Brownlee Dam

Brownlee Dam

Company type	Hydroelectric dam
Industry	Energy
Founded	1958 (1958)
Headquarters	Boise , United States
Area served	Snake River region
Products	Hydroelectric power (585.4 MW)
Owner	Idaho Power Company

Brownlee Dam is an earth-fill embankment hydroelectric dam situated on the Snake River, straddling the border between Idaho and Oregon in Washington County, Idaho, and Baker County, Oregon. Positioned within Hells Canyon at river mile 285, it forms the Brownlee Reservoir, which extends approximately 58 miles.

Description

As the uppermost facility within the Hells Canyon Project managed by Idaho Power Company, Brownlee Dam was built by the Boise-based contractor Morrison-Knudsen. Construction commenced in the mid-1950s, with reservoir impoundment beginning on , resulting in the submergence of the former community of Robinette, Oregon.

The dam’s powerhouse contains five turbines that generate a total of 585.4 megawatts, playing a vital role in supplying hydroelectric energy to the surrounding region.

Notably, the dams within the Hells Canyon Project do not include fish passage systems, thereby obstructing the migration of anadromous salmon along the Snake River drainage from Hells Canyon Dam downstream to Shoshone Falls, which itself acts as a natural barrier preventing fish from moving further upstream.

Heliport

Adjacent to the dam is Brownlee Heliport (Airport code: OR75), a private facility measuring , which supports operational activities related to the dam.

See also

• Brownlee, Oregon, located about two miles upstream and lending its name to the dam
• List of dams in the Columbia River watershed
• List of dams and reservoirs in Idaho
• List of lakes of Oregon

External links

• Brownlee Dam, Columbia Basin Research
• Brownlee Dam, Northwest Power and Conservation Council
• Brownlee Dam, Idaho Power