Rogers upset with Corps over dam delays
By Bill Mardis, Editor Emeritus
Commonwealth Journal
Fifth District Congressman Hal Rogers has chastised the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for what he calls " ... continued delays and cost overruns that
have been a perennial challenge" during rehabilitation of Wolf Creek Dam. Rogers, chair of the House Appropriations Committee, said during a hearing
of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development that the drawdown of Lake Cumberland in January 2007 to facilitate repairs at the
dam " ... has wrought havoc on the economies of surrounding counties." He said decisions the Corps made "... have virtually shuttered some marina
operations and jeopardized the livelihoods of their employees throughout the region."
Rogers also said the low lake level during this period of construction and uncertainty has taken a serious toll on other tourism-related businesses
such as the houseboat manufacturing industry. "I need two more hands to count the number of times Corps officials have committed to raising (Lake
Cumberland) back to historic levels, and yet, five years later, here we are, behind schedule and over budget," Rogers complained.
The cost estimate the Corps gave a couple of years ago for repairing the leaky dam, declared in high risk of failure, was $584 million. However,
grouting and other contracts have been awarded since then, and negotiations are still under way to determine how much is will cost to shore up
Critical Area 1.Critical Area 1 is a cavern-laced section near where the earthen part of the dam wraps around the concrete monolith. Drilling had to
be stopped in this 200-foot-wide section between March and September last year and double-wall steel casings are currently being designed to drill in
this critical area without creating a breach. Overlapping 50-inch diameter holes are being drilled through the earthen section of the dam and to about
100 feet into the bedrock. These holes are being filled with concrete to fashion a permanent barrier wall
"I'm extremely interested in hearing your take and hoping for your commitment to getting this important dam safety project back on track," Rogers
told the subcommittee. He expressed pleasure that the Corps' civil works construction budget for 2012 contains $132 million for Wolf Creek Dam repair
work. Bill Peoples, chief of public affairs for the Corps' Nashville District, said the Corps "... really has no reaction to the congressman's
remarks. It is well known there have been some problems and delays in Critical Area 1 and a solution has been found and is being worked on."
The Corps position is that safety is the No. 1 priority. Corps officials on numerous occasions have said no assessment of the lake level will be made
until Critical Area 1 is safe.
It looks like three more summers with lower lake levels
It likely will be three summers down the road before Lake Cumberland is maintained at a higher level. Danielle Smoot, district communications
coordinator for Congressman Hal Rogers, quoted U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials as saying in Washington, DC that it would be December 2013
before a permanent barrier wall will be complete in the most critical area of leaky Wolf Creek Dam.
The comments were made during a hearing before the Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development. Therefore it appears, and Corps
officials so indicated, according to Smoot, that the level of Lake Cumberland won't change significantly until Summer 2014.How much higher the lake
would be allowed to rise in 2014 is uncertain. Also unsure is whether the Wolf Creek Dam Rehabilitation Project will be finished in December 2013. If
Critical Area 1 is made safe in December 2013, the lake could rise to whatever level the Corps permits by the following boating season.
Corps officials have said time and time again no assessment of the lake level will be made until a permanent barrier wall is installed in Critical
Area 1, a dangerously fragile section of the dam next to where the earthen and concrete join. The Corps has been hesitant to give a timeline on
completion of the project. The projection when troublesome Critical Area 1 will be safe enough to allow a higher lake level was revealed during a
reportedly testy committee hearing. Rogers was grilling Corps officials about delays keeping Lake Cumberland 40 feet lower than normal and hurting the
economy of counties surrounding the lake.
David Hendrix, manager of the dam rehabilitation, said last week the entire project is 60 percent complete and the permanent barrier wall is 48
percent in place. Repairs on other areas of the dam have continued normally while Corps officials have tried to deal with problems in Critical Area 1.
Negotiations are ongoing with the contractor about design and cost of special equipment needed to drill in Critical Area 1 without creating a breach.
The plan is to drill through double-wall steel casing to protect the fragile earth in the dam from being dislodged by the drilling process.
The permanent barrier wall is being built in the earthen section of the dam by drilling overlapping 50-inch diameter holes through the dam and about
100 feet into the limestone bedrock. The overlapping holes are filled with concrete, creating a wall. Corps officials have said repeatedly no
consideration will be given to raising the lake level until Critical Area 1 is safe. The lake was lowered in January 2007 to relieve pressure on the
dam after the structure was declared in high risk of failure.
A six-month work stoppage in Critical Area 1 between March and September last year has set back completion of the dam rehabilitation at least a year
beyond an earlier December 2012 projection. This, and other delays, triggered a tongue lashing from Rogers, chair of the House Appropriations
Committee, source of funds for the dam repair. The Corps' 2012 civil works construction budget contains $132 million for the Wolf Creek Dam repair
project.
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