Foss Reservoir
Foss Lake Beach
Foss Reservoir Show map of Oklahoma Foss Reservoir Show map of the United States
Location	Custer County, Oklahoma
Coordinates	35°34′05″N 99°13′19″W / 35.568°N 99.222°W / 35.568; -99.222
Type	Reservoir
Primary inflows	Washita River
Primary outflows	Washita River
Catchment area	1,496 square miles (3,870 km2)[1]
Basin countries	United States
Managing agency	U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
Built	October 1958
First flooded	October 1962
Max. length	10.91 miles (17.56 km)
Max. width	2 miles (3.2 km)
Surface area	8,800 acres (3,600 ha)[1]
Water volume	256,220 acre⋅ft (316,040,000 m3)(flood capacity)[1]
Shore length1	63 mi (101 km)
Surface elevation	1,652 feet (504 m)
Islands	several islets
Settlements	Foss, Oklahoma; Clinton, Oklahoma
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Foss Reservoir, also known as Foss Lake, is in Custer County, Oklahoma on the Washita River, about 15 miles (24 km) west of Clinton, Oklahoma. The reservoir was constructed during 1958–1961 by the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation. The project was known originally as the Washita Basin Project. The lake and dam were named for the community of Foss, Oklahoma, about 6 miles (9.7 km) south of the site. The primary purposes are to regulate flow of the river and to provide water for the cities of Bessie, Clinton, Cordell and Hobart.^[2] It is western Oklahoma's largest lake^[3] and lies entirely within Foss State Park.

Description

The reservoir has a surface area of 8,800 acres (3,600 ha) and a shoreline of 63 miles (101 km).^[4] The capacity of the reservoir is 436,812 acre-feet (538,800,000 m³).^[5] The reservoir serves a catchment area of 1,496 square miles (3,870 km²). The reservoir has a mean depth of 23 feet (7.0 m) and a maximum depth of 89 feet (27 m).^[3]

Foss Dam

Dam construction began in October, 1958. The dam is 142 feet (43 m) high, 38 feet (12 m) wide (at the crest) and 18,130 feet (5,530 m) long.^[3]

Foss State Park

Foss State Park encompasses 1,749 acres (7,080,000 m²) of land and contains 8 campgrounds, swimming beach, 6 boat ramps, a playground, marina, and a restaurant. It also has 19 miles (31 km) of equestrian and multi-use trails.^[3] Foss State Park is often mentioned as a target for sale or closure to help close the state's current budget deficit. Already the state has sold a herd of bison as "surplus property." The bison had recently been moved into Foss State Park from another location in western Oklahoma.^[6]

Water treatment

The water quality in Lake Foss is extremely hard. The Bureau of Reclamation built one of the first electrodialysis plants in the United States to process the water before it is delivered to users. The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality constructed a new, updated plant to replace the original in 2002.^[7] The new plant, built by Ionics, Inc., would also increase production of potable water for its municipal customers from 3 million to 4.5 million U.S. gallons per day.^[8]

Water is transported from the dam to consumers via three pumping stations and 50.8 miles (81.8 km) of aqueducts.^[9]