Oahe Dam: Difference between revisions

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{{Use American English|date=July 2025}}

[[Image:lake oahe.jpg|thumb|300px|Upper Lake Oahe (Reservoir), between Cannon Ball, North Dakota, and Pollock, South Dakota, as seen from space, October 1985. South is at the top of the photo.]]

{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2012}}

{{Infobox dam

| name = Oahe Dam

| image = Pierre South Dakota.jpg

| image_caption = Oahe Dam from the International Space Station

| name_official =

| dam_crosses = [[Missouri River]]

| res_name = [[Lake Oahe]]

| dam_type = [[Embankment dam|Embankment]], Rolled-earth fill & shale berms

| res_capacity_total = {{convert|23137000|acre.ft|km3|lk=in}}<ref name="mainstem-system"/>

| res_surface = {{convert|374000|acre|ha}}<ref name="mainstem-system"/> (max)

| spillway_count = 8 50-foot x 23.5-foot tainter gates

| spillway_capacity = 304,000 cfs at 1,644.4 feet msl pool elevation

| plant_turbines = 7x 112.29 MW

| cost =$340 Million

| ___location =[[Hughes County, South Dakota|Hughes]]/[[Stanley County, South Dakota|Stanley]] counties, [[South Dakota]]

| location_map = USA South Dakota

| coordinates = {{coord|44|27|07|N|100|23|57|W|display=inline,title}}

| operator = [[Image:United States Army Corps of Engineers logo.svg|24px]] [[U.S. Army Corps of Engineers]], Omaha District

| dam_length = {{convert|9360|ft|m}}

| dam_height = {{convert|245|ft|m}}

| dam_volume = {{convert|93122000|yd3|m3}}

| dam_width_base = {{convert|3500|ft|m}}

| construction_began = {{Start date and age|1948}}

| opening = {{Start date and age|1962}}

| plant_capacity = 786 [[Megawatt|MW]]

| plant_commission = April 1962–June 1963<ref name="mainstem-system"/>

| plant_annual_gen = 2,621 [[Gigawatt hour|GWh]]<ref name="mainstem-system">{{cite web|url=https://www.nwd-mr.usace.army.mil/rcc/projdata/summaryengdat.pdf|title=Summary of Engineering Data – Missouri River Main Stem System|publisher=U.S. Army Corps of Engineers|work=Missouri River Division|date=August 2010|access-date=2012-08-17|archive-date=February 7, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207121436/http://www.nwd-mr.usace.army.mil/rcc/projdata/summaryengdat.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

| website = [https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Missions/Dam-and-Lake-Projects/Missouri-River-Dams/Oahe/ U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Oahe Project]

}}

The '''Oahe Dam''' ({{IPAc-en|ou|'|a:|h|i:}}) is a large earthen [[dam]] on the [[Missouri River]], just north of [[Pierre, South Dakota|Pierre]], [[South Dakota]], [[United States]]. Begun in 1948 and opened in 1962, the dam creates [[Lake Oahe]], the fourth-largest man-made [[reservoir]] in the United States. The reservoir stretches {{convert|231|mi|km}} up the course of the Missouri to [[Bismarck, North Dakota]]. The dam's power plant provides electricity for much of the north-central United States. It is named for the Oahe Indian Mission established among the [[Lakota Sioux]] in 1874.

The project provides [[flood control]], [[Hydroelectric power|hydropower generation]], [[irrigation]], and [[navigation]] benefits. The Oahe Dam is one of six Missouri River mainstem dams, the next dam upstream is [[Garrison Dam]], near [[Riverdale, North Dakota]], and the next dam downstream is [[Big Bend Dam]], near [[Fort Thompson, South Dakota]].

The '''Oahe Dam''' is a large man-made [[dam]] along the [[Missouri River]], just north of [[Pierre, South Dakota]] in the [[United States]]. It creates '''Lake Oahe''', the 4th largest man-made [[reservoir]] in the United States, which stretches 231 miles (372 km) up the course of the Missouri to [[Bismarck, North Dakota]]. The dam's powerplant provides electricity for much of northcentral United States. It is named for the Oahe Indian Mission established among the [[Lakota Sioux]] in [[1874]].

[[South Dakota Highway 204]] runs directly atop the Oahe Dam, providing an automobile crossing of the Missouri River at the dam.

