). It had a height of 12 m (39 ft) and consisted of 21 arches of variable span. In the 1820s and 30s, Lieutenant-Colonel John By supervised
15500-710: The first was the Roman-built dam bridge in Dezful , which could raise water 50 cubits (c. 23 m) to supply the town. Also diversion dams were known. Milling dams were introduced which the Muslim engineers called the Pul-i-Bulaiti . The first was built at Shustar on the River Karun , Iran, and many of these were later built in other parts of the Islamic world . Water was conducted from
15655-534: The force of water. A fixed-crest dam is a concrete barrier across a river. Fixed-crest dams are designed to maintain depth in the channel for navigation. They pose risks to boaters who may travel over them, as they are hard to spot from the water and create induced currents that are difficult to escape. There is variability, both worldwide and within individual countries, such as in the United States, in how dams of different sizes are categorized. Dam size influences construction, repair, and removal costs and affects
15810-455: The future Clear Air Force Station was purchased. (Clear is about 15 kilometers (9.3 mi) south of Nenana.) Approximately 40,000 feet (12 km) of track were diverted, and later a spur was constructed to deliver coal to its power station. The railroad was greatly affected by the Good Friday earthquake , which struck southern Alaska in 1964. The yard and trackage around Seward buckled and
15965-494: The group's members was Ted Stevens , who was appointed in 1968 as one of Alaska's representatives to the U.S. Senate. As planned, the dam would have produced roughly 34 terawatt hours annually, nearly 50 times the total energy use for the entire state of Alaska in 1960 (700 gigawatt hours). Gruening, in particular, believed that the dam would have an effect similar to that of the Tennessee Valley Authority in
16120-420: The growing protests of conservationists concerned about the project. After traveling the Yukon River, Brooks hypothesized that construction of the dam would be catastrophic from an ecological and human standpoint, would cost an exorbitant amount of money, and that the claims of attracting industry and tourism to Alaska were greatly exaggerated. In real terms, he estimated that construction of the dam would eliminate
16275-522: The habitat for 1.5 million ducks, 12,500 geese, 10,000 cranes, 270,000 salmon, 12,000 moose , and seven percent of Alaska's fur-bearing animals. Similar articles appeared in magazines such as Field and Stream , which called the project "a catastrophe of major proportions", and the Audubon Society Magazine , said the dam "would negate thirty years of endeavor in waterfowl preservation. Even sporting magazine Sports Illustrated got into
16430-468: The head of the proposed reservoir to the mouth of the Yukon River were against the dam. Don Young , Alaska's representative to the U.S. House of Representatives , was elected to the Alaska Legislature in 1964 from Fort Yukon on a platform of opposition to Rampart Dam. A survey of the archeological and paleontological potential of the Yukon Flats, conducted in 1965, objected to the potential loss of
16585-567: The impact it would have on fish and wildlife. In March 1961, a team of engineers from the Corps' Alaska district began drilling operations at the site to determine bedrock depth and gather other data. To examine the economic feasibility of the dam, the Corps of Engineers created the Rampart Economic Advisory Board (REAB) in February 1961. The REAB hired David E. Lilienthal 's Development and Resources Corporation in April to complete
16740-427: The lack of existing infrastructure in the region and said it was unlikely that enough electricity generated by the dam could be sold at a high enough price to pay for its construction. In his 1966 analysis of the project's economic feasibility, Michael Brewer refuted the conclusions of the 1962 federal study, saying that the ability of the dam to pay for itself was "an exercise in speculation". He also wrote that even if
16895-443: The lake itself, also creating the possibility of storms. Support for the dam project came from a variety of sources, but supporters tended to use three primary arguments in favor of its construction: the electricity generated by the project would be cheap and plentiful, industries would be attracted to Alaska by the cheap electricity, and the dam's construction would have minimal impact on the environment and human populations. During
17050-625: The main stream of the Kaveri River in Tamil Nadu , South India . The basic structure dates to the 2nd century AD and is considered one of the oldest water diversion or water regulating structures still in use. The purpose of the dam was to divert the waters of the Kaveri across the fertile delta region for irrigation via canals. Du Jiang Yan is the oldest surviving irrigation system in China that included
