Donnells Dam

Donnells Dam
Donnells Dam is located in California
Donnells Dam
Location in California
Official nameDonnells 62-005 Dam[1]
CountryUnited States
LocationTuolumne County, California[1][2]
Coordinates38°19′48″N 119°57′46″W / 38.33000°N 119.96278°W / 38.33000; -119.96278
Opening date1958; 66 years ago (1958)[2]
Owner(s)Tri-Dam Project[2]
Dam and spillways
Type of damConcrete arch
ImpoundsMiddle Fork, Stanislaus River[2]
Height291 feet (89 m)[2]
Length714 feet (218 m)[2]
Elevation at crest4,921.8 feet (1,500.2 m)[2]
Reservoir
CreatesDonnell Lake[3]
Total capacity56,893 acre-feet (70,176,000 m3)[2]
Catchment area229 square miles (590 km2)[2]
Surface area401 acres (162 ha)[2]
Installed capacity72 MW
Annual generation270,234,000 KWh (2001–2012)[4]

Donnells Dam (National ID # CA00264) is a concrete arch dam located on the Middle Fork of the Stanislaus River in Tuolumne County, California.[5] The water impounded by the 291-foot (89 m) high dam forms Donnell Lake in Stanislaus National Forest.[5] The dam and reservoir are co-owned by the Oakdale Irrigation District and South San Joaquin Irrigation District, and the dam is one of three in the Tri-Dam Project.[6] The other two dams in the project are Beardsley Dam and Tulloch Dam.

The dam has a length of 750 feet (230 m) at its crest and a storage capacity of 56,893 acre-feet (70,176,000 m3).[5][6] Donnells Reservoir, along with the two other dams of that make up the Tri-Dam Project, currently provide water for the irrigation of about 117,500 acres (47,600 ha) of farmland in Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties.[6] The reservoir also generates hydroelectric power and supplies water to urban areas.[7]

Map of the Stanislaus River
  1. ^ a b "Donnells 62-005 Dam". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Dams Within the Jurisdiction of the State of California" (PDF). California Department of Water Resources. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 21, 2016. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  3. ^ "Donnell Lake". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  4. ^ "California Hydroelectric Statistics & Data". California Energy Commission. Archived from the original on February 26, 2018. Retrieved April 26, 2018.
  5. ^ a b c "Donnells Dam". National Performance of Dams Program. Archived from the original on September 4, 2014. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  6. ^ a b c "About Tri-Dam Project". Tri-Dam Project. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  7. ^ "History of the South San Joaquin Irrigation District". South San Joaquin Irrigation District. Archived from the original on May 4, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2015.