Deer Flat Upper Embankment (National ID # ID00276) is a dam in the

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

United States in

southwestern The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

. Located in the

Treasure Valley The Treasure Valley is a valley in the western United States, primarily in southwestern Idaho, where the Payette, Boise, Weiser, Malheur, Owyhee, and Burnt rivers drain into the Snake River. It includes all the lowland areas from Vale in rur ...

in Canyon County, it is directly southwest of Nampa. The earthen dam was completed in 1908 by the Reclamation Service (now U.S. Bureau of Reclamation), with a height of and a crest length of . The Upper Embankment is the largest of a set of four dikes here impounding the water of the Boise River in offstream storage. The other dams are: *Deer Flat Middle Dike (ID #ID00277), completed 1911, high, long *Deer Flat Lower Dike (ID #ID00278), completed 1908, high, long *Deer Flat East Dike (ID #ID82902), completed 1911, high, long The reservoir it creates, Lake Lowell, has a normal surface area of , and a maximum capacity of 169,000

acre-feet The acre-foot is a non- SI unit of volume equal to about commonly used in the United States in reference to large-scale water resources, such as reservoirs, aqueducts, canals, sewer flow capacity, irrigation water, and river flows. An acre-f ...

. Its surface elevation is approximately above sea level. The Boise Project was among the first undertaken by the Reclamation Service after its formation in 1902. Shortly before leaving office,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

created a national bird refuge at Deer Flat Reservoir, now Lake Lowell, with an executive order on February 25, 1909. The refuge was one of 17 federal reclamation projects referenced in the order, each of which used manmade aquifers to provide safe havens for migratory birds. The effort to include the Canyon County site was spearheaded by James H. Lowell, the president of the local Payette-Boise Water Users Association. The "globally important"

Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge The Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge is an important breeding area for mammals, birds, and other animals. The National Wildlife Refuge is located on land surrounding Lake Lowell, just outside Nampa, Idaho. It serves as a resting and winteri ...

for migratory fowl and other wildlife consists of two sections which contains open water, edge wetlands, grasslands and

riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks a ...

and

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

habitats. The largest portion of the refuge consists of Lake Lowell and its environs. The second portion comprises the Snake River islands located in non-contiguous localities along the river in Canyon, Owyhee, Payette, and

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

counties (Idaho) and Malheur and Baker counties (

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

). The visitors' center on the northern Lake Lowell shoreline is the hub of activity for visitors and those volunteers who donate their time and services to

wildlife conservation Wildlife conservation refers to the practice of protecting wild species and their habitats in order to maintain healthy wildlife species or populations and to restore, protect or enhance natural ecosystems. Major threats to wildlife include habita ...

projects.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Buildings and structures in Canyon County, Idaho Dams on the National Register of Historic Places in Idaho Historic American Engineering Record in Idaho Reservoirs in Idaho United States Bureau of Reclamation dams Dams completed in 1908 Lakes of Canyon County, Idaho Boise Project National Register of Historic Places in Canyon County, Idaho 1908 establishments in Idaho

See also

References

External links