Army Corps of Engineers continued to construct new dams, often at the behest of congressional representatives of related areas such as in the case of Tellico. In the 1970s, the era of dam-building ended with the Tellico Dam case illustrating the United States' changing attitudes. From 1933 with the beginning of the pivotal Norris Project to the end of Tellico in 1979, the TVA had forcibly removed more than 125,000 residents of the Tennessee Valley. This removal of people remains a controversial talking point on the methods and merit behind the TVA's dam projects. In the 1980s, the TVA attempted the construction of a $83 million dam intent on tourism and economic development similar to Tellico on the Duck River near Columbia, Tennessee, but resulted in failure and the 1999 demolition of the unfinished dam following environmental and financial consequences raised during the project. In 2001, the 13,000-acre area for the project, known as the Columbia Project, was transferred for public use to the state of Tennessee. See also Bussell Island National Register of Historic Places listings in Loudon County, Tennessee References External links Tellico Reservoir — TVA site Tellico Reservoir — Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency Dams on the Little Tennessee River Buildings and structures in Loudon County, Tennessee Dams in Tennessee Tennessee Valley Authority dams Dams completed in 1979 Historic districts in Tennessee National Register of Historic Places in Loudon County, Tennessee Dams on the National Register of Historic Places in Tennessee United States environmental case law Controversies in the United States Eminent domain Cherokee towns Appalachian studies United States land use case law Dam controversies