Gibraltar Dam

Last updated
Gibraltar Dam
Gibraltar Dam and Reservoir.jpg
Bird's eye view of the dam and lower part of the reservoir
CountryUnited States
Location Santa Barbara County, California
Coordinates 34°31′37″N119°41′13″W / 34.52694°N 119.68694°W / 34.52694; -119.68694 [1]
Construction began1913;110 years ago (1913) [2]
Opening dateJanuary 23, 1920;
103 years ago
 (1920-01-23) [3]
Construction cost$2 million (1920 dollars) [3]
Owner(s) City of Santa Barbara
Dam and spillways
Type of dam Concrete arch
Impounds Santa Ynez River
Height194.5 ft (59.3 m) [4]
Length600 ft (180 m) [4]
Reservoir
CreatesGibraltar Reservoir
Total capacityOriginal: 15,374 acre⋅ft (18,964,000 m3) [5]
Most recent survey (2017): 4,968 acre⋅ft (6,128,000 m3) [5]
Current
(Estimate February 2019): 4,314 acre⋅ft (5,321,000 m3) [6]
Catchment area 216 sq mi (560 km2) [4]
Surface area248 acres (100 ha) [4]
Normal elevation1,400 ft (430 m) max [7]
Power Station
Installed capacity 820 KW [8]
Annual generation 1,874,000 KWh [8]

Gibraltar Dam is located on the Santa Ynez River, in southeastern Santa Barbara County, California, in the United States. Forming Gibraltar Reservoir, the dam is owned by the city of Santa Barbara. Originally constructed in 1920 and expanded in 1948, the dam and reservoir are located in a remote part of the Los Padres National Forest.

Contents

The main purpose of Gibraltar Dam is domestic water supply. It provides about 4,600 acre-feet (5,700,000 m3) of water to Santa Barbara each year, supplying almost 30% of the city's needs. [7] Water diverted from the dam also powers a small hydroelectric plant. Due to having lost a massive portion of its capacity to sediment build-up, the lake can often fill and spill after a single storm, [9] while drying up completely in some years. [10] As of February 2019, sedimentation has reduced the reservoir's capacity to 4,314 acre-feet (5,321,000 m3), only 19% of its designed capacity. [11]

The dam is built in a part of the Santa Ynez River called the "Gibraltar Narrows" that gave its name to the Gibraltar (or Sunbird) mercury mine, which operated next to what is now Gibraltar Reservoir between the 1870s and 1990s. [12]

Description

Gibraltar Dam is a constant radius concrete arch dam 194.5 feet (59.3 m) high and 600 feet (180 m) long. [4] The dam is located about 72 miles (116 km) from the mouth of the Santa Ynez River [13] and just above the confluence of Devils Canyon with the river. The dam controls runoff from a drainage basin of 216 square miles (560 km2) [7] with an annual inflow of 24,000 acre-feet (30,000,000 m3). [14] The Santa Ynez basin upstream is mostly wilderness and inflows are unregulated with the exception of the smaller Juncal Dam (owned by the Montecito Water District). [15] Downstream of Gibraltar, the Santa Ynez flows into the much larger Lake Cachuma, owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. [16]

The concrete spillway extends southward from the main dam and is controlled by four manually operated radial gates. Flashboards can be installed atop the gates during the non-flood season to increase the reservoir capacity. [17] The spillway capacity is about 90,000 cubic feet per second (2,500 m3/s). [18] The spillway is designed so that overflow water cascades down the natural sandstone face adjacent to the dam, creating a 150-foot (46 m) high waterfall. [19]

The original design capacity of Gibraltar Reservoir was 15,374 acre-feet (18,964,000 m3). [5] After its 1948 expansion the gross capacity was increased to 22,500 acre-feet (27,800,000 m3), though so much sediment had already accumulated that the usable capacity was still only about 15,000 acre-feet (19,000,000 m3). [5] Since then, the dam has not been raised nor any sediment dredged from the reservoir, and it has gradually declined to a third of its original capacity. As of February 2019, sedimentation has reduced the reservoir's capacity to 4,314 acre-feet (5,321,000 m3), or only 19% of its designed capacity. [20]

Water is drawn from the reservoir via an intake structure near the south end of the dam into the 3.7-mile (6.0 km) Mission Tunnel, which transports water beneath the Santa Ynez Mountains to a small regulation basin, Lauro Reservoir. The water is either treated at the Cater Water Treatment Plant before entering the city's distribution system, or released into Mission Creek for groundwater recharge. [21] The Mission Tunnel has a diversion capacity of 40 cubic feet per second (1.1 m3/s). [22]

