{ "bbox":null, "type":"Feature", "geometry":{ "bbox":null, "type":"Point", "coordinates":[ -82.59403, 34.0253 ] }, "properties":{ "provider":"SAS", "code":"Russell", "slug":"russell", "elevation":495.0, "horizontal_datum":"NAD27", "vertical_datum":"NGVD29", "state":"GA", "kind":"PROJECT", "nearest_city":"Calhoun Falls, SC", "public_name":"Richard B. Russell Dam", "location_code":68040, "nsid":null, "aliases":{ "NIDID":"GA01705" }, "timeseries":[ { "tsid":"Russell.Energy.Total.1Hour.1Hour.Raw-SHEF_SAS", "label":"Power Generation", "base_parameter":"Energy", "parameter":"Energy", "unit":"MWh", "unit_long_name":"Megawatt-hours", "latest_time":"2026-04-14T22:00:00Z", "latest_value":0.0, "delta24h":null, "sort_order":15, "results":null }, { "tsid":"Russell.Elev-GC.Inst.1Day.0.ARCHIVE-DAILY", "label":"Elevation Rule Curve", "base_parameter":"Elev", "parameter":"Elev-GC", "unit":"ft", "unit_long_name":"Feet", "latest_time":"2026-04-15T00:00:00Z", "latest_value":475.0, "delta24h":null, "sort_order":2, "results":null }, { "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.1Hour.0.Raw-SHEF_SAS", "label":"Conservation Storage", "base_parameter":"Stor", "parameter":"Stor", "unit":"ac-ft", "unit_long_name":"Acre-feet", "latest_time":"2026-04-14T05:00:00Z", "latest_value":1007504.0, "delta24h":null, "sort_order":13, "results":null }, { "tsid":"Russell.Elev-Tail.Inst.1Hour.0.Raw-SHEF_SAS", "label":"Elevation Tailwater", "base_parameter":"Elev", "parameter":"Elev-Tail", "unit":"ft", "unit_long_name":"Feet", "latest_time":"2026-04-14T05:00:00Z", "latest_value":322.79, "delta24h":null, "sort_order":3, "results":null }, { "tsid":"Russell.Flow-In.Ave.1Hour.1Hour.Raw-SHEF_SAS", "label":"Inflow", "base_parameter":"Flow", "parameter":"Flow-In", "unit":"cfs", "unit_long_name":"Cubic feet per second", "latest_time":"2026-04-14T05:00:00Z", "latest_value":0.0, "delta24h":null, "sort_order":6, "results":null }, { "tsid":"Russell.Flow.Ave.1Hour.1Hour.Raw-SHEF_SAS", "label":"Outflow", "base_parameter":"Flow", "parameter":"Flow", "unit":"cfs", "unit_long_name":"Cubic feet per second", "latest_time":"2026-04-14T05:00:00Z", "latest_value":0.0, "delta24h":null, "sort_order":7, "results":null }, { "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.1Hour.0.Raw-SHEF_SAS", "label":"Flood Storage", "base_parameter":"Stor", "parameter":"Stor", "unit":"ac-ft", "unit_long_name":"Acre-feet", "latest_time":"2026-04-14T05:00:00Z", "latest_value":1007504.0, "delta24h":null, "sort_order":11, "results":null } ], "name":"Richard B. Russell Dam", "hasResopsAverages":"true", "nidId":"GA01705", "nidid":"", "levels":[ { "slug":"elev.bottom of conservation", "label":"Bottom of Conservation", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Bottom of Conservation", "latest_value":470, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.bottom of flood", "label":"Bottom of Flood", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Bottom of Flood", "latest_value":475, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.spillway", "label":"Spillway", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Spillway", "latest_value":436, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.spillway design flood", "label":"Spillway Design Flood", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Spillway Design Flood", "latest_value":490, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.streambed", "label":"Streambed", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Streambed", "latest_value":300, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.top of conservation", "label":"Top of Conservation", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Top of Conservation", "latest_value":475, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.top of dam", "label":"Top of Dam", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Top of Dam", "latest_value":495, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.top of flood", "label":"Top of Flood", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Top of Flood", "latest_value":480, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.top of inactive", "label":"Top of Inactive", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Top of Inactive", "latest_value":470, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"elev.top of induced surcharge", "label":"Top of Induced Surcharge", "parameter":"Elev", "base_parameter":"Elev", "tsid":"Russell.Elev.Inst.0.Top of Induced Surcharge", "latest_value":485, "units":"ft", "units_long_name":"Feet" }, { "slug":"stor.bottom of conservation", "label":"Bottom of Conservation", "parameter":"Stor", "base_parameter":"Stor", "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.0.Bottom of Conservation", "latest_value":899380, "units":"ac-ft", "units_long_name":"Acre-feet" }, { "slug":"stor.bottom of flood", "label":"Bottom of Flood", "parameter":"Stor", "base_parameter":"Stor", "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.0.Bottom of Flood", "latest_value":1026244, "units":"ac-ft", "units_long_name":"Acre-feet" }, { "slug":"stor.top of