==History==

[[File:Lake Oahe.jpg|thumb|Upper Lake Oahe (Reservoir), between Pollock, South Dakota, and Cannon Ball, North Dakota, as seen from space, October 1985. North is at the bottom of the photo.]]

In September and October of [[1804]], the [[Lewis and Clark Expedition]] passed through what is now Lake Oahe while exploring the Missouri River.

In September and October 1804, the [[Lewis and Clark Expedition]] passed through what is now Lake Oahe while exploring the Missouri River.

The Oahe Dam was authorized by the [[Flood Control Act of 1944]], and construction by the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers]] began in [[1948]]. ItThe beganworld's [[Electricityfirst generation|generatingrock power]]tunnel boring machine (TBM) was invented in [[1962]]1952 by James S. Robbins for the Oahe Dam project,<ref>{{cite andweb |title=Robbins celebrates 60 years of achievement |date=Oct 2012 |url=http://www.tunneltalk.com/Accolades-Awards-Oct12-Robbins-celebrates-60-years-of-TBM-achievement.php |work=TunnelTalk.com }}</ref> which marked the beginning of machines replacing human tunnelers.<ref>Wall Street Journal, 4/25/2016, p.R3</ref> The earth main dam reached its full height in October 1959. It was officially dedicated by President [[John F. Kennedy]] on [[August 17, 1962, the year in which it began [[Electricity generation|generating power]]. ofThe thatoriginal yearproject cost was $340,000,000.

==Statistics==

[[ImageFile:Lake_sharpeLake Sharpe Big Bend.jpg|thumb|300px|Looking southeast from space, August, 1989. The lower Oahe Reservoir and Oahe Dam are near the bottom of this view; [[Lake Sharpe]] and [[Big Bend Dam]] are near the top, as seen from space, August, 1989. [[Pierre, South Dakota]] is near the bottom of the photo; [[Chamberlain, South Dakota]] is near the top. South-east is at the top of the photo.]]

* Dam height: {{convert|245 feet (75 |ft|m)}}

* Dam volume of earth fill: 92,000,000 cubic yards (70,000,000 m³)

* Dam volume of concrete: 1,122,000 cubic yards (858,000 m³)

* Spillway width: {{convert|456 feet|ft|m}}

* Spillway crest elevation: 1,596{{convert|1596.5 feet|ft|m}}

* Lake maximum depth: {{convert|205 |ft|m}}

* Plant discharge {{convert|56000|cuft/s|m3/s}}

*Water speed through dam: 11 mph

* Water speed through intake tunnels: 11&nbsp;mph (5&nbsp;m/s)

*Number of turbines: 7

* Intake tunnel length: 3,650 feet (average) (1110 m)

*Power generated per turbine: 112,290 [[kW]]

* Number of [[water turbine|turbines]]: 7, Francis type, 100 RPM

*reservoir storage capacity: 2.35 million [[acre-feet]] (29 km³).

* Power generated per turbine: 112.29 [[Megawatt|MW]]

*States served with electricity: [[North Dakota]], [[South Dakota]], [[Nebraska]], [[Minnesota]] and [[Montana]]

* reservoir storage capacity: {{convert|23500000|acre.ft|km3}}.

*Number of recreation areas around lake: 51

* States served with electricity: [[North Dakota]], [[South Dakota]], [[Nebraska]], [[Minnesota]] and [[Montana]]

*Miles of shoreline: 2,250 (more than [[California]])

* Number of recreation areas around lake: 51

* Shore length: {{convert|2250|mi|km}}

* Counties bordering lake: 14, including 4 in North Dakota (Burleigh, Emmons, Morton, Sioux), and 10 in South Dakota (Campbell, Corson, Dewey, Haakon, Hughes, Potter, Stanley, Sully, Walworth, and Ziebach)

==Tours==

[[File:Oahe Powerhouse.jpg|thumb|Oahe powerhouse showing [[surge tank]]s and powerhouse, looking to the north-west]]

Tours of the powerplant are given daily, Memorial Day through Labor Day.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Oahe Project Resumes Powerhouse Tours; Visitor Center Summer Hours Set |url=https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Media/News-Releases/Article/3055108/oahe-project-resumes-powerhouse-tours-visitor-center-summer-hours-set/https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Media/News-Releases/Article/3055108/oahe-project-resumes-powerhouse-tours-visitor-center-summer-hours-set/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221130204757/https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Media/News-Releases/Article/3055108/oahe-project-resumes-powerhouse-tours-visitor-center-summer-hours-set/ |archive-date=2022-11-30 |access-date=2022-09-24 |website=Omaha District |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Native American displacement==