At the end of the Mission Tunnel is the 820 kilowatt Lauro hydroelectric plant, which was initially constructed in 1985 but was idled in 1998 due to increasing costs. The city repaired and recommissioned the plant in 2015 after the cost of federal licensing decreased, but drought prevented the plant from actually running until early 2017. [23] [24]

Climate

Climate data for Gibraltar Dam, CA (1991-2020 normals)
MonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)66.1
(18.9)
66.9
(19.4)
70.1
(21.2)
75.5
(24.2)
80.0
(26.7)
88.2
(31.2)
93.7
(34.3)
95.5
(35.3)
91.4
(33.0)
83.3
(28.5)
73.3
(22.9)
64.3
(17.9)
79.0
(26.1)
Daily mean °F (°C)51.2
(10.7)
51.7
(10.9)
54.3
(12.4)
58.1
(14.5)
63.0
(17.2)
68.6
(20.3)
74.4
(23.6)
75.0
(23.9)
71.2
(21.8)
64.1
(17.8)
56.7
(13.7)
48.9
(9.4)
61.4
(16.3)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)36.2
(2.3)
36.4
(2.4)
38.4
(3.6)
40.6
(4.8)
45.9
(7.7)
48.9
(9.4)
55.0
(12.8)
54.4
(12.4)
50.9
(10.5)
44.8
(7.1)
40.0
(4.4)
33.5
(0.8)
43.8
(6.6)
Average precipitation inches (mm)7.06
(179)
7.56
(192)
4.68
(119)
1.65
(42)
0.68
(17)
0.05
(1.3)
0.07
(1.8)
0.00
(0.00)
0.09
(2.3)
1.11
(28)
1.48
(38)
4.19
(106)
28.62
(727)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in)7.99.56.13.61.90.40.30.10.62.13.26.141.8
Source: NOAA [25] [26]

Background and construction

The Santa Ynez River at Gibraltar dam site, before damming. Gibraltar dam site, upper end of gorge at proposed axis of dam.tiff
The Santa Ynez River at Gibraltar dam site, before damming.

In the early 1900s the City of Santa Barbara had exhausted its local water supplies, and looked to the drainage basin of the nearby Santa Ynez River, which is much larger than any of the city's local streams. [27] In 1904 construction began on the Mission Tunnel which was bored under Mission Canyon in the Santa Ynez Mountains, to tap surface and ground water in the Santa Ynez basin. [21] [28] At that time, it was the longest water tunnel in the world. [21] The city sought to build a dam somewhere on the Santa Ynez River in order to increase the water supply available for Mission Tunnel. Between 1913 and 1919, revenue bonds totaling $820,000 were issued for the construction of the dam and water system. [29]

Several dam sites were considered including the Mono Creek, Juncal and Main River sites, but all were dropped in favor of Gibraltar, which offered the largest storage capacity and highest available run-off as well as the most geologically favorable dam site. [30] Rock-fill, masonry and concrete designs were all studied. [31] The Mission Tunnel was extended to the Gibraltar dam site, which would ultimately allow water to flow by gravity to Santa Barbara. [32] Site preparation work began in 1913 with the placement of foundations in the riverbed, [2] for which a $40,000 contract was awarded to Arthur S. Bent Construction Co. [33] In 1917 a concrete "thrust block" was poured on the south side of the canyon to take the weight of the future dam, as the rock on this side was not high enough to support the structure. [2] The contract for the dam itself was let to Bent Brothers and W.A. Kraner on July 8, 1918. [3]

Because there was no road to the site, workers and supplies were transported via an 18 in (460 mm) gauge, 220-volt electric railway inside the Mission Tunnel, which was only 4 feet (1.2 m) high and 3.5 feet (1.1 m) wide. This also limited the size of the equipment used at the site, such as a steam shovel, concrete mixers and rock crushers, which had to be disassembled and moved through the tunnel piece by piece. [34] Up to three trains were operated at once, with a passing siding in the middle of the tunnel allowing for one trainload of supplies to be delivered every half-hour. [34] Hazardous materials such as dynamite were not allowed inside the tunnel and had to be packed over the Santa Ynez Mountains on a primitive trail. [34] The work was made even more difficult by the constant leakage of groundwater into the tunnel which formed "a continuous downpour from the roof in many places" and special care had to be taken to prevent contamination, since this water ultimately flowed into Santa Barbara's municipal supply. [34]

