Buchanan Dam in south Texas is a reservoir located on the Colorado River that provides an outlet for the mighty Texas Big Bend National Park. It is also one of the major sources of drinking water for the residents of Laredo, Texas. This dam was built in 1931 and the original reservoir covered an area of fifteen thousand acres. Today, it is only a part of that size. Visit this link for more information.
In terms of land area, the town of Buchanan Dam, Texas is approximately two miles long on a side of the lake that is approximately two hundred feet deep. The lake area itself is about three thousand acres. The main source of economic development for the town is the construction of the highway that links the city to its sister towns that are on the lake, and to businesses that need access to the public roadways. Other sources of economic development for the town include the Lakealls Inc. plant that provides lighting, cooling, and heating to businesses in the area. Read about The Beauty of Buchanan Dam, Texas here.
One of the biggest concerns is for the endangered aquatic wildlife that lives in the area. Thirty species of birds can be found in the area surrounding the Buchanan Dam, Texas and most of the species migrate through the Buchanan Dam to their natural habitat in other regions of Texas. Other concerns are the smaller streams, creeks, and rivers that flow through the area. There are over two hundred thousand fish in the Buchanan Dam area and a similar amount of aquatic life in the smaller creeks and rivers. Many of these fish migrate to the warmer waters of Texas when the winter rains threaten to freeze them in their tracks.
