The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers continues to explore options for repairing or replacing the Drayton Dam on the Red River north of Drayton, N.D., but any kind of project is still a couple of years off, officials say.
Elliot Stefanik, project manager and biologist for the Corps in St. Paul, said the project is moving forward but progress is slow.
Built in 1964 to supply water for the nearby American Crystal Sugar plant and the city of Drayton, the dam is in need of repair. The dam also is a safety hazard and presents a barrier to upstream fish passage.
Drayton officials in 2008 approached the Corps to seek help in repairing or replacing the dam, and federal money became available late that year.
In January 2009, the Corps and the city hosted a public meeting in Drayton to lay out options for the dam.
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Stefanik said he's working to compile preliminary drawings and cost estimates on four alternatives for the dam. The goal, he said, is to present the options, and the pros and cons of each, to city officials and natural resources agencies this spring and then try to come up with the best course of action.
After that, he said, the Corps will write up a draft report and environmental assessment, and the proposal will go through the standard public review process.
The four main options are:
- Modifying the existing dam into a rock-riffle structure with a more gradual slope that's safer and accommodates fish passage. The design would be similar to dams on the Red and Red Lake rivers in Grand Forks and East Grand Forks.
- Building a whole new structure utilizing the rock-riffle design downstream from the existing dam.
- Stabilizing the existing dam and constructing a large fish bypass channel around one side of the dam, most likely the west side, which would return the full flow of the historic river channel to the area below the dam. The bypass would be built as a series of riffles to accommodate fish passage while maintaining upstream water elevations.
- Stabilizing the existing dam but with a smaller fish bypass channel.
Stefanik said any project at the existing site also would include adding rock below the dam to provide structural support and improve safety by reducing the dangerous roller currents that have contributed to several drowning deaths over the years.
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Whatever shape the project takes will depend on cost, along with other factors such as social values and real estate or land issues. Any project likely will cost "a few million" dollars, Stefanik said, given the erosion and bank stability issues along the river near the dam.
"The hope is we'll finalize our information and be able to make some decisions this spring," Stefanik said. "We are trying very hard to keep that cost down. The more cost-effective we can make it, the more likely we are to get something done."
Stefanik said the Corps would fund 65 percent of the project's cost, with a variety of state and local entities from both sides of the river likely paying for the remainder.
Other partners in the project include the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, the North Dakota State Water Commission, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
"It's likely there will be multiple sources to ultimately get to construction," Stefanik said.
Dokken reports on outdoors. Reach him at (701) 780-1148; (800) 477-6572, ext. 148; or send e-mail to bdokken@gfherald.com .
