Homestake Copper Dam

Homestake Copper Dam is an earth dam located in Houghton County, Michigan, built in 1975. It carries a Low hazard potential classification and has a satisfactory condition assessment.

About Homestake Copper Dam

The primary purpose of Homestake Copper Dam is tailings. Tailings dams contain waste material from mining operations — typically a slurry of finely ground rock left over after valuable minerals have been extracted. These structures require ongoing monitoring because tailings can contain heavy metals and other contaminants. The dam is owned by No Houghton Co Water And Sewer Auth (local government). It impounds the Slaughterhouse Creek near Lake Linden.

The dam stands 21 feet tall and stretches 3,654 feet across, creates a reservoir covering 39 acres, has a maximum storage capacity of 378 acre-feet, and collects water from a drainage area of 0 square miles. Completed in 1975, the structure is well into its service life at over 50 years old.

This dam has a low hazard potential classification, meaning that failure would cause minimal damage, limited primarily to the dam owner's property, with no expected loss of life. Its condition is rated satisfactory, indicating no existing or potential dam safety deficiencies are recognized. The most recent inspection on record was 10/04/2016.

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Low HazardSatisfactory ConditionEmergency Action Plan: Not Required

Location

StateMichigan
CountyHoughton
Nearest CityLake Linden
River/StreamSlaughterhouse Creek
Coordinates47.26628, -88.43277

Physical Characteristics

Dam TypeEarth
NID Height21 ft
Dam Height21 ft
Dam Length3,654 ft
Year Completed1975 (51 years old)

Storage & Hydraulics

NID Storage378 acre-ft
Max Storage378 acre-ft
Normal Storage324 acre-ft
Surface Area39 acres
Drainage Area0 sq mi
Max Discharge100 cfs
Spillway TypeUncontrolled

Ownership & Safety

PurposeTailings
OwnerNo Houghton Co Water and Sewer Auth
Owner TypeLocal Government
Hazard ClassificationLow
Condition AssessmentSatisfactory
Last Inspection10/04/2016
Emergency Action PlanNot Required

Identifiers

NID IDMI00673
Federal IDMI00673
More InfoState Dam Safety Program

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