After the numerous logistics problems were worked out, construction of the dam proceeded at a rapid pace with 15,000 cubic yards (11,000 m3) poured in the first three months of work. [34] To allow normal river flows to pass through the dam during construction, a 4-by-6-foot (1.2 m × 1.8 m) hole was left in the bottom of the dam. [2] A total of 270,000 sacks of cement and 400,000 board feet of lumber were hauled through the tunnel during construction. [3] Aggregate used for concrete making was mined from the river bed and processed at a crushing/screening plant located about 200 feet (61 m) upstream from the dam. [2] The mixed concrete was then placed on the dam via a cableway system anchored by a 185-foot (56 m) steel tower. [2] During the winter of 1918-1919 construction had to halt for three months due to the risk of flooding in the river-bottom gravel mining areas. [3] The dam was initially built to a height of 170 feet (52 m) above the stream bed, and 185 feet (56 m) above bedrock. [2]

When completed on January 23, 1920, [3] Gibraltar became the first dam to impound the Santa Ynez River. [7] [16] Due to the extremely inaccessible location of the dam, construction ended up costing nearly $2,000,000. [3] According to the Engineering News-Record (1920) "at no place on the dam is variation from true line greater than one inch." [34] The hole in the base of the dam was closed by a temporary valve before being concreted in from downstream, allowing the reservoir to begin filling. [2] Although the dam itself was now complete, there was a lack of funds to finish the spillway. The winter of 1920-21 was dry and the new reservoir failed to fill, forcing the city to use limited groundwater supplies. Heavy rains in January and February 1922 filled and overflowed the reservoir for the first time. Flooding heavily damaged the temporary spillway, and erosion along a previously unknown fault zone beneath the spillway nearly led to its collapse. The structure was rebuilt at a cost of $90,000. [35]

Gin Chow v. Santa Barbara

In 1928 Gin Chow, who owned a farm on the Santa Ynez River, sued the city of Santa Barbara challenging its right to divert water from Gibraltar Reservoir, and soon 39 other farmers in the Santa Ynez Valley signed on to the case. [36] Chow's demand was based upon the doctrine of riparian water rights in which existing landowners along a river have the right to the full, unimpaired flow of the stream through their property regardless of how or whether they use it. Riparian rights had been challenged by a controversial state amendment passed that year, which provided that "the water resources of the State be put to beneficial use" and that "the right to water... does not and shall not extend to the waste or unreasonable use... of water" [37] and the Gin Chow case was the first serious legal test of the amendment. [37]

Five years later Gin S. Chow v. Santa Barbara was settled in the California Supreme Court in favor of the city. [38] The court determined that "the waters to be impounded and taken by the defendants are extraordinary storm waters of the river and not a part of the usual and customary flow of the stream" – essentially, the diversion did not have a negative effect on downstream landowners since these floodwaters would have flowed into the ocean anyway. [39] The Gin Chow decision allowed the city to divert up to 4,189 acre-feet (5,167,000 m3) per year from Gibraltar Dam as a "prescriptive right", but also required the city to release at least 616 acre-feet (760,000 m3) during the late summer and fall when the natural river flow is lowest. In addition, the city is allowed to take "an additional amount of storm runoff resulting from torrential rains." These rules continue to govern the operation of the dam today. [40] [41]

Gin Chow is considered a landmark case in the development of California water law, as it upheld the 1928 amendment, reducing riparian landowners' legal power over the state's water resources. This enabled more parties, such as the city of Santa Barbara, to file claims on surface water as long as the concept of "reasonable use" was observed. [37] The court also emphasized that "what is such reasonable use is a question of fact, and depends upon the circumstances appearing in each particular case" [39] and that "it requires no extraordinary foresight to envision the great and increasing population of the state... dependent upon stored water – water that is now wasted into the sea and lost to any beneficial use. [42] This is considered to have set a legal precedent for the state of California to build more dams. [42]

Expansion projects

Immediately after its construction, the reservoir began to suffer from heavy sedimentation, a problem made worse by occasional wildfires in upstream areas. The 1932 Matilija Fire burned some 50,000 acres (20,000 ha) of the drainage basin, and in response to the increased erosion the U.S. Forest Service constructed two debris dams upstream to hold back sediment washed off the burned landscape. The Mono Debris Dam, an Ambursen-type structure, was built in 1936 and had completely filled with 1 million yd3 (770,000 m3) of sediment by 1938. The concrete-arch Agua Caliente Debris Dam was completed in late 1937 and by 1941 had filled with 750,000 yd3 (570,000 m3) of sediment. Despite the scale of these conservation projects, they only extended Gibraltar's useful life by a few years. [43] The flood of March 1938 was a major contributor to the large volume of debris run-off and caused $340,000 of damage downstream in the Lompoc area. [44]

