| Yale Dam | |
|---|---|
| Yale Dam, north side | |
Interactive map of Yale Dam | |
| Location | Clark / Cowlitz counties, Washington, USA |
| Coordinates | 45°57′51″N122°19′57″W / 45.96417°N 122.33250°W |
| Status | Operational |
| Opening date | 1953 |
| Designed by | Ebasco Services Inc. |
| Operator | PacifiCorp [1] |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Embankment dam |
| Impounds | Lewis River |
| Height | 323 feet (98.5 m) |
| Length | 1,500 feet (457 m) [2] |
| Elevation at crest | 460 feet (140 m) |
| Spillway type | Gated concrete ogee/chute |
| Spillway length | 195 feet (59.4 m) |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Yale Lake |
| Total capacity | 402,000 acre-feet (0.496 km3) |
| Catchment area | 600 square miles (1,550 km2) |
| Power Station | |
| Hydraulic head | 240 square miles (622 km2) |
| Turbines | 2 |
| Installed capacity | 134,000 kW [3] |
Yale Dam is a 323-foot high earth-type hydroelectric dam on the Lewis River, in the U.S. state of Washington, [4] owned by PacifiCorp. [2] It is located on the border between Cowlitz County and Clark County. Its reservoir is called Yale Lake. The dam's power plant capacity is 134 megawatts. [3]
In January 2020, PacifiCorp, the dam owner, lowered the reservoir level 10 feet below normal operating level in order to reduce the probability of an accidental release due to an earthquake. [5]