By Sara Price
Concerned Castle Dale citizen, Mark Williams, took the floor at the Emery County Commission meeting on Sept. 24, to express the trouble he and his neighbors have encountered due to recent flooding. Lower Castle Dale has been plagued by flooding during heavy rains and according to Williams, this is not the first time it’s happened.
Williams credited problems back to the year the power plant installed culverts and irrigation ditches, turning it into an enclosed pipe system. Trees and shrubs have also grown in, choking off water routes. He and his neighbors think it’s time something is done.
There used to be a flood tax in the county that citizens paid into and Williams would like to see it come back. That money was used to clear out the river systems of trees, shrubs and other encroaching debris. It could be used to repair dormant canal systems allowing excessive water to pass through.
Commissioners agreed that something needs to be done and if the county receives heavy snowfall this winter as projected, flooding will return in the spring, troubling residents and sending overflow into fields and homes. At least four homes have been flooded this fall in Castle Dale and citizens worry that the problem is only going to get worse.
Commissioners brainstormed over what possible measures need to be taken. They believe the Army Corp of Engineers will have to be involved in the project and promised to look into it and see what could be done for Williams and other citizens.
Williams thanked the sheriff’s office, firefighters and road department crews for all the work they did to clear out the river systems and sand bag endangered homes.