17205-543: The maintenance of fish and wildlife facilities. From the initial planning stages, proponents and opponents speculated that the large size of the reservoir created by the dam could affect the weather in Interior Alaska and the Yukon. Several studies were conducted in regards to these potential changes, and most of the reports hypothesized an effect similar to the weather that occurs around Great Slave Lake and Lake Baikal , both of which were of similar sizes and latitudes to
17360-539: The major potential hydroelectric power developments in North America. The first serious consideration of a dam project was made in a 1954 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers assessment of the resources of the Yukon and Kuskokwim River basin. Engineers considered Rampart Canyon to be a prime site for a hydroelectric dam. In April 1959, four months after President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed Alaska's declaration of statehood, junior U.S. Senator from Alaska Ernest Gruening passed
17515-492: The material could be found at the site, but the remainder would have to be brought from outside sources. At the projected pool elevation of 645 feet (197 m), the resulting reservoir would have had a total capacity of 1,145,000,000 acre-feet (1,410 km). The full pool length would have been about 270 miles (435 km), and the maximum width would have been 80 miles (129 km). The resulting lake would have had approximately 3,600 miles (5,800 km) of shoreline and
17670-467: The meeting to begin an independent scientific study of the project and start an opposition campaign. In the spring of 1964, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released a report on the impact of dam construction on the Flats. The report strongly opposed construction of the dam, saying in part: "Nowhere in the history of water development in North America have the fish and wildlife losses anticipated to result from
17825-668: The other basic dam designs which had been unknown until then. These include arch-gravity dams , arch dams , buttress dams and multiple arch buttress dams , all of which were known and employed by the 2nd century AD (see List of Roman dams ). Roman workforces also were the first to build dam bridges, such as the Bridge of Valerian in Iran. In Iran , bridge dams such as the Band-e Kaisar were used to provide hydropower through water wheels , which often powered water-raising mechanisms. One of
17980-429: The other way about its toe. The designer ensures that the dam is heavy enough that the dam's weight wins that contest. In engineering terms, that is true whenever the resultant of the forces of gravity acting on the dam and water pressure on the dam acts in a line that passes upstream of the toe of the dam. The designer tries to shape the dam so if one were to consider the part of the dam above any particular height to be
18135-466: The possibility of the dam creating a thriving tourism industry in Interior Alaska, a hypothesis that was raised by other dam supporters as well. Gruening stated that the project would be similar to Lake Powell , in that it would create a range of recreational activities, including water skiing and picnicking . Opposition to the project was based on three separate objections to its construction: ecological, human, and financial. Conservation groups opposed
18290-460: The predicted rate of entry of electroprocess industries like the aluminum industry (which had substantial power requirements) into Alaska. Moreover, the proposed dam would have greatly reduced the catch of five species of Pacific salmon, especially the chinook (king), chum (dog) and coho (silver) salmon. It would also eliminate vast numbers of migratory waterfowl, including an estimated 1.5 million ducks and 12,500 geese that migrated annually from
18445-463: The primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees (also known as dikes ) are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. The word dam can be traced back to Middle English , and before that, from Middle Dutch , as seen in the names of many old cities, such as Amsterdam and Rotterdam . Ancient dams were built in Mesopotamia and
18600-589: The principles behind dam design. In France, J. Augustin Tortene de Sazilly explained the mechanics of vertically faced masonry gravity dams, and Zola's dam was the first to be built on the basis of these principles. The era of large dams was initiated with the construction of the Aswan Low Dam in Egypt in 1902, a gravity masonry buttress dam on the Nile River . Following their 1882 invasion and occupation of Egypt ,
18755-408: The project funded studies of their own, aimed either at supporting or rejecting the arguments for the dam. In June 1967, the Department of the Interior made its final recommendation and suggested that the dam not be built. Secretary Udall cited the fish and wildlife losses that would result, the availability of less-costly alternatives, and the fact that no recreational benefits would accrue. Despite
