The Texas Highland Lakes is a chain of fresh water reservoirs in Central Texas formed by

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

s on the lower

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...

. The Texas Colorado River winds southeast from West

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

to Matagorda Bay and the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

. The lower Colorado River basin has a history of major flooding. The

Lower Colorado River Authority The Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) is a nonprofit public utility created in November 1934 by the Texas Legislature. LCRA's mission is to enhance the lives of the Texans it serves through water stewardship, energy and community service. LC ...

(LCRA) built the dams to manage floods and generate hydroelectric power in the 1930s and 1940s.

Lady Bird Lake Lady Bird Lake (formerly, and still colloquially referred to as Town Lake) is a river-like reservoir on the Colorado River in Austin, Texas, United States. The City of Austin created the reservoir in 1960 as a cooling pond for a new city power p ...

(formerly Town Lake) and the respective

Longhorn Dam Longhorn Dam is a dam crossing the Colorado River in Austin, Texas, United States, where it creates Lady Bird Lake. Completed in 1960, the dam was built by the City of Austin as the last in a chain of Colorado River dams in central Texas begun du ...

are sometimes considered the seventh "honorary" lake and dam of the Highland Lakes despite being commissioned and managed by the

City of Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

instead of the LCRA. Unlike the other reservoirs in the chain which were constructed primarily to prevent flooding and generate hydroelectric power, Lady Bird Lake was constructed in order to provide a cooling pond for the city's new power plant. The two largest lakes—Buchanan and Travis—are the reservoirs that store water supply for the region. The smaller lakes—Inks, LBJ, Marble Falls and Austin—are pass-through lakes that are operated within a certain range. In all, the six official dams of the Highland Lakes have a hydroelectric power production capacity of 295MW, with Mansfield Dam alone able to provide 108MW. While Longhorn Dam has no hydroelectric production capacity, Lady Bird Lake served as a cooling pond for the 100MW

Seaholm Power Plant The Seaholm Power Plant is a historic former power station located on the north shore of Lady Bird Lake in Downtown Austin, Texas. Opened in 1951, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated as a Recorded Texas Histori ...

and the 550MW

Holly Street Power Plant The Holly Street Power Plant was initially constructed in 1958 to serve the growing Austin Community. This electric power plant ran off natural gas and petroleum. It was constructed from 1958 till 1974, but began to produce electricity in 1960. Th ...

until they were closed in 1996 and 2007, respectively.

References

External links

Highland LakesLower Colorado River Authority
{{authority control Protected areas of Burnet County, Texas Protected areas of Llano County, Texas Protected areas of Travis County, Texas Reservoirs in Texas Geography of Austin, Texas Bodies of water of Burnet County, Texas Bodies of water of Llano County, Texas Bodies of water of Travis County, Texas 1940s establishments in Texas Lower Colorado River Authority