Valley Creek Ws Scs Site 4a Dam

About Valley Creek Ws Scs Site 4a Dam

The primary purpose of Valley Creek Ws Scs Site 4a Dam is flood risk reduction. The dam is designed to control downstream flooding by temporarily storing excess water during storms and releasing it at a controlled rate. The dam is owned by Nolan County;nolan County Swcd;valley Creek Wcd (local government). It impounds the South Fork Valley Creek.

The dam stands 44 feet tall and stretches 2,160 feet across, creates a reservoir covering 33 acres, has a maximum storage capacity of 3,025 acre-feet, and collects water from a drainage area of 8 square miles. Completed in 1966, the structure is well into its service life at over 50 years old.

This dam carries a high hazard potential classification, which means that a failure or uncontrolled release of water would likely cause loss of human life. This classification reflects the consequences of failure, not the likelihood — it indicates that people live or work in the area downstream. An emergency action plan is in place for this dam. The most recent inspection on record was 11/09/2018. That was 7 years ago, which is on the longer end for a high-hazard structure.

At 44 feet, this dam is taller than 90% of dams nationwide.

Living Downstream

If you live or work downstream of this dam, consider taking these steps: learn your local evacuation routes, check whether your county emergency management office has a dam failure inundation map, and sign up for local emergency alerts. The Texas dam safety program can provide more specific information about emergency planning for this structure.

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