As a result of the dam's construction the [[Cheyenne River Indian Reservation]] lost {{convert|150000|acre|abbr=off|lk=off}} bringing it down to {{convert|2850000|acre}} today. The [[Standing Rock Reservation]] lost {{convert|55993|acre}} leaving it with {{convert|2300000|acre}}. Much of the land was taken by eminent ___domain claims made by the Bureau of Reclamation. Over and above the [[land consumption|land loss]], most of the reservations' prime agricultural land was included in the loss. The regions where the populations were resettled had soil with a higher clay content, and resources such as medicinal plants were less prevalent.<ref name="dn">{{cite interview

|last = Allard

|first = LaDonna Brave Bull

|interviewer = [[Amy Goodman]]

|title = Interview with LaDonna Brave Bull Allard, Standing Rock Sioux tribal historian, on the 153rd anniversary of the Whitestone massacre

|subject-link = LaDonna Brave Bull Allard

|medium = video

|url = http://www.democracynow.org/shows/2016/9/8

|work = [[Democracy Now!]]

|date = 2016-09-03

|time = 42:26

|access-date = 2016-09-11

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160910155127/http://www.democracynow.org/shows/2016/9/8

|archive-date = September 10, 2016

|url-status = dead

|df = mdy-all

}} ([http://www.democracynow.org/2016/9/8/standing_rock_sioux_historian_dakota_access transcript])</ref>

The loss of this land had a dramatic effect on the Natives who lived on the reservations. Most of the land was unable to be harvested (to allow the trees to be cut down for wood, etc.) before the land was flooded over with water.<ref>{{Cite book| last=Carrels | first=Peter| year=1999 | title=Uphill Against Water | publisher=University of Nebraska Press | isbn=0-8032-6397-X}}</ref> One visitor to the reservations later asked why there were so few older Natives on the reservations and was told that "the old people had died of heartache" after the construction of the dam and the loss of the reservations' land.<ref name=bord2>{{cite web |url=http://www.dickshovel.com/bord2.html |title=The Natives Are Getting Uppity |work=Ilze Choi |publisher=dickshovel.com |access-date=April 5, 2009 }}</ref> As of 2015, poverty remains a problem for the displaced populations in the Dakotas, who are still seeking compensation for the loss of the towns submerged under Lake Oahe, and the loss of their traditional ways of life.<ref>{{Cite web|title = No Man's Land: The Last Tribes of the Plains. As industry closes in, Native Americans fight for dignity and natural resources|url = http://www.msnbc.com/interactives/geography-of-poverty/nw.html|access-date = 2015-09-28|last = Lee|first = Trymaine|website = MSNBC - Geography of Poverty Northwest|archive-date = May 18, 2020|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200518175101/http://www.msnbc.com/interactives/geography-of-poverty/nw.html|url-status = dead}}</ref>

[[Huff Archeological Site]] is a fortified [[Mandan]] village site on what is now the bank of Lake Oahe. It is designated a [[National Historic Landmark]], but is endangered by erosion pressure from the lake.

==2011 flooding==

{{Main|2011 Missouri River Floods}}

[[File:Oahe Dam Flooding 061511.jpg|thumb|Oahe Dam release gates discharging floodwater at a record 160,000 cubic feet/second in June, 2011.]]

Excessive precipitation in the spring, along with melting snow from the Rocky Mountains forced the dam to open the release gates (not the spillway), releasing {{Convert|110000|ft3/s|m3/s|0|abbr=on}} in June with another {{Convert|50000|ft3/s|m3/s|0|abbr=on}} through the power plant totaling {{Convert|160000|ft3/s|m3/s|0|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite news|last=Associated Press|title=Oahe Dam Releases Water With Rumbling Force|url=http://www.keloland.com/NewsDetail6162.cfm?Id=116367|access-date=June 7, 2011|date=June 7, 2011}}</ref> The previous release record was {{Convert|53900|ft3/s|m3/s|0|abbr=on}} in 1997.

==See also==

{{Portal|Water|Renewable energy}}

* [[Keystone Pipeline]]

* [[List of reservoirs and dams in the United States]]

==Notes==

.

