Coquitlam Dam

Last updated
Coquitlam Dam
Location Coquitlam, British Columbia
Coordinates 49°21′14″N122°46′37″W / 49.35389°N 122.77694°W / 49.35389; -122.77694
Opening date1914
Operator(s) BC Hydro
Dam and spillways
Impounds Coquitlam River
Height31 m
Length290 m
Reservoir
Creates Coquitlam Lake
Surface area1100 ha

Coquitlam Dam is a hydraulic fill embankment dam on the Coquitlam River in the city of Coquitlam, British Columbia. Although it has no powerhouse of its own, its waters divert to Buntzen Lake, making it part of BC Hydro's electrical generation infrastructure. [1] It is also one of the main reservoirs for the Greater Vancouver Water District. BC Hydro has released a new document in March 2018 that addresses emergency preparedness and outlines the areas effected should the dam fail as a result of an extreme earthquake event. [2]

Contents

History

The first Coquitlam Dam, built to raise the water level of Coquitlam Lake by five feet, was begun in April 1904, and completed in 1905. It was built to protect the water supply to powerhouses on Indian Arm, via a tunnel to Buntzen Lake, and also supplied water to New Westminster. [3] By 1906 the original dam was discovered to be leaking, and while repairs were made the leak continued through 1908, until a second dam was completed in 1914. At the time of the tunnel's completion, it was the longest power diversion tunnel in the world. [3] Due to seismic concerns, an embankment dam was built on the downstream side of the original rockfill dam in 2008. [4]

The Port Moody-Coquitlam Railway, no longer operating, was built to assist with the dam's construction.

Related Research Articles

The British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority, operating as BC Hydro, is a Canadian electric utility in the province of British Columbia. It is the main electricity distributor, serving more than 4 million customers in most areas, with the exception of the City of New Westminster, where the city runs its own electrical department and portions of the West Kootenay, Okanagan, the Boundary Country and Similkameen regions, where FortisBC, a subsidiary of Fortis Inc. directly provides electric service to 213,000 customers and supplies municipally owned utilities in the same area. As a provincial Crown corporation, BC Hydro reports to the BC Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation, and is regulated by the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC). Its mandate is to generate, purchase, distribute and sell electricity.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revelstoke Dam</span> Dam in Revelstoke, Canada

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangla Dam</span> Multipurpose dam in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan

The Mangla Dam is a multipurpose dam situated on the Jhelum River in the Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. It is the sixth-largest dam in the world. The village of Mangla, which sits at the mouth of the dam, serves as its namesake. In November 1961, the project's selected contractors were revealed; it was announced that Binnie & Partners, a British engineering firm, was going to serve as the lead designers, engineers, and inspectors for the construction of the dam. The project was undertaken by a consortium known as the Mangla Dam Contractors, which consisted of eight American construction firms sponsored by the Guy F. Atkinson Company based in South San Francisco, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coquitlam River</span> River in British Columbia, Canada

The Coquitlam River is a tributary of the Fraser River in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The river's name comes from the word Kʷikʷəƛ̓əm which translates to "Red fish up the river". The name is a reference to a sockeye salmon species that once occupied the river's waters.

Coquitlam Lake is a reservoir located just north of Coquitlam, British Columbia. It is one of the three main water sources for Metro Vancouver, and part of the Coquitlam watershed. It is also a part of BC Hydro's power generation system. A tunnel directs water from the lake to nearby Buntzen Lake, and from there to a pair of power stations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridge River Power Project</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buntzen Lake</span> Body of water in British Columbia, Canada

Buntzen Lake is a 4.8 kilometres (3 mi) long lake in Anmore, British Columbia, Canada, in the Greater Vancouver area. It is named after the first general manager of the B.C. Electric Co., Johannes Buntzen. There is a smaller lake just to the north named McCombe Lake.

Eagle Mountain, also known as Eagle Ridge, is the mountainous ridge with many indistinct summits between Buntzen Lake and Coquitlam Lake near Coquitlam, British Columbia. Its proximity to Coquitlam, and the houses being built on its southern slopes, make it a very popular weekend destination for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and ATV riding. There is a network of logging roads leading up the south side of the summit to a plateau area with lakes, hiking trails and mountain biking trails.

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The Jordan River Dam, officially the Jordan River Diversion Dam, and known locally simply as Diversion Dam, is a dam located in Jordan River, British Columbia, Canada. It is part of the second hydroelectric development on Vancouver Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goldstream Powerhouse</span> Hydroelectric plant in Victoria, Canada

The Goldstream Powerhouse is a decommissioned hydroelectric plant located near Goldstream Provincial Park in Langford, near Victoria, British Columbia. This plant provided electricity to Victoria for 60 years and is one of the little-known and ingenious chapters in the history of Victoria. This plant was one of the first hydro plants of this type on the west coast of North America. The structure is over a century old and is unsafe to inhabit. It is within the boundaries of the watershed lands owned by the CRD and is inaccessible to the public due to its proximity to a drinking water reservoir.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruskin Dam and Powerhouse</span> Dam in Ruskin, British Columbia

Ruskin Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Stave River in Ruskin, British Columbia, Canada. The dam was completed in 1930 for the primary purpose of hydroelectric power generation. The dam created Hayward Lake, which supplies water to a 105 MW powerhouse and flooded the Stave's former lower canyon, which ended in a small waterfall approximately where the dam is today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stave Falls Dam and Powerhouse</span> Dam in Stave Falls

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kootenay Canal</span> Dam in British Columbia, Canada

The Kootenay Canal is a hydroelectric power station, located 19 km downstream of Nelson, British Columbia, Canada. Where the Kootenay River flows out of the reservoir formed by the Corra Linn Dam on Kootenay Lake., a canal diverts water to BC Hydro's Kootenay Canal Generating Station. Its construction was a result of the Duncan Dam and Libby Dam providing year round flows into Kootenay Lake. The powerhouse was completed in 1976.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metro Vancouver watersheds</span> Source region for municipal water in Metro Vancouver, Canada

The Metro Vancouver watersheds, also known as the Greater Vancouver watersheds, supply potable water to approximately 2.7 million residents in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. They provide tap water to a land area covering more than 2,600 square kilometres (1,000 sq mi), serving a total of 21 member municipalities, one electoral district, and one treaty First Nation. From west to east, the watersheds are the Capilano, the Seymour, and the Coquitlam. They are located in the North Shore Mountains and Coquitlam Mountain, respectively. Each watershed possesses a reservoir for water storage purposes, under the control of Metro Vancouver. The reservoirs are supplied by about 3.5 metres (11 ft) of rain and 4.5 metres (15 ft) of snowpack annually. Two additional off-catchment areas under control of Metro Vancouver contribute to the water supply. The watersheds have a long history of controversies surrounding logging, highway development, and salmon run conservation.

References

  1. BC Hydro: Coquitlam River and Buntzen Lake Watersheds Archived 2007-10-13 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on 22 February 2009
  2. "Coquitlam Dam Emergency Flood Map" (PDF).
  3. 1 2 Will Koop: Coquitlam Watershed History Archived 2006-10-07 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on 22 February 2009
  4. BC Hydro: Coquitlam Dam Seismic Upgrade Archived 2009-02-15 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 12 March 2009