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The upper and lower reservoirs are created by earth and rock-filled embankment dams.The upper reservoir dam is 460 feet (140 m) high, 2,200 feet (670 m) long and has a structural volume of 18,000,000 cubic yards (14,000,000 m 3).
The dam serves flood control and recreational purposes and is operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. [2] The Gathright Dam's intake tower contains nine portals that allow it to release water between reservoir depths of 12 to 87 feet (3.7 to 26.5 m). This allows the dam to manage the temperature and flow of water released downstream. [3]
The dam produces hydro-electric power mostly during hours of peak demand on the American Electric Power system. Water passes from Smith Mountain Lake through generators to Leesville Lake, producing power. In times of low demand, the generators are used as pumps to reverse the flow and return the water to Smith Mountain Lake.
The dam is 250 feet (76 m) high and 916 feet (279 m) long. The earth-filled dam is constructed of rock with a central clay core, which prevents water from passing through the dam. A 1,145-acre (463 ha) lake is formed behind the dam with almost 40 miles (64 km) of shoreline. South of the dam is the emergency spillway.
It is formed by the Occoquan Dam on the Occoquan River. Managed by the Fairfax County Water Authority, it provides an important water supply to surrounding settlements in northern Virginia, with an output of 17 million US gallons a day (64,000 m 3 /d) to 1.2 million people, including over half of the population of Prince William County. [1]
The dam's hydroelectric power plant is located on the west side of the spillway and is supplied with water via a 5-foot-diameter (2 m) penstock. The plant consists of two small open runner turbine-generators, the larger with a 775 kW capacity and the smaller rated at 225 kW for a combined installed capacity of 1 megawatt .
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The dam impounding the Accotink Creek was built on the site of a previous dam which had existed for that same purpose from 1918 to 1922. [ 2 ] The discharge of sewage treatment plants in Fairfax and Vienna into the Accotink Creek eventually led to the contamination of the water to the point where it was no longer fit for drinking, and the Army ...