By 1948, sediment had filled half of Gibraltar reservoir. Compounding the problem, severe drought struck in the winter of 1947-48, and the remaining water was soon sucked dry and an emergency water rationing ordinance was enacted. [45] In summer 1948 the dam was raised 23 feet (7.0 m) and a new buttressed spillway section added. This restored the reservoir to a capacity of 14,000 acre-feet (17,000,000 m3) when it filled the next winter. [5] [9] Enlarging the dam cost $1.1 million, which was again paid by bonds issued by the city of Santa Barbara. [29] However, the expanded reservoir continued filling with sediment faster than expected. Without enough storage capacity the reservoir has been subject to more frequent spills, depriving the city of water it otherwise could have used. This was a major factor behind the construction of Bradbury Dam by the federal government in 1953 to store more Santa Ynez River water in Lake Cachuma, about 25 miles (40 km) downstream of Gibraltar Dam. [46]

After a seismic evaluation in 1983, Gibraltar Dam was rehabilitated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after it was found at risk of failure from a strong earthquake. A buttress of roller-compacted concrete was laid against the downstream face. Although the project added no new storage capacity to the dam, it was designed to support a 20-foot (6.1 m) increase in height should that be needed in the future. The work was carried out from October to December 1990 and involved placing 93,000 cubic yards (71,000 m3) of concrete. [18] This essentially changed the dam from a pure arch to an arch-gravity structure. [18] The entire cost of the project was $8.18 million. [47]

"Pass-through" operation and future plans

Gibraltar Dam, viewed from downstream Gibraltar Dam, Santa Barbara Co.jpg
Gibraltar Dam, viewed from downstream

In the early 1980s the city of Santa Barbara once again expressed interest in raising the dam. [5] However, the California Department of Water Resources and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation determined that further enlargement of Gibraltar Dam would have an adverse effect on water flowing downstream into the Lake Cachuma reservoir. In 1989 the Upper Santa Ynez River Operations Agreement or "Pass Through Agreement" was developed in which some water spilled from Gibraltar Dam can be legally stored in Lake Cachuma for the city's use, thus eliminating the need to raise Gibraltar. [17]

In 2017, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation estimated the annual sediment inflow rate at 210 acre-feet (260,000 m3) or about 1.3 percent of its original design capacity per year. [5] In the 21st century the reservoir has also been frequently at a low level, due both to persistent drought conditions and high water demand. In 2016 the reservoir dried up so completely that water had to be trucked to the dam keeper. [48]

As of 2017, there were no plans to remove sediment from the reservoir or to mitigate its inflow. The 1989 Pass Through Agreement was designed under the assumption that, once Gibraltar reservoir is nearly full of sediment, it will be operated as a run-of-the-river project (serving only to divert water) with most of its storage functions transferred to Lake Cachuma. [7] However, the Bureau of Reclamation predicts that the reservoir will not completely fill with mud; it will stabilize at about 2,000 acre-feet (2,500,000 m3) of water volume due to the "flushing action of high flows" [5] and that this level will be reached around 2031. [5]

Environmental issues

Gibraltar Dam completely blocked migrating steelhead to the upper third of the Santa Ynez River when completed in 1920. This was despite a 1916 suggestion of the California Fish and Game Commission that a fish ladder be constructed with the dam; no such structure was ever built. [13] The dam "altered downstream hydrology, sediment transport, stream habitat, [and] water quality" and also delayed steelhead migration during the early rainy season by holding back floodwaters that otherwise might have breached the sandbar at the mouth of the river. [13]

No reliable estimates have been made of the steelhead population prior to Gibraltar's construction; however, it is believed to have been much greater. [49] The dam did not appear to have a large impact on downstream steelhead populations; in 1946 a group of fisheries biologists described steelhead habitat between Solvang and Gibraltar Dam as "excellent". [13] [50] Steelhead migration to the base of Gibraltar Dam ended with the completion of Bradbury Dam in 1953. [51] In 2004 it was proposed to trap adult steelhead below Bradbury Dam and truck them to the river above Gibraltar Dam so they could be allowed to complete their natural migration, [52] but this plan was not implemented.

