Ball Mountain Dam (National ID # VT00001) is a dam in
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
,
Windham County, Vermont
Windham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 45,905. The shire town (county seat) is Newfane, and the largest municipality is the town of Brattleboro.
History
Fort Bridgman, Vernon ...
, in the southeastern part of the state.
The earthen and gravel gravity dam was constructed between 1957 and 1961 by the
, with a height of and a length of at its crest. It impounds the
West River West River may refer to:
Rivers
Canada
*West River (Antigonish, Nova Scotia) in Antigonish County, Nova Scotia
* West River (Pictou, Nova Scotia) in Pictou County, Nova Scotia
* West River (Halifax, Nova Scotia) in Sheet Harbour, Nova Scotia
* West ...
of Vermont for
flood control
Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water level ...
. The dam is owned and operated by the Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps identified safety and seepage problems with the dam in 2009, and has assigned it a Dam Safety Action Class rating of DSAC II, or "Urgent".
The reservoir it creates, Ball Mountain Reservoir, has a normal water surface of , a maximum capacity of , and a normal capacity of . Recreation includes fishing (for stocked Atlantic salmon, smallmouth bass, and trout), camping at 111 campsites in nearby Winhall and Jamaica, and activities at the adjacent
Jamaica State Park. The river between Ball Mountain Lake and downstream
Townshend Lake (also operated by the Army Corps of Engineers) is used for
white water
Whitewater forms in a rapid context, in particular, when a river's gradient changes enough to generate so much turbulence that air is trapped within the water. This forms an unstable current that froths, making the water appear opaque and w ...
boating during releases from the Ball Mountain Dam, usually occurring during one weekend in April and one weekend in September.
References
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Dams in Vermont
Buildings and structures in Jamaica, Vermont
Reservoirs in Vermont
United States Army Corps of Engineers dams
Dams completed in 1961
Bodies of water of Windham County, Vermont
1961 establishments in Vermont