Spearfish Valley Ranch is an earth dam located in Lawrence County, South Dakota, built in 1968. It carries a Low hazard potential classification.
Dam profile
NID height · 32 ft32 ft tall and 660 ft long, taller than 74% of U.S. dams with a recorded height. Height is drawn to scale against a two-story house, about 25 ft; the profile is a generic embankment section and the water level is illustrative.
About Spearfish Valley Ranch
The primary purpose of Spearfish Valley Ranch is irrigation. The dam stores and diverts water for agricultural irrigation, supporting farming operations in the surrounding area. The dam is owned by Melvin Delzer (private). It impounds the Tr-redwater near Belle Fourche.
The dam stands 32 feet tall and stretches 660 feet across, creates a reservoir covering 10 acres, has a maximum storage capacity of 136 acre-feet, and collects water from a drainage area of 1 square miles. Completed in 1968, 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. The most recent inspection on record was 07/18/1986. That was over 40 years ago.
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Location
| State | South Dakota |
| County | Lawrence |
| Nearest City | Belle Fourche |
| River/Stream | Tr-redwater |
| Coordinates | 44.57179, -103.86709 |
Physical Characteristics
| Dam Type | Earth |
| NID Height | 32 ft |
| Dam Height | 32 ft |
| Dam Length | 660 ft |
| Year Completed | 1968 (58 years old) |
Storage & Hydraulics
| NID Storage | 136 acre-ft |
| Max Storage | 136 acre-ft |
| Normal Storage | 98 acre-ft |
| Surface Area | 10 acres |
| Drainage Area | 1 sq mi |
| Max Discharge | 520 cfs |
Ownership & Safety
| Purpose | Irrigation |
| Owner | Melvin Delzer |
| Owner Type | Private |
| Hazard Classification | Low |
| Condition Assessment | Not assessed |
| Last Inspection | 07/18/1986 |
| Emergency Action Plan | Not Required |
Identifiers
| NID ID | SD01014 |
| Federal ID | SD01014 |
| More Info | State Dam Safety Program |