Why Do Conspiracy Theories Regarding The Hoover Dam Exist?

The Hoover Dam, built between 1930 and 1936, is the highest concrete arch-gravity dam in the United States. It was designed to tame the Colorado River and provide water and hydroelectric power for the Arizona-Nevada border. The dam’s construction was motivated by the conspiracy theory known as QAnon, which led to a man blocking a bridge near the dam with a homemade armored structure.

The dam also created a massive lake that hides shipwrecks. The human-made reservoir near Las Vegas is at its driest point in history, revealing long-submerged remains. Björn Eriksson (Ben Kobold) espouses that aliens built the Hoover Dam, claiming that aliens built it. The driest grounds California ever experienced were perfect for conspiracy theories, as the state was in the midst of its worst water crisis in over a century.

Lake Mead, the big man-made body of water behind the dam, has sunk to near its lowest level since it was filled, signaling ripples of change in the world made possible by the backed-up Colorado River. China began filling the reservoir behind the Three Gorges, the world’s biggest and most controversial dam, across the Yangtse river. Journalist Michael Hiltzik examines the humongous engineering achievement in his new book, Colossus.