Despite the fragmentation of certain aquatic habitats, the dam has also inadvertently created new riparian habitat along the Santa Ynez River as the upstream end of Gibraltar Reservoir gradually fills in with sediment. A wide floodplain with a well defined stream channel was created, and is now home to typical California riparian woodland (willow, cottonwood and oak). This has provided habitat for endangered species such as the least Bell's vireo. [53]

The 2007 Zaca Fire burned much of the upper Santa Ynez watershed, causing huge amounts of ash-laden silt to flow into Gibraltar Reservoir. [5] Organic material in the ash reacted with chlorine disinfectant in Santa Barbara's water supply to form carcinogenic compounds. Cleaning up the water cost the city nearly $3 million. [54] Other more recent fires have also impacted the Gibraltar watershed, such as the 2016 Rey Fire [55] and the 2017 Thomas Fire. [56]

There have been concerns of mercury contamination at the reservoir due to the proximity of the old Gibraltar Mine (Sunbird Mine) which ceased operations in 1991. However, no evidence of mercury has been found in the reservoir, and there have been no cases of mercury poisoning in Santa Barbara County connected with the mine site. [12]

Public access

Although the dam and reservoir are open to the public, only official vehicles are allowed on the narrow winding dirt roads leading to the dam. The shortest way to reach the dam on foot is a 6-mile (9.7 km) round trip hike along the Santa Ynez River from Red Rock Campground. [57] It can also be reached from several trails originating at Camino Cielo Road. [58] The Gibraltar Trail follows the southern edge of the reservoir from the dam, and several other trails branch around the reservoir into the backcountry of Los Padres National Forest. Boating, fishing and swimming are not allowed at the reservoir since it is a public water supply.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glen Canyon Dam</span> Dam in Arizona, USA

Glen Canyon Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the southwestern United States, located on the Colorado River in northern Arizona, near the city of Page. The 710-foot-high (220 m) dam was built by the Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) from 1956 to 1966 and forms Lake Powell, one of the largest man-made reservoirs in the U.S. with a capacity of more than 25 million acre-feet (31 km3). The dam is named for Glen Canyon, a series of deep sandstone gorges now flooded by the reservoir; Lake Powell is named for John Wesley Powell, who in 1869 led the first expedition to traverse the Colorado River's Grand Canyon by boat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shasta Dam</span> Dam in California, US

Shasta Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam across the Sacramento River in Northern California in the United States. At 602 feet (183 m) high, it is the eighth-tallest dam in the United States. Located at the north end of the Sacramento Valley, Shasta Dam creates Shasta Lake for long-term water storage, flood control, hydroelectricity and protection against the intrusion of saline water. The largest reservoir in the state, Shasta Lake can hold about 4,500,000 acre-feet (5,600 GL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cachuma Lake</span> Reservoir in Santa Barbara County, California

Cachuma Lake is a reservoir in the Santa Ynez Valley of central Santa Barbara County, California on the Santa Ynez River adjoining the north side of California State Route 154. The artificial lake was created by the construction of Bradbury Dam, a 201 ft (61 m) earth-fill structure built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in 1953. Its surface area covers 3,100 acres (1,300 ha), with a maximum design capacity of 205,000 acre⋅ft (253,000,000 m3), but it is currently limited to 188,000 acre⋅ft (232,000,000 m3) due to sediment accumulation. The late-December 2022 and early-January 2023 storms dramatically raised the water level in the lake, from an average of 33% full to 100% full for the first time in 12 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oroville Dam</span> Dam in California

Oroville Dam is an earthfill embankment dam on the Feather River east of the city of Oroville, California, in the Sierra Nevada foothills east of the Sacramento Valley. At 770 feet (235 m) high, it is the tallest dam in the U.S. and serves mainly for water supply, hydroelectricity generation, and flood control. The dam impounds Lake Oroville, the second-largest reservoir in California, capable of storing more than 3.5 million acre-feet (1.1×10^12 US gal; 4.3×109 m3).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Oroville</span> Reservoir in Butte County, California, U.S.

Lake Oroville is a reservoir formed by the Oroville Dam impounding the Feather River, located in Butte County, northern California. The lake is situated 5 miles (8 km) northeast of the city of Oroville, within the Lake Oroville State Recreation Area, in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Known as the second-largest reservoir in California, Lake Oroville is treated as a keystone facility within the California State Water Project by storing water, providing flood control, recreation, freshwater releases to assist in controlling the salinity intrusion into the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and protecting fish and wildlife.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity Dam</span> Dam in Trinity County, California

Trinity Dam is an earthfill dam on the Trinity River located about 7 miles (11 km) northeast of Weaverville, California in the United States. The dam was completed in the early 1960s as part of the federal Central Valley Project to provide irrigation water to the arid San Joaquin Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Ynez River</span> River in California, United States

