Elephant Butte Dam and Reservoir (originally called Engle Dam) is on the Rio Grande, 125 miles north of El Paso, Texas, can store 2,210,298 acre-feet of water to provide irrigation and year-round power generation. This is a concrete gravity dam 301 feet high and 1,674 feet long including the spillway. It contains 618,785 cubic yards of concrete. The dam was completed in 1916, but storage operation began in 1915.
The power system consists of a 24,300-kilowatt hydroelectric powerplant at Elephant Butte Dam. A system consisting of 490 miles of 115-kilovolt transmission line and 11 substations totaling 81,750 kilovolt-amperes, which was developed and operated by the Rio Grande Project until 1977, has been sold to a private electric company.
Geology
Foundation: Hard, sound, fissured sandstone in irregular beds, containing pockets and interbedded strata of friable shale and numerous small springs throughout foundation area
General
Project
Rio Grande
Longitude
-107.19117879867554
Watercourse
Rio Grande
Reservoir
Elephant Butte
Original Construction
1912-1916
National ID Number
NM00129
Base Width
228.00 ft
Latitude
33.15348719243569
Dimensions
Crest Elevation
4414.00 ft
Hydraulic Height (Normal Operating Depth at Dam)
197.00 ft
Crest Length
1674.00 ft
Top of Active Conservation Pool (Elevation)
4407.0 ft
Volume of Dam Construction Materials
618,785 cu yd
Streambed at Dam Axis
4210.0 ft
Structural Height
301.00 ft
Crest Width
18.00 ft
Top of Inactive Conservation Pool (Elevation)
4282.2 ft
Top of Dead Storage Pool (Elevation)
4231.5 ft
Hydraulics & Hydrology
Spillway Capacity at Elevation
34750.00 cfs at 4415.00
Outlet Works Capacity at Elevation
10800.00 cfs at 4407.0 ft
Drainage Area
28900.00 sq mi
Maximum Water Surface Elevation
4407.0 ft
Total Water Storage at Elevation
2109423.00 acre-ft at 4407.00
Net Generation
38,449,061 kWh
Contact
Owner
Title: Area Office Manager Organization: Albuquerque Area Office Address: 555 Broadway NE, Suite 100 City: Albuquerque, NM 87102-2352 Phone: 505-462-3542
Operator
Title: Elephant Butte Field Division Organization: Elephant Butte Field Division Address: HC 32, Box 312 City: Truth or Consequences, NM87901 Phone: 575-894-6661-ext.-106
More Information about the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation