Gold Ray Dam removal underway
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By Ron
Brown
June 15, 2010
ROGUE RIVER, Ore. - After decades of debate and a nearly a year of
planning, work began Tuesday on the first phase of Gold Ray Dam removal
on the Rogue River.
Workers with the Slayden Construction Company are putting rock and
gravel upstream of the old dam to build a coffer dam. The coffer dam
will block off half the Rogue River so the south side of the dam can be
removed first.
"And then, around August, we will start to transition the river through
the notch that we take out. And then we'll have the entire river flowing
through the left side of the dam that's been removed," said Scott
Wright with the River Design Group, Inc.
After the 'left side' is removed, the right, or north side, will be
removed.
Federal Funding for the over $5 million project expires at the end of
October. However, Wright says there should be little trouble getting the
job done by then.
Beginning Tuesday, the Rogue River will be closed from 500 feet
downstream of the dam to 1,000 feet upstream. Jackson County officials
say this is being done to keep the public safe while construction crews
begin work on removing the dam this summer.
The closures should not extend beyond the deadlines already put in place
for anglers below the dam. The area will reopen October 15th.
Jackson County commissioners voted unanimously in May to use the federal
and state funding to remove the 106-year-old dam. Jackson County owns
the dam, which was decommissioned as a hydropower facility in 1972. Some
want the dam removed to protect fish runs, while others want it left
alone to protect wetland areas.
In September of 2009 Slayden Construction signed a notice of intent with
the county to remove the dam. The tentative contract was for just over
$5.5 million. Federal money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment
Act will fund $5 million of the project's cost. However, in order to use
the money, the dam must be completely out by October of this year.