18910-667: The project got beyond the planning stages, and the bridge idea was scrapped. As early as 1948, U.S. Government officials eyed the Rampart site for its hydroelectric potential. A report by Joseph Morgan, chief of the Alaska Investigations Office for the United States Bureau of Reclamation declared, "The demand for electric power supply in the [Alaska] Territory is expanding so rapidly that new installations of hydroelectric power plants are needed." Morgan's report listed 72 potential hydroelectric power sites in Alaska, but
19065-568: The project was canceled after objections were raised. Native Alaskans in the area protested the threatened loss of nine villages that would be flooded by the dam. Conservation groups abhorred the threatened flooding of the Yukon Flats , a large area of wetlands that provides a critical breeding ground for millions of waterfowl . Fiscal conservatives opposed the dam on the grounds of its large cost and limited benefit to Americans outside Alaska. Because of these objections, United States Secretary of
19220-401: The project would produce a maximum of 5 gigawatts of electricity. In total, the proposed reservoir was anticipated to cover an area of 10,700 square miles (27,700 km) and have a capacity of 1,300,000,000 acre-feet (1,600 km). In April 1964, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) released its report on the project. Though only a part of the larger Department of the Interior study,
19375-419: The project. The dam would be a concrete structure 530 feet (162 m) high and about 4,700 feet (1,430 m) long. It would raise the height of the Yukon River from 215 feet (66 m) above sea level to approximately 656 feet (200 m). The resulting reservoir would be 400 miles (640 km) long, 80 miles (130 km) wide, and have a surface area greater than that of Lake Erie. The power facilities for
19530-409: The proposed reservoir. Forecasts predicted the lake would hold in heat longer during the autumn, thus keeping area temperatures slightly warmer than normal. In the spring, however, the area around the lake would have been prone to increased precipitation due to the phenomenon of lake-effect snow . In the summer, the long periods of daylight would have caused the land around the lake to become warmer than
19685-457: The rail line and extended it another 21 miles (34 km) northward. From the new end, goods were floated down the Turnagain Arm in small boats. The Alaska Northern Railroad went into receivership in 1914. At about this time, the United States government was planning a railroad route from Seward to the interior town of Fairbanks. President William Howard Taft authorized a commission to survey
19840-476: The region and help process locally produced minerals. The report also stated that the dam would attract a wood pulp mill on at least a temporary basis to process the hundreds of millions of board feet of timber that would otherwise be lost as the dam's reservoir flooded. The authors of the DRC report were specific enough to predict that 19,746 jobs would be created by the dam's construction, not including jobs opened during
19995-420: The reservoir would take no fewer than 16 years to complete. The Rampart Dam's large size had a correspondingly large price tag. The Corps of Engineers anticipated spending $ 618.4 million (1970 dollars) on construction of the physical dam alone, another $ 492 million for power-generating equipment, and $ 1.39 billion in total. That total included $ 15.59 million for relocating Alaskans from
20150-572: The route would originate at Delta Junction and use Carmacks as a hub, as in prior plans. The route would continue through Watson Lake, Yukon , en route to a stop at Fort Nelson, British Columbia . It would continue to Peace River, Alberta , with its southern terminus at Fort McMurray . The route was endorsed by the Assembly of First Nations . It was unclear whether this rail connection would ever be utilized for passenger service. On September 25, 2020, then President Donald Trump announced he would issue
20305-516: The slowest flow occurring after the river has frozen over. This occurs no later than early November and lasts until mid April. In 1944 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers considered building a bridge across Rampart Gorge as part of a project to extend the Alaska Railroad from Fairbanks to Nome to facilitate lend-Lease shipments to the Soviet Union during World War II . The war ended before
20460-497: The smaller-scale Susitna Hydroelectric Project proposed by the Federal Bureau of Reclamation for south-central Alaska, but thanks to Gruening's support and that of other backers, the Rampart project took precedence. The Rivers and Harbors Act of 1960 passed by the U.S. Congress in that year included a $ 2 million appropriation to conduct a full four-year feasibility study of the project, including its economic feasibility and
