Iron Gate Dam is an earthfill

hydroelectric dam Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

on the

Klamath River The Klamath River (Karuk: ''Ishkêesh'', Klamath: ''Koke'', Yurok: ''Hehlkeek 'We-Roy'') flows through Oregon and northern California in the United States, emptying into the Pacific Ocean. By average discharge, the Klamath is the second larges ...

in northern

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, outside

Hornbrook, California Hornbrook is a census-designated place (CDP) in Siskiyou County, California, United States. Its population is 266 as of the 2020 census, up from 248 from the 2010 census. It was named by the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1886, derived from the b ...

, opened in 1964. The dam blocks the Klamath River to create the Iron Gate Lake Reservoir. It is the lowermost of a series of power dams on the river, the

Klamath River Hydroelectric Project The Klamath River Hydroelectric Project is a series of hydroelectric dams and other facilities on the mainstem of the Klamath River, in a watershed on both sides of the California/Oregon border. The infrastructure was constructed between 1903 a ...

, operated by

PacifiCorp PacifiCorp is an electric power company in the western United States. PacifiCorp has two business units: # Pacific Power, a regulated electric utility with service territory throughout Oregon, northern California, and southeastern Washington. # ...

. It also poses the first barrier to migrating

salmon Salmon () is the common name for several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family (biology), family Salmonidae, which are native to tributary, tributaries of the ...

in the Klamath. The Iron Gate Fish Hatchery was placed just after the dam, hatching salmon and steelhead that are released back into the river. The Iron Gate Dam (National ID CN 001223) along with the

John C. Boyle Dam The John C. Boyle Dam is a hydroelectric dam located in southern Oregon, United States. It is on the upper Klamath River, south (downstream) of Keno, and about 12 miles north of the California border. Originally developed and known as Big Bend, t ...

are two of four on the Klamath River that would be removed under the Klamath Economic Restoration Act. As of February 2016, the states of Oregon and California, the dam owners, federal regulators and other parties reached an agreement to remove all four dams by the year 2020, pending approval by the

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is the United States federal agency that regulates the transmission and wholesale sale of electricity and natural gas in interstate commerce and regulates the transportation of oil by pipeline in ...

. As of February 25, 2022, the FERC released their final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the dam's removal. The Iron Gate Dam is expected to be removed sometime in 2023 or 2024. A movement to Un-Dam the Klamath has been ongoing for 20 years to remove the dams.

Iron Gate Reservoir

Iron Gate Reservoir is an artificial lake on the

Siskiyou County Siskiyou County (, ) is a county in the northernmost part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,076. Its county seat is Yreka and its highest point is Mount Shasta. It falls within the Cascadia bioregion ...

, near the

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

border of the United States. The lake's waters are impounded by the Iron Gate Dam, and operated by

. It has an average depth of 70 feet (21.4 m). The Iron Gate Reservoir is host to several recreation activities. There are several campsites on the Western side of the reservoir. Some campsites such as Mirror Cove and Juniper Point are open from May to October. Others such as Camp Creek are open year round. All campsites are free to use. Each site has a launch point, allowing for boating, kayaking, and swimming on the reservoir. The reservoir contains yellow perch, trout, largemouth bass, catfish, and native rainbow trout, which makes it a popular fishing location. In 2020, the state released a danger warning about harmful blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) blooms. These blooms are toxic to humans and animals so announcements were made warning against swimming in the reservoir and eating of any fish from the reservoir. There have been reports in the past, but no warnings have been made since. These algal bloom growth likely occurred due to lower water levels and increasing water temperatures.

References

{{Klamath River Buildings and structures in Siskiyou County, California Dams in California PacifiCorp dams Dams completed in 1964 Dams on the Klamath River Earth-filled dams

Iron Gate Reservoir

See also

References