Duke begins prepping for dam removal
Despite the looming threat by Jackson County to win control of the Dillsboro Dam using eminent domain, Duke Energy announced that it will begin preparing for its demolition this week by dredging the backlog of sediment from behind the dam.
It marks yet another interesting twist in the increasingly tit-for-tat saga between Jackson and Duke.
Jackson County commissioners voted 4 to 1 last week to launch eminent domain proceedings against Duke to take ownership the Dillsboro dam and adjacent shoreline for the creation of a riverside park. State law allows for the use of eminent domain for parks and recreation.
The move was a last-ditch effort by Jackson County to stop Duke from tearing down the dam. But Duke seems unfazed. The company sent out a press release this week stating that it would begin prepping for sediment removal in anticipation of dam demolition in early 2010.
State and federal environmental agencies have insisted Duke dredge behind the dam to keep the backlogged sediment from flushing downstream and harming the aquatic ecosystem when the dam is removed. Duke is being required to dredge 70,000 cubic yards of the estimated 100,000 cubic yards behind the dam.
It will take six months to remove the sediment, according to Duke. Dam demolition, if not halted by Jackson’s move to seize the dam, would begin in early 2010.
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Prep work to dredge the sediment could begin late this week or early next week. Duke will take precautions to minimize the impacts of the earth-moving operation in the river, according to Fred Alexander, Nantahala District Manager of Duke Energy Carolinas.
“We recognize this will be an environmentally sensitive operation, and we are taking great care to follow all appropriate environmental and regulatory requirements,” Alexander said in a statement.
Duke plans to process the sediment and hopes to find a market for its reuse in the construction industry or other uses.
Earlier this year, Jackson refused to grant Duke the permits it needed to dredge the sediment. Duke turned to the courts to demand the permits and won. Jackson was not only forced to relinquish the permits, but faces the prospect of reimbursing Duke’s legal costs to secure the permits.
For eight-tenths of a mile behind the dam, the Tuckasegee River is a wide, slow-moving backwater. Following dam removal, the area will be restored to natural river conditions, Duke said in a press release.
“There will be a significant environmental benefit once we have removed the dam and powerhouse,” said Alexander.
The free-flowing river will create new paddling and fishing opportunities and allow for natural migration of aquatic species.
John Boaze of Fish and Wildlife Associates has argued that a fish passage around the dam could accommodate migration for some species without removing the dam.