conservation", "label":"Top of Conservation", "parameter":"Stor", "base_parameter":"Stor", "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.0.Top of Conservation", "latest_value":1026244, "units":"ac-ft", "units_long_name":"Acre-feet" }, { "slug":"stor.top of dam", "label":"Top of Dam", "parameter":"Stor", "base_parameter":"Stor", "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.0.Top of Dam", "latest_value":1700000, "units":"ac-ft", "units_long_name":"Acre-feet" }, { "slug":"stor.top of flood", "label":"Top of Flood", "parameter":"Stor", "base_parameter":"Stor", "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.0.Top of Flood", "latest_value":1166166, "units":"ac-ft", "units_long_name":"Acre-feet" }, { "slug":"stor.top of inactive", "label":"Top of Inactive", "parameter":"Stor", "base_parameter":"Stor", "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.0.Top of Inactive", "latest_value":899380, "units":"ac-ft", "units_long_name":"Acre-feet" }, { "slug":"stor.top of induced surcharge", "label":"Top of Induced Surcharge", "parameter":"Stor", "base_parameter":"Stor", "tsid":"Russell.Stor.Inst.0.Top of Induced Surcharge", "latest_value":1488155, "units":"ac-ft", "units_long_name":"Acre-feet" } ], "id":549720, "associatedStructuresCount":1, "conditionAssessDate":null, "conditionAssessDetail":null, "conditionAssessId":6, "damHeight":136, "damLength":4524, "distance":15, "drainageArea":2890, "eapId":1, "dsacAssignedDate":"2017-05-25T12:00:00.000Z", "eapMeetsGuidelinesId":1, "emergencyContactsUpdated":"2023-11-16T12:00:00.000Z", "eapLastRevDate":"2022-07-14T12:00:00.000Z", "enforcementAuthorityId":0, "federalId":"GA01705", "oldFederalId":"GA01705", "hazardId":4, "hydraulicHeight":185, "inspectionAuthorityId":0, "inspectionDate":"2021-06-23T12:00:00.000Z", "inspectionFrequency":5, "jurisdictionAuthorityId":0, "latitude":34.025305948, "lengthOfLocks":0, "secondaryLengthOfLocks":null, "longitude":-82.594346249, "maxDischarge":801500, "maxStorage":1488166, "nidHeight":195, "nidStorage":1488166, "normalStorage":1026200, "numberOfLocks":0, "operationalStatusDate":"2017-05-25T12:00:00.000Z", "operationalStatusId":1, "originalDesignerName":null, "otherStructureId":null, "permittingAuthorityId":0, "politicalPartyId":null, "privateDamId":null, "projectDescription":"The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) completed construction of the Richard B. Russell Dam and Lake in 1984. The dam, formerly Trotters Shoals Dam and Lake, was built across the Savannah River on the Georgia/South Carolina border in the counties of Elbert (Georgia) and Abbeville (South Carolina), and 60 miles upstream of the city of Augusta, Georgia. There were several authorized purposes for the project: flood risk reduction, hydropower production, recreation, additional stream flow regulation, water supply, and fish and wildlife management. The dam is operated as a system in conjunction with two other USACE dams located immediately upstream and downstream of Russell Dam: Hartwell and J. Strom Thurmond. The system of dams aids in the reduction of downstream flooding by holding back water during major storm events. The Russell Dam structure consists of a large concrete dam section with earthen embankments on either side. A gated spillway exists within the concrete section. The spillway contains ten large, rotating gates called Tainter gates that can pass large volumes of water through the dam. As the gates are raised, the dam can store more water within the reservoir which further minimizes downstream flooding. Since construction of the dam, the spillway gates have never been opened due to flooding. Altogether, Thurmond, Russell, and Hartwell dams have prevented approximately $370 million in flood damages since construction. The Russell Dam hydropower plant produces an average annual output of 577,000 megawatt-hours of electrical energy. This plant is unique in that it is a pump-back hydroelectric dam. This means that at night, when electrical power demands are low, the generators can operate in reverse direction to pump water from below the dam back upstream into Russell Lake. Then, the next day when peak power demand occurs, the stored water can be used to generate electricity. This is especially beneficial during drought.", "riskCharSummary":"USACE completed a risk assessment for Richard B. Russell Dam in May 2017. The assessment characterizes the risk of the project as very low. The dam significantly reduces the risk of downstream flooding. However, it does not entirely eliminate the risk. During large storm events, Russell Dam\u2019s spillway gates will be opened to keep the reservoir level below the top of the spillway gates. Russell\u2019s spillway moves water from the Russell Lake to the immediately downstream J. Strom Thurmond Lake. Just downstream of Thurmond Dam and Lake is a large population of the city of Augusta, Georgia. Thurmond Dam is able to aid in mitigation of flooding of this downstream population by slowing down releases and allowing time for the city to conduct preliminary evacuations and set