Case Studies

Historically, the Salt River was a perennial source of water to the early residents of the Phoenix Valley. With a drainage area of nearly 13,000 square miles, the river provided many benefits to the area including water for irrigation and recreation during the very hot summer months. However, the river also proved to be an unpredictable flooding hazard, and would periodically experience major floods that washed out roads and bridges, including the railroad bridge in the late 1800’s and Mill Avenue Bridge in the 1990’s.

Testalinden Dam was constructed in the 1930’s at the headwaters of Testalinden Creek at 1,810 m elevation near the summit of Mount Kobau, approximately 1,500 m above the Okanagan River valley below (see figures). The 2.5 m high dam was constructed...

Teton Dam was located in southeastern Idaho about 15 miles from Rexburg in the valley of the Teton River. The dam and its reservoir were the principal elements of the Teton Basin Project designed by the Bureau of Reclamation to control flooding as well as provide a source of...

Toddbrook Reservoir is located just upstream of the town of Whaley Bridge in the High Peak area of Derbyshire, England. The almost 80-foot tall embankment was constructed between 1837 and 1840 for water supply, with a central puddle core and outer shells of more granular earthfill.

Tous Dam is located in the Province of Valencia in the southeast corner of Spain, near the Mediterranean Coast. The dam is the last flood control structure on the Júcar River Basin, an 8,340-square-mile drainage. The Júcar River Basin ranges dramatically between sea level...

Vajont Dam is a double-curved, thin-arch dam, and at 860 feet high, it remains one of the tallest dams in the world. The dam is 11 feet wide at the crest, 73 feet wide at the base, with a crest length of 623 feet. There are 16 gates on the crest with an underground powerhouse...

Mining in the area around Mount Prestavèl in northeastern Italy dates to the sixteenth century and the extraction of argentiferous galena (a mineral of sulfur and lead). By 1934, fluorite had become the focus of mining in the area. In 1961, the mine operator at Val di Stava switched from a gravimetric system to a froth flotation process to separate the minerals from waste and constructed a new fluorite plant.

Walnut Grove Dam was constructed at a site approximately 20 miles northeast of Wickenburg, Arizona. Gold had been discovered in the area and a New York Investor, Wells H. Bates, wanted a dam built in order to supply water for hydraulic mining.