The Santa Ynez River is one of the largest rivers on the Central Coast of California. It is 92 miles (148 km) long, flowing from east to west through the Santa Ynez Valley, reaching the Pacific Ocean at Surf, near Vandenberg Space Force Base and the city of Lompoc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flaming Gorge Dam</span> Dam on the Green River in Utah, United States

Flaming Gorge Dam is a concrete thin-arch dam on the Green River, a major tributary of the Colorado River, in northern Utah in the United States. Flaming Gorge Dam forms the Flaming Gorge Reservoir, which extends 91 miles (146 km) into southern Wyoming, submerging four distinct gorges of the Green River. The dam is a major component of the Colorado River Storage Project, which stores and distributes upper Colorado River Basin water.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California State Water Project</span> Flood control, energy production, and water conveyance infrastructure

The California State Water Project, commonly known as the SWP, is a state water management project in the U.S. state of California under the supervision of the California Department of Water Resources. The SWP is one of the largest public water and power utilities in the world, providing drinking water for more than 27 million people and generating an average of 6,500 GWh of hydroelectricity annually. However, as it is the largest single consumer of power in the state itself, it has a net usage of 5,100 GWh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Waddell Dam</span> Dam in Maricopa County, Arizona

The New Waddell Dam is an embankment dam on the Agua Fria River in Maricopa County, Arizona, 35 miles (56 km) northwest of Phoenix. It serves as part of the Central Arizona Project (CAP) while also providing water for the Maricopa Water District. The dam creates Lake Pleasant with water from the Agua Fria and also the CAP aqueduct. In addition, it affords flood protection, hydroelectric power production and recreational opportunities. Construction on the dam began in 1985 and ended in 1994. Its reservoir submerged the Old Waddell Dam which was completed in 1927 after decades of planning.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Navajo Dam</span> Dam in San Juan and Rio Arriba Counties, New Mexico

Navajo Dam is a dam on the San Juan River, a tributary of the Colorado River, in northwestern New Mexico in the United States. The 402-foot (123 m) high earthen dam is situated in the foothills of the San Juan Mountains about 44 miles (71 km) upstream and east of Farmington, New Mexico. It was built by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) in the 1960s to provide flood control, irrigation, domestic and industrial water supply, and storage for droughts. A small hydroelectric power plant was added in the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Folsom Dam</span> Dam in Folsom, California

Folsom Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the American River of Northern California in the United States, about 25 mi (40 km) northeast of Sacramento. The dam is 340 ft (100 m) high and 1,400 ft (430 m) long, flanked by earthen wing dams. It was completed in 1955, and officially opened the following year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellowtail Dam</span> Dam in Big Horn County, Montana

Yellowtail Dam is a dam across the Bighorn River in south central Montana in the United States. The mid-1960s era concrete arch dam serves to regulate the flow of the Bighorn for irrigation purposes and to generate hydroelectric power. The dam and its reservoir, Bighorn Lake, are owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Owyhee Dam</span> Dam in Malheur County, Oregon

Owyhee Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam on the Owyhee River in Eastern Oregon near Adrian, Oregon, United States. Completed in 1932 during the Great Depression, the dam generates electricity and provides irrigation water for several irrigation districts in Oregon and neighboring Idaho. At the time of completion, it was the tallest dam of its type in the world. The dam is part of the Owyhee Dam Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spring Creek Dam</span> Dam in Shasta County, California

Spring Creek Debris Dam is an earthfill dam on Spring Creek, a tributary of the Sacramento River, in Shasta County in the U.S. state of California. Completed in 1963, the dam, maintained by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, serves primarily to collect severe acid mine drainage stemming from the Iron Mountain Mine. The dam forms the Spring Creek Reservoir, less than 1 mile (1.6 km) long. Spring Creek and South Fork Spring Creek flow into the reservoir from a 16-square-mile (41 km2) watershed. The dam is directly upstream from the city of Keswick, California and the Keswick Reservoir. The operation is part of the Trinity River Division of the Central Valley Project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Risks to the Glen Canyon Dam</span> Aspect of dam construction

Glen Canyon Dam, a concrete arch dam on the Colorado River in the American state of Arizona, is viewed as carrying a large amount of risk, most notably due to siltation. The Colorado and San Juan rivers deposit large volumes of silt into Lake Powell, slowly decreasing its capacity. The sediment will eventually build up against the dam and could affect its safe operation and lead to its failure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Fe Dam</span> Dam in Irwindale, California

Santa Fe Dam is a flood-control dam on the San Gabriel River located in Irwindale in Los Angeles County, California, United States. For most of the year, the 92-foot (28 m)-high dam and its reservoir lie empty, but can hold more than 45,000 acre-feet (56,000,000 m3) of water during major storms. During the dry season, the basin behind the dam is used for groundwater recharge, as well as various recreational activities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bradbury Dam</span> Dam in Santa Barbara County, California

Bradbury Dam is an earthen dam across the Santa Ynez River in central Santa Barbara County, California. The dam forms Lake Cachuma, which provides the majority of water supplies within the county.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heron Dam</span> Dam in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico

Heron Dam is a storage dam Rio Arriba County, in northern New Mexico in the southwestern United States, just north of the El Vado Dam. It is owned and operated by the United States Bureau of Reclamation. The dam is about 9 miles west of the town of Tierra Amarilla.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salinas Dam</span> Dam in California, United States

The Salinas Dam is a dam built on the Salinas River in San Luis Obispo County, California. Designed by Raymond A. Hill, the gravity dam features an arched design with an open spillway. The War Department began construction on the dam in mid-1941, as World War II began to reach the Pacific. The original intent of the dam was to supply water to Camp San Luis Obispo, which the Army was considering expanding to meet military needs. However, the camp’s wells ultimately provided sufficient water to the camp, and the reservoir water was never required or used by the military. Today, the dam operations are leased by the city of San Luis Obispo, to supply water to the city and surrounding agricultural areas. The reservoir created by the dam is known as the Santa Margarita Lake, or Santa Margarita Reservoir.

