Moran Dam

Moran Dam
Location of the proposed dam in Canada
Country	Canada
Location	Near Lillooet, British Columbia
Coordinates	50°55′26″N 121°52′11″W / 50.92389°N 121.86972°W / 50.92389; -121.86972Coordinates: 50°55′26″N 121°52′11″W / 50.92389°N 121.86972°W / 50.92389; -121.86972
Status	Proposed
Construction began	1955
Opening date	Never
Construction cost	US$ 4.15 billion (projected)
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Concrete thick arch
Impounds	Fraser River
Height	261 m (856 ft)
Length	950 m (3,120 ft)
Reservoir
Total capacity	35.4 km3 (28,700,000 acre⋅ft)
Catchment area	146,500 km2 (56,600 sq mi)
Maximum length	260 km (160 mi)
Normal elevation	460 m (1,510 ft)
Power Station
Hydraulic head	220 m (720 ft) Moran Dam Location of Moran Dam Country Canada Power generation Nameplate capacity 14,000 MW Capacity factor 23.97% Annual output 30 billion KWh

Moran Dam
Location of Moran Dam
Country	Canada
Power generation
Nameplate capacity	14,000 MW
Capacity factor	23.97%
Annual output	30 billion KWh

220 m (720 ft)

Moran Dam, also called High Moran Dam or Moran Canyon Dam, was a 1950s proposal to dam the Fraser River in the Canadian province of British Columbia (BC). The structure was planned in the wake of devastating floods in a time of rapidly growing power demand, and if built, would have powered the largest hydroelectric facility in North America. After a protracted environmental battle, Moran Dam was defeated in 1972, mainly over concerns of its adverse impact on salmon populations in the Fraser River basin. The shelving of the project also influenced cancellation of other hydro developments along the river, and today the Fraser remains one of the most productive salmon fisheries on the continent.

As early as 1934, the Moran Canyon site was identified as an excellent location for a large hydroelectric dam. During the dam-building era of the mid-20th century, up to five major hydropower projects were proposed on the main stem of the Fraser River. The largest of these, a dam near the railway point of Moran, some 20 kilometres (12 mi) upstream of Lillooet, was put forth by the Moran Development Corporation (MDC). This American firm put forth US$500 million in 1952 to finance the construction of the dam, which would have been the tallest in the world. The Fraser River was favoured over other large rivers in BC, such as the Columbia or Peace, because of its relative proximity to urban centres like Vancouver.

The dam would have been 261 metres (856 ft) high, generating as much power on average as Grand Coulee Dam and two Hoover Dams combined. Much of this energy would have been sold to the northwestern United States. It would form a gigantic reservoir 260 kilometres (160 mi) long, containing some 35.4 cubic kilometres (28,700,000 acre⋅ft) of water at maximum pool, reaching almost to the city of Quesnel. A significant portion of this capacity would be reserved for flood control as the dam had been proposed in the wake of major floods that occurred just three years before then, in 1948. The BC government gave MDC clearance to begin preliminary work at the site in 1955. However, MDC lacked the funds to build such a gigantic dam and to acquire all the lands that would be flooded under the reservoir, and a rival company, BC Electric (today part of BC Hydro), acquired similar rights to the site that same year.