By Julie Johansen
Starting their third construction season on the rehabilitation of the Millsite Dam, two construction crews have been working 12 hour-shifts, six days per week to continue to raise the embankment on the dam. The day crew works on filters and drains while the night crew does general earth fill. It is now within 35 feet of the crest.
As the embankment goes up, a new challenge is facing construction crews: the slope of the dirt becomes narrower and now they must find a way for the dump trucks to load the shouldering machine and get past it for a new load, or back up the long distance of the dam, about 3,400 feet. This will require a shift in procedures for construction. Crews must also remove the vegetation along the dam face, which requires burning the weeds before the zones of dirt can be added to make sure that the weeds don’t leave a space in compaction. The focus is to finish the dirt work before winter settles in.
The spillway is still on a holding pattern. The final review from the Natural Resources Conservation Service has not yet been received. Once received, questions will need to be answered and the review returned for final signature. This final review is expected mid-to-late fall and the hope is that concrete work will be finished during the winter months. Except for a little earth work on both sides of the spillway, the dam needs to be finished before the concrete work is done. Because of all the advancements in cold weather concrete protection, this can happen during the winter months regardless of the weather.
The good news is that Ferron Creek Irrigation Company has been able to deliver water to their members both irrigation seasons. The flow out of the outlets is greatly reduced, just releasing needed water. The reservoir is slowly reducing but will store what is left after the irrigation season ends. The inspectors at the dam are grateful that Ferron Creek Irrigation Company has been pleasant to work with.