References

  1. "Gibraltar Dam". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. 1981-01-19. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Gibraltar Water-Supply Dam at Santa Barbara". Engineering News-Record. 84 (21): 1003–1004. May 1920.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Santa Barbara's Gibralter Dam". Public Works. 48 (24): 556–558. 1920.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Gibraltar Dam". National Dam Performance Program. Stanford University. Archived from the original on 2012-12-11. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Storage and Conveyance of the City of Santa Barbara's Gibraltar Reservoir Pass Through Water in and Through Cachuma Project Facilities". U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Jan 2016. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  6. "Rainfall and Reservoir Summary" (PDF). Santa Barbara County - Flood Control District. February 17, 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "Gibraltar Reservoir". City of Santa Barbara. 2017-11-09. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  8. 1 2 "City of Santa Barbara, California; Notice of Preliminary Determination of a Qualifying Conduit Hydropower Facility and Soliciting Comments and Motions To Intervene". Federal Register. 78 (196). 2013-10-09. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  9. 1 2 Fayram, Thomas; Frye, Jonathan; Johnson, Shawn; Doran, Alex (2016-10-25). "Santa Barbara County Hydrology Report, Precipitation, Rivers/Streams, & Reservoirs, Water-Year 2016" (PDF). County of Santa Barbara. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  10. Palminteri, John (2013-11-08). "Water Worry: Gibraltar Dam Empty and Cachuma Lake Now Down to 44 Percent". KEYT. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  11. "Rainfall and Reservoir Summary" (PDF). Santa Barbara County - Flood Control District. February 17, 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
  12. 1 2 Blunden, Devon (2009-04-19). "Lost Secrets of the Sunbird Quicksilver Mine". Santa Barbara Independent. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
  13. 1 2 3 4 Alagona, Peter S.; et al. (2012). "A History of Steelhead and Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in the Santa Ynez River Watershed, Santa Barbara County, California" (PDF). Bulletin of the Southern California Academy of Sciences. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 111 (3): 163–222. doi:10.3160/0038-3872-111.3.163 . Retrieved 2018-01-25.
  14. Brown 1944, p. 120.
  15. "Sources of Water". Montecito Water District. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  16. 1 2 Latousek, Thomas A. (1995). "Cachuma Project". U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Retrieved 2017-01-13.
  17. 1 2 "Enlargement of Lake Cachuma and Bradbury Dam Safety Modifications, Draft Environmental Impact Report". California Department of Water Resources. Nov 1990. p. 47. Retrieved 2018-01-25.
  18. 1 2 3 McDonald, James E., Curtis, Nancy F. (Apr 1997). "Applications of Roller-Compacted Concrete in Rehabilitation and Replacement of Hydraulic Structures" (PDF). U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 1, 2013. Retrieved 2018-01-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  19. Lippincott 1905, p. 80.
  20. "Rainfall and Reservoir Summary" (PDF). Santa Barbara County - Flood Control District. February 17, 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
  21. 1 2 3 "Mission Tunnel". City of Santa Barbara. 2017-04-13. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  22. "Water Resources of Santa Barbara County" (PDF). Santa Barbara County Water Agency. Jul 2000. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  23. "Gibraltar hydroelectric plant begins producing clean energy". KEYT. 2017-03-06. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  24. Yamamura, Jean (2017-03-08). "Santa Barbara Hydropower Back in Business". Santa Barbara Independent. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  25. "NOWData - NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  26. "Monthly Normals 1991-2020". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Retrieved March 21, 2022.
  27. Lippincott 1905, p. 23.
  28. Carey 2012, p. 113.
  29. 1 2 Troxell 1957, p. 41.
  30. Lippincott 1905, p. 67-72.
  31. Lippincott 1905, p. 82-87.
  32. Lippincott 1905, p. 43.
  33. "Contracts Awarded". Municipal Journal. 37 (2). 1914. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  34. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Move Equipment and Material for Dam Through Small Tunnel". Engineering News-Record. 82 (14): 681–682. Apr 1919.
  35. Hill, R.A. (Nov 1922). "Repairing the Spillway to the Gibraltar Dam". Engineering News-Record. 89 (19): 798–801.
  36. "Gin Chow: First the predictions, then fame". Santa Maria Times. 2014-07-27. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  37. 1 2 3 Treadwell, Edward F. (Oct 1950). "Developing a New Philosophy of Water Rights". California Law Review. University of California, Berkeley. 38 (4): 572–587. doi:10.2307/3477994. JSTOR   3477994 . Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  38. "Gin Chow". Santa Barbara Historical Museum. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  39. 1 2 Shenk, John Wesley. "Gin S. Chow v. City of Santa Barbara, 22 P.2d 5 (Cal. 1933)". Court Listener. Retrieved 2017-01-14.
  40. "Hydrology technical report for the Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report, Cachuma Project contract renewal". U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Nov 1994. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  41. "Enlargement of Lake Cachuma and Bradbury Dam safety modifications". California Department of Water Resources. Nov 1990. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  42. 1 2 "California Supreme Court, Records and Briefs: SF24368, Answer / Opposition to Petition for Writ, 02". LA Law Library. 1981-06-30.
  43. Brown 1944, p. 35–36.
  44. Frank & Betts 1946, p. 16.
  45. "Ventura-Santa Barbara County Investigation". California State Printing Office. Sep 1929. pp. 17–30. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  46. Troxell 1957, p. 113.
  47. "Engineering and Design Evaluation and Repair of Concrete Structures" (PDF). U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. 1995-06-30. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
  48. Palminteri, John (2016-12-12). "Water is trucked to Gibraltar Dam for city worker on duty". KEYT. Retrieved 2018-01-18.
  49. "Santa Ynez River Steelhead Assessment and Recovery Project - Santa Barbara County, CA". Stoecker Ecological. 2004. Retrieved 2018-05-03.
  50. "Cachuma Project Contract Renewal, Santa Barbara County, California: Environmental Impact Statement, Volume 1". U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. 1995. p. 22. Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  51. Alagona, Peter S. (2012). "The history of steelhead and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) in the Santa Ynez River watershed, Santa Barbara County, California". Bulletin of the Southern California Academy of Sciences. Occidental College. 111 (3): 163–222. doi:10.3160/0038-3872-111.3.163.
  52. "Lower Santa Ynez River Fish Management Plan and Cachuma Project Biological Opinion for Southern Steelhead Trout: Environmental Impact Statement, Volume 1". U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. 2004. Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  53. Warner & Hendrix 1984, p. 605.
  54. Preston, Ben (2010-03-18). "Santa Barbara's Water Has a Rich History, a Complex Future: Despite modern science and technology, basic challenges of delivery and storage transcend eras". Noozhawk. Retrieved 2018-05-03.
  55. Hodgson, Mike (2017-01-24). "Cachuma Lake among the last of state's reservoirs in 'exceptional drought'". Lompoc Record. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  56. Santa Barbara County Department of Public Works, Water Resources Division (2017-12-27). "Thomas Fire, Santa Barbara County, California" (PDF). County of Santa Barbara. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  57. McCaslin, Dan (2013-01-01). "Gibraltar Dam Loop-hike - Childlike Wonder". Santa Barbara Independent. Retrieved 2018-05-03.
  58. "Trail Quest: Gibraltar Reservoir". Songs of the Wilderness. 2013-07-26. Retrieved 2018-08-25.

Works cited