Discharge and Suspended Sediment Transport during Deconstruction of a Low-Head Dam
Publication: Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 134, Issue 5
Abstract
In March of 2003, the wide, high St. Johns Dam (Sandusky River, Ohio) was breached to lower the water level in the reservoir. In November of the same year, the dam was removed in an effort to restore aquatic habitat and connectivity in the river. During both the breach and the dam removal, high resolution time series of discharge and suspended sediment concentrations were monitored downstream of the dam. Discharge and suspended sediment during the breach were not discernible from background values. In contrast, the dam removal resulted in a peak suspended sediment concentration of and a peak discharge of , which returned to background levels of and , respectively, approximately after the removal. The floodwave during the removal attenuated