20615-613: The south bank would have been a concrete gravity spillway with a crest at elevation 600 feet (183 m) and a maximum flow of 603,000 cubic feet per second (17,100 m/s) at maximum pool elevation. The power facilities would have consisted of twenty-two 266,000 kilowatt units and two 10,000 kilowatt service units. Materially, building the dam would have required 15,000,000 cubic yards (11,470,000 m) of concrete aggregate, 2,900,000 cubic yards (2,220,000 m) of rock fill, and another 1,700,000 cubic yards (1,300,000 m) of various other types of fill. Engineers suggested that some of
20770-512: The south bank, the land rises sharply to a ridge 1,500 feet (457 m) high. North of the river, the bank rises to 1,200 feet (366 m) before ascending gradually northwest to the Ray Mountains . Below the surface of the ground are patches of permafrost , and the area is seismically active. An earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter Scale struck the region in 1968, and a 5.0 earthquake hit
20925-468: The southern portion of the track to Nenana, and later converted the extension to standard gauge. The Alaska Railroad continued to operate the remaining TVRR narrow gauge line as the Chatanika Branch (the terminus was near the Yukon River ), until decommissioning it in 1930. In 1923 they built the 700-foot (213 m) Mears Memorial Bridge across the Tanana River at Nenana. This was the final link in
21080-677: The southern tip of the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska, northward. The company built 51 miles (82 km) of track by 1909 and went into receivership . This route carried passengers, freight and mail to the upper Turnagain Arm . From there, goods were taken by boat at high tide, and by dog team or pack train to Eklutna and the Matanuska-Susitna Valley . In 1909, another company, the Alaska Northern Railroad Company, bought
21235-487: The state of New Mexico defines a jurisdictional dam as 25 feet or greater in height and storing more than 15 acre-feet or a dam that stores 50 acre-feet or greater and is six feet or more in height (section 72-5-32 NMSA), suggesting that dams that do not meet these requirements are non-jurisdictional. Most US dams, 2.41 million of a total of 2.5 million dams, are not under the jurisdiction of any public agency (i.e., they are non-jurisdictional), nor are they listed on
21390-626: The state of Alaska, unlike the state's other quasi-corporations: the Alaska Permanent Fund , the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, and the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority. An extension of the railroad from Fairbanks to Delta Junction over a bridge spanning the Tanana River was envisioned as early as 2009. The 2011 Alaska state budget would provide $ 40 million in funding for
21545-591: The study, and a team of Corps engineers and REAB members arrived in the state in June to study the Rampart project first-hand. At that time, Sen. Gruening estimated that the project would cost roughly $ 1.2 billion to complete. As investigation and planning work continued, the Corps of Engineers reached an agreement with the Department of the Interior, the parent agency of the Bureau of Reclamation, in March 1962. The agreement stated
21700-563: The trackage along Turnagain Arm was damaged by floodwaters and landslides. It took several months to restore full service along the line. In 1967, the railroad was transferred to the Federal Railroad Administration, an agency within the newly created United States Department of Transportation . In 1975-76, an infusion of $ 15 million from the DOT enabled various capital improvements including those to facilitate hauling materials for
21855-406: The water level and to prevent the sea from entering the marshlands. Such dams often marked the beginning of a town or city because it was easy to cross the river at such a place, and often influenced Dutch place names. The present Dutch capital, Amsterdam (old name Amstelredam ), started with a dam on the river Amstel in the late 12th century, and Rotterdam began with a dam on the river Rotte ,
22010-634: The water load, and are often used to control and stabilize water flow for irrigation systems. An example of this type of dam is the now-decommissioned Red Bluff Diversion Dam on the Sacramento River near Red Bluff, California . Barrages that are built at the mouths of rivers or lagoons to prevent tidal incursions or use the tidal flow for tidal power are known as tidal barrages . Embankment dams are made of compacted earth, and are of two main types: rock-fill and earth-fill. Like concrete gravity dams, embankment dams rely on their weight to hold back
22165-577: The world is the 305 m-high (1,001 ft) Jinping-I Dam in China . As with large dams, small dams have multiple uses, such as, but not limited to, hydropower production, flood protection, and water storage. Small dams can be particularly useful on farms to capture runoff for later use, for example, during the dry season. Small scale dams have the potential to generate benefits without displacing people as well, and small, decentralised hydroelectric dams can aid rural development in developing countries. In
