Oxbow Dam

Oxbow Dam is a hydroelectric run-of-the-river rockfill dam in the western United States, on the Snake River in Hells Canyon (river mile 273) along the Idaho-Oregon border.

Oxbow Dam
Location in the United States Show map of the United States Location in Idaho Show map of Idaho
Official name	Oxbow Dam
Country	United States
Location	Hells Canyon, Adams County, Idaho / Baker County, Oregon
Coordinates	44°58′15″N 116°50′04″W
Opening date	1961; 64 years ago (1961)[1]
Operator(s)	Idaho Power Company
Dam and spillways
Impounds	Snake River
Height	175 feet (53 m)
Reservoir
Creates	Oxbow Reservoir
Total capacity	58,200 acre-feet (71,800,000 m3)
Catchment area	73,300 square miles (190,000 km2)
Surface area	1,150 acres (470 ha)
Power Station
Installed capacity	190 megawatts (250,000 hp)
Annual generation	1,047 gigawatt-hours (3,770 TJ)
Columbia River Basin dams

Description

Oxbow Dam power station

Completed 64 years ago in 1961,^[1] the dam is part of the Hells Canyon Project that also includes Hells Canyon Dam and Brownlee Dam, all built and operated by Idaho Power Company.

The dam's powerhouse contains four generating units with a total nameplate capacity of 190 megawatts (250,000 hp).

Lacking passage for migrating salmon, the three Hells Canyon Project dams blocked access by anadromous salmonids to a stretch of the Snake River drainage basin from Hells Canyon Dam up to Shoshone Falls, which naturally prevents any upstream fish passage to the upper Snake River basin.

Heliport

Oxbow Heliport (FAA LID: OR83) is a private 100-by-100-foot (30 by 30 m), turf heliport owned by Idaho Power.^[2]

See also

• Copperfield, Oregon
• Oxbow, Oregon
• List of dams in the Columbia River watershed