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The
Flaming Gorge Dam was built between 1957 and 1964. It's 1,285 feet wide, 500
high, 27 feet thick at the crest and 151 feet thick at the bottom. The dam cost
$50 million to build, plus the Power plant and Switchyard cost another $65
million. 96% of the Power plant and switchyard costs will be repaid by the sale of power.
The plant normally only runs at about 1/3 of capacity (1 generator) because of
energy company politics..
This
is one of the safety vents.
It's
a long way down.
If
I remember correctly, they control the water flow with huge metal plates. The plates are moved by a crane that travels on the edge of the dam.
Each
Generator spins at 240 rpm and outputs 11,500 volts. A single generator of this size supplies enough electricity for a city of about 32,000.
We're
at the bottom of the dam now (on the tour).
Right
next to the dam there were hundreds of fish. The large ones were over 2 feet long.
Here's
a few of them.
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