22320-532: Was 102 m (335 ft) long at its base and 87 m (285 ft) wide. The structure was built around 2800 or 2600 BC as a diversion dam for flood control, but was destroyed by heavy rain during construction or shortly afterwards. During the Twelfth Dynasty in the 19th century BC, the Pharaohs Senosert III, Amenemhat III , and Amenemhat IV dug a canal 16 km (9.9 mi) long linking
22475-416: Was among the first non-Alaska conservation groups to oppose construction of the dam, saying in 1963 that it would inundate the Yukon Flats, an area of wetlands that is among North America's largest waterfowl breeding grounds. Following that objection, other groups began to organize during the 1963 North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference . Fifteen conservation groups pooled a total of $ 25,000 at
22630-551: Was built. The system included 16 reservoirs, dams and various channels for collecting water and storing it. One of the engineering wonders of the ancient world was the Great Dam of Marib in Yemen . Initiated sometime between 1750 and 1700 BC, it was made of packed earth – triangular in cross-section, 580 m (1,900 ft) in length and originally 4 m (13 ft) high – running between two groups of rocks on either side, to which it
22785-483: Was linked by substantial stonework. Repairs were carried out during various periods, most importantly around 750 BC, and 250 years later the dam height was increased to 7 m (23 ft). After the end of the Kingdom of Saba , the dam fell under the control of the Ḥimyarites (c. 115 BC) who undertook further improvements, creating a structure 14 m (46 ft) high, with five spillways, two masonry-reinforced sluices,
22940-440: Was originally coal-fired but was converted to oil in 1955. It operated until 1964, when it was deemed surplus and sold as scrap. It was purchased by Monte Holm of Moses Lake, Washington and displayed in his House of Poverty Museum. After Holm's death in 2006, Jim and Vic Jansen bought 557 from the museum and returned it to the Alaska Railroad on the condition that it be restored to operation and put into service. The locomotive
23095-413: Was planned to follow as needed, with the last unit scheduled for installation by the 45th year of the project. In total, the dam would have consisted of a concrete gravity structure with a structural height of 510 feet (155 m) and a hydraulic height of 430 feet (131 m). At the elevation of 660 feet (201 m), the dam would have stretched for 4,700 feet (1,430 m) from north to south. On
23250-404: Was possibly the world's first concrete arch dam. Designed by Henry Charles Stanley in 1880 with an overflow spillway and a special water outlet, it was eventually heightened to 10 m (33 ft). In the latter half of the nineteenth century, significant advances in the scientific theory of masonry dam design were made. This transformed dam design from an art based on empirical methodology to
23405-450: Was released in December 1963, and reported that building the dam was feasible from an engineering standpoint. President John F. Kennedy supported the project, and lobbied for an appropriation of $ 197,000 (1963 dollars) to continue study of the project. The needed money was included in a House appropriations bill, and studies continued. The initial report included some figures about the size of
23560-497: Was reorganized as the Alaska Northern Railroad Company in 1911, which extended the line another 21 miles (34 km) northward. On March 12, 1914, the U.S. Congress agreed to fund construction and operation of an all-weather railroad from Seward to Fairbanks and purchased the rail line from the financially struggling Alaska Northern. As the government started building the estimated $ 35 million railroad, it opened
23715-416: Was sparsely settled. The 1960 United States Census recorded just 226,127 people as residents of Alaska, making it the least-populated state in the United States at that time. Interior Alaska contained about 28,000 residents, and promoters suggested that the dam's benefits would vastly outweigh the costs to the few residents who would be displaced. An unnamed Gruening staffer once said the area to be flooded by
23870-461: Was the first French arch dam of the industrial era , and it was built by François Zola in the municipality of Aix-en-Provence to improve the supply of water after the 1832 cholera outbreak devastated the area. After royal approval was granted in 1844, the dam was constructed over the following decade. Its construction was carried out on the basis of the mathematical results of scientific stress analysis. The 75-miles dam near Warwick , Australia,
24025-658: Was the largest masonry dam in the world. The Hoover Dam is a massive concrete arch-gravity dam , constructed in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River , on the border between the US states of Arizona and Nevada between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression . In 1928, Congress authorized the project to build a dam that would control floods, provide irrigation water and produce hydroelectric power . The winning bid to build
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