Augusta Levee closures. During an extreme storm event, an exceedingly large flow may need to be passed through Russell\u2019s and Thurmond\u2019s spillways to prevent the lakes from reaching the top of the dams. These rare events will result in river flows that could overtop the Augusta Levee and impact widespread areas downstream of the dam with dangerous flood waters. It is noted that Russell\u2019s spillway gates have never been opened due to flooding; all inflows to the lake have always been mitigated by passing water through the generators, however this may not always be the case. Russell Dam is well maintained and has historically performed well with no issues of immediate concern. However, there is a slight chance that a significant earthquake event may result in a breach of one of the embankments, or a failure of a part of the concrete dam structure. This could result in deep and swift downstream flooding. This is an unlikely event, but one that should be considered as a possibility.", "riskManagementMeasures":"USACE is continuously taking action to prepare for emergency incidents. This includes working closely with local emergency managers, regularly updating the Emergency Action Plan, and conducting emergency exercises with state and local response teams. USACE engineers and project personnel perform regular inspections of the dam and evaluate the dam\u2019s instrumentation. These inspections and instrumentation evaluations are used to assess how the dam is performing. The frequency of the inspections and instrumentation checks increases as the Russell Lake level rises in order to detect and identify any potential dam safety issues. Periodic training is conducted with Russell Dam project personnel. This training is to help project personnel, that are at the site on a daily basis, to identify the early warning signs of a potential issue with the dam. Regular maintenance and repairs are performed as needed to keep the dam functioning properly. Additionally, USACE works closely with Augusta-Richmond County during flood events. The USACE operations plan for the downstream Thurmond Dam requires a stepped spillway release during major flood events and prospective/impending dam failure events. This allows time for Augusta-Richmond County to close gate structures within the levee and to set levee stoplog closures before the full, required spillway releases are commenced.", "riverName":"SAVANNAH RIVER", "separateStructuresCount":1, "sourceAgency":"US Army Corps of Engineers", "spillwayTypeId":1, "spillwayWidth":500, "stateFedId":"GA01705", "stateRegulatoryAgency":null, "stateRegulatedId":0, "structuralHeight":195, "submitDate":"2023-02-16T17:25:40.752Z", "surfaceArea":26653, "volume":4422190, "widthOfLocks":0, "secondaryWidthOfLocks":null, "yearCompleted":1986, "congDist":"Congressional District 10, Georgia", "city":"ELBERTON", "county":"Elbert", "aiannh":null, "websiteUrl":"https://www.sas.usace.army.mil/About/Divisions-and-Offices/Operations-Division/Richard-B-Russell-Dam-and-Lake/", "coreTypeIds":null, "damTypeIds":"11;8;9", "fedConstructionIds":"1", "fedDesignIds":"1", "fedFundingIds":"1", "fedInspectionIds":"1", "fedOperationIds":"1", "fedOtherIds":"1", "fedOwnerIds":"1", "fedRegulatoryIds":"1", "formerNames":null, "foundationTypeIds":"1", "nonFederalDamOnFederalId":0, "designerNames":"CESAS", "otherNames":"Richard B. Russell Lake", "ownerNames":"USACE - Savannah District", "ownerTypeIds":"3", "primaryDamTypeId":11, "primaryOwnerTypeId":3, "primaryPurposeId":6, "purposeIds":"6;12;4;5;8;9", "dsacId":5, "femaRegion":"4", "lastEapExcerDate":"2025-05-07T12:00:00.000Z", "dataUpdated":"2025-06-27T12:00:00.000Z", "usaceDistrict":"Savannah District", "noConsequencesId":0, "secretaryAgricultureBuiltId":null, "nrcsWatershedAuthorizationId":null, "isAssociatedStructureId":"No", "fedRegulatedId":"Yes", "inundationNidAddedId":1, "damStatusId":2, "huc06":"030601", "doi_region":null, "doi_region_name":"South Atlantic Gulf", "doi_region_number":2, "thirtyYearAverage":1261.1388, "tenthPercentile":1222.8852, "ninetiethPercentile":1306.0613 }, "id":68040, "links":[ { "type":"application/json", "rel":"root", "title":"The landing page of this server as JSON", "href":"https://api.wwdh.internetofwater.app?f=json" }, { "type":"text/html", "rel":"root", "title":"The landing page of this server as HTML", "href":"https://api.wwdh.internetofwater.app?f=html" }, { "rel":"self", "type":"application/geo+json", "title":"This document as JSON", "href":"https://api.wwdh.internetofwater.app/collections/usace-edr/items/68040?f=json" }, { "rel":"alternate", "type":"application/ld+json", "title":"This document as RDF (JSON-LD)", "href":"https://api.wwdh.internetofwater.app/collections/usace-edr/items/68040?f=jsonld" }, { "rel":"alternate", "type":"text/html", "title":"This document as HTML", "href":"https://api.wwdh.internetofwater.app/collections/usace-edr/items/68040?f=html" }, { "rel":"collection", "type":"application/json", "title":"USACE Access2Water API", "href":"https://api.wwdh.internetofwater.app/collections/usace-edr" } ] }