Big Bend Dam
| Big Bend Dam | |
|---|---|
kilowatt hours | |
| Website U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Big Bend Dam / Lake Sharpe |
Big Bend Dam is a major
Missouri River Basin
.
Located near
Merrill Q. Sharpe. The lake extends for 80 miles (130 km) up the course of the Missouri River passing through Pierre, the State Capitol, to Oahe Dam
, another major power-generating and flood control dam. Lake Sharpe covers a total of 56,884 acres (23,020 ha) and drains an area just under 250,000 square miles (650,000 km2).
South Dakota Highway 47 crosses over the dam, connecting Lyman and Buffalo Counties. Big Bend Dam is located approximately 17 miles (27 km) north of I-90, and approximately 60 miles (97 km) southeast of Pierre.
The next dam upstream is Oahe Dam, near Pierre, and the next dam downstream is Fort Randall Dam, near Pickstown.
Native American tribes
The construction of the dam resulted in the dislocation of people on the Crow Creek and Lower Brule Reservations. The flooding of the land for the reservoir also resulted in the loss of limited plant life resources used by them for food and medicine.
A monument at Big Bend Dam dedicated in 2002, the
Crow Creek Reservation near the present site of the dam.[2]
2011 Missouri River flood
For the first time in the dam's history, the
2011 Missouri River Floods, the dam was releasing 150,000 cubic feet per second (4,200 m3/s), which greatly exceeded its previous record release of 74,000 cu ft/s (2,100 m3/s) set in 1997.[3]
See also
- Lake Sharpe
- Pick-Sloan Plan
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- Crow Creek Indian Reservation
- Lower Brule Indian Reservation
References
- ^ "Summary of Engineering Data – Missouri River Main Stem System" (PDF). Missouri River Division. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. August 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-02-07. Retrieved 2012-08-17.
- ^ Melmer, David (June 19, 2002). "Dakota sacrifice honored". Indian Country Today. Retrieved 2008-09-27.
- ^ "Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir Bulletin" (pdf). Army Corps of Engineers. Retrieved 18 June 2011.[permanent dead link]
- Janson, Donald (May 30, 1960). "6th Missouri River Dam Begun; Last in Flood-Control Network; Big Bend Project Scheduled for Completion in 1963 – Johnson Urges Others. 6th Dam Started on Missouri River". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-09-27.
External links
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Big Bend Dam
- Daily Reservoir Levels and Water Releases - U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Archived 2018-04-15 at the Wayback Machine.
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