Rehabilitation of Dover Dam complete!

The Dover Dam rehabilitation project was marked complete by local and federal agencies. The $60 million project aimed in increasing the dam safety and stabilizing the aging flood-control structure. During celebration, officials also stated the need for investments in renovating the aging infrastructure across the country. 

Officials had serious concerns with regards to the stability of the dam since 1969, as a result of the faults mapped along the foundation bedrock. Some minimal investigation had been carried out in 1982, but the rehabilitation project did not receive further funding until fiscal year 2003. Rehabilitation works were executed in two phases; phase I involved the installation of 36 anchors in the dam, while extensive support measures were applied during phase II. Namely, 21 additional anchors and 60 bar anchors in the stilling basin were installed,  a parapet wall on the right abutment was constructed, and the right bank downstream of the dam was stabilized with stone slope protection. Total cost of the project reached $60 million, with Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District covering local cost share for the project, this being translated into roughly $2 million. 

Steve Muck of Brayman Construction, handling the project, admitted the challenging nature of the project "from a technical standpoint", also commenting on the two bid outs the project faced, due to the specific challenges. He also underlined the need for investments in the nation's infrastructure, which is in bad shape, before the occurrence of "catastrophic issues".