The Émosson Dam (french: Barrage d'Émosson) is a

hydroelectric 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 ...

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 ...

development located in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

in the canton of

Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 ...

History

A company (Électricité d'Émosson SA) was created in 1954 to build the dam. The Franco-Swiss development, because of the source of capital, uses different pumping water sites and power generation plants. The construction was decided in April 1967. Previously, a border change was made so that the work was entirely on Swiss territory. Indeed, the border would have cut the dam into two. The communes concerned therefore conducted an exchange of territories, endorsed in 1963. Work began in 1967, and commissioning took place in 1975, eight years later. There was already a first dam on the course of the , the Barberine Dam, owned by

Swiss Federal Railways Swiss Federal Railways (german: link=no, Schweizerische Bundesbahnen, ''SBB''; french: link=no, Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses, ''CFF''; it, Ferrovie federali svizzere, ''FFS'') is the national railway company of Switzerland. It is usuall ...

, for which it was necessary to obtain the authorisation to immerse the earlier structure in the reservoir of the new construction.

Origin of the waters

Three collectors transport the water to the Émosson Dam. The South Collector picks up the waters of the

Argentière Glacier The Argentière Glacier is a glacier in the French Alps. It is one of the larger glaciers found within the Mont Blanc massif, and is situated above the village of Argentière. It lies perpendicular to the Chamonix Chamonix-Mont-Blanc ( frp, Cha ...

, the and the Lognan Glacier, mainly by subglacial water intakes. A free flow gallery of length leads the water by gravity to a shielded well where the water crosses the

Trient Valley The Trient (french: Le Trient) is a river in western Valais. It takes its source at the Trient Glacier in the Mont Blanc Massif and joins the Rhone between Vernayaz and Martigny. Only two villages are located along the Trient: Trient and Vernaya ...

and then rises, always by gravity to the dam. The West Collector picks up the waters of the French vallies of Bérard and Tré-les-eaux. These waters are channelled by free-flow in a gallery of directly to the dam. The East Collector captures waters of

La Fouly La Fouly is a village in Val Ferret in the Swiss canton of Valais. At an altitude of 1,600 metres, it is part of the municipality of Orsières (900 m). It sits at the foot of Mont Dolent (3,823 m) and the Tour Noir (3,836m) in the Mont Blanc ma ...

and below the

Trient Glacier The Trient Glacier (french: Glacier du Trient) is a 4.3 km long glacier (2007) in the Mont Blanc Massif in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. In 1973 it had an area of 6.4 km². The upper part of the glacier forms a large plateau na ...

and led by a gallery of more than long to the Esserts basin, hence the water is either turbined directly at the Vallorcine power station, or pumped into the Émosson reservoir.

Location

The dam is located in the

Canton of Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the Sw ...

, on the left bank of the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

above

Martigny Martigny (; german: Martinach, ; la, Octodurum) is the capital city of the district of Martigny, canton of Valais, Switzerland. It lies at an elevation of , and its population is approximately 15000 inhabitants (''Martignerains'' or "Octodurie ...

. It is fed by the waters of the

Mont Blanc massif The Mont Blanc massif (french: Massif du Mont-Blanc; it, Massiccio del Monte Bianco) is a mountain range in the Alps, located mostly in France and Italy, but also straddling Switzerland at its northeastern end. It contains eleven major indepen ...

. The Émosson Dam is

's third highest dam after the

Grande Dixence __NOTOC__ The Grande Dixence Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Dixence at the head of the Val d'Hérémence in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. At high, it is the tallest gravity dam in the world, sixth tallest dam overall, and the tall ...

and

Mauvoisin __NOTOC__ Lac de Mauvoisin is a reservoir in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. The reservoir is formed by the Mauvoisin Dam, which is high. The dam is the 11th highest in the world, and the 6th highest arch dam. It was built in 1951–1957, and ...

Dams.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Emosson Dam Hydroelectric power stations in Switzerland Dams in Switzerland Dams completed in 1972 Arch dams Valais 20th-century architecture in Switzerland