The Place:
Keenleyside Dam is 853.4 m (2,800 ft) long - partially earth fill and partially concrete. Primarily to serve the lumber and pulp mill just downstream, a lock was included in the dam, enabling the passage of logs being floated downstream to the mill. The lock is also available for private boaters to use, allowing recreational access to the 232 km (145 mi) of lake upstream. Use is free, but lumber mill traffic has priority.
The dam was built as a part of Canada's obligation to the Columbia River Treaty. Its central purpose is twofold - storing water for hydroelectric production downstream and flood control for BC, Washington and Oregon. Added benefits of its presence are the creation of a 145 mile long lake for fishing and recreation and power production. The Keenleyside Dam controls a drainage area of 3,650,000 ha (14,100 square miles).
The Arrow Lakes Generating Station was added later, with construction beginning in 1999, after three years of planning, community consultation, environmental studies and reviews. Completion and startup occurred in 2002. This was the first joint project between Columbia Power Corp. and Columbia Basin Trust, costs and revenue being shared equally. It is fed by a separate intake channel 1500 metres long and 37 metres deep.
The powerhouse is 18 storeys tall with 14 storeys underground. Inside are two "fish friendly" Kaplan Turbines capable of producing a total of 185 megawatts of electricity. Each turbine runner is 8.1 metres in diameter and weighs 598 metric tonnes. The station is capable of supplying all the electrical needs of all the homes and small businesses in the West Kootenay. It is connected to the BC Hydro grid via a 48 km. long transmission line.
The Person:
Keenleyside Dam was named in honour of Hugh Llewellyn Keenleyside, who was the Canadian ambassador to Mexico from 1944 to 1947. He also served as chairman of the British Columbia Power Commission and co-chairman of the British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority from 1962 to 1969.
Hugh Keenleyside was born in Toronto in July of 1898. Shortly thereafter his family moved to Vancouver, BC, where he was raised and educated. Though World War I interrupted his studies, he went on to achieve his master's and doctoral degrees at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts. After teaching at both Canadian and American universities and writing the highly acclaimed history of Canadian-American relations, "Canada and the United States", Hugh entered the civil service in Canada.
His tenure included a six-year assignment as first secretary to the Canadian Legation in Japan, and in 1941 he was appointed Assistant Under-Secretary of State for External Affairs. In March of 1947, Keenleyside was recalled from his post as ambassador to Mexico and appointed Commissioner of the Northwest Territories and Deputy Minister of Mines and Resources, positions he held until October 1950.
"His credentials were unusual and his tenure short, but within three and a half years, the former diplomat transformed the somewhat laissez-faire style of northern government into one of active intervention supported by major financial investment." University of Calgary.
In 1950 he accepted the offer of Director General for the United Nations Technical Assistance Programme. He remained at the United Nations until 1960, at which time he returned to BC to assume the chairmanship of the B.C. Power Commission, and later the co-chairmanship of the B.C. Hydro and Power Authority, which he held until 1969.