{{Reflist}}

==ToursReferences==

* Lawson, Michael L. Dammed Indians: the Pick-Sloan Plan and the Missouri River Sioux, 1944–1980. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1982. {{ISBN|0-8061-2672-8}}

* Lazarus, Edward. Black Hills, White Justice: The Sioux Nation Versus the United States, 1775 to the Present. New York: HarperCollins, 1991. {{ISBN|0-06-016557-X}}.

Tours of the powerplant are given daily Memorial Day through Labor Day. Tours start at the Visitor Center, with check in at 9:30 a.m, 1:00 p.m, and 3:30 p.m. Plan an hour and a half per tour, and bring a photo ID. Groups of 10 or more should call to schedule a tour. Tours in the off-season by special appointment only. For large groups and off-season tours, please call [phone].

* [https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/91-2051.ZO.html Cornell University site]

* U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pamphlet "Oahe Power Plant", no date

==Native American Displacenment==

* Summary of Engineering Data – Missouri River Main Stem System http://www.nwd-mr.usace.army.mil/rcc/projdata/summaryengdat.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120207121436/http://www.nwd-mr.usace.army.mil/rcc/projdata/summaryengdat.pdf |date=February 7, 2012 }} [https://www.nwd-mr.usace.army.mil/rcc/projdata/summaryengdat.pdf]

As a result of the dam's construction the [[Cheyenne River Indian Reservation]] lost 150,000 acres bringing it down to 2,850,000 acres today. [[Standing Rock Reservation]] lost 55,993 acres leaving it with 2,300,000 acres. Over and above the acreage loss, most of the reservations' prime agriculture land was included in the loss. The loss of this land had a dramatic effect on the Indians who lived on the reservations. One visitor to the reservations later asked why there were so few older Indians on the reservations, and was told that "the old people had died of heartache" after the construction of the dam and the loss of the reservations' land.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}

==External links==

* [https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Missions/Dam-and-Lake-Projects/Missouri-River-Dams/Oahe/ U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Oahe Project]

* [https://www.nwd-mr.usace.army.mil/rcc/reports/pdfs/MRBWM_River_Daily.pdf Daily Reservoir Water Levels and Water Releases Information (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers)]

{{MissouriRiverDams}}

* [http://www.engineeringsights.org/sightDetail.asp?Sightid=481&image=0&id=bridges&view=k&name=&page=1 Oahe Dam and Lake Oahe, A Sightseer's Guide to Engineering page]

{{Omaha District dams}}

* [http://www.sdgfp.info/Wildlife/Boating/RampConditions.htm Boat ramp conditions]

{{Authority control}}

* Satellite image of Oahe Dam and Pierre, South Dakota, in [http://local.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=pierre,+SD&ie=UTF8&z=12&ll=44.43329,-100.38826&spn=0.186808,0.571289&t=h&om=1 Google Maps]

* Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Community Environmental Profile [http://www.mnisose.org/profiles/cheyenne.htm]

* Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Community Environmental Profile [http://www.mnisose.org/profiles/strock.htm]

<!--- COMMENTING OUT contaminated/fake URL (note part of the problem: 'nwo' fieldl) * [http://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/html/Lake_Proj/oahe/welcome.html Oahe Project Homepage] - U.S. Army Corps of Engineers --->

==References==

*Lawson, Michael L. Dammed Indians : the Pick-Sloan Plan and the Missouri River Sioux, 1944-1980. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1982. ISBN 0-8061-2672-8

*Lazarus, Edward. Black Hills, White Justice : The Sioux Nation Versus the United States, 1775 to the Present. New York: Harper Collins, 1991. ISBN 0-06-016557-X.

* [http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/91-2051.ZO.html Cornell University site]

==See also==

*[[Garrison Dam]]

*[[List of reservoirs and dams in the United States]]

{{coor title dms|44|27|05|N|100|24|10|W|type:waterbody}}

[[Category:Buildings and structures in Hughes County, South Dakota]]

[[Category:Buildings and structures in Stanley County, South Dakota]]

[[Category:Dams completed in 1962]]

[[Category:Dams in South Dakota]]

[[Category:Dams on the Missouri River]]

[[Category:Earth-filled dams]]

[[Category:Energy infrastructure completed in 1962]]

[[Category:Hydroelectric power plants in South Dakota]]

[[Category:United States Army Corps of Engineers dams]]

[[Category:Environmental racism in the United States]]

[[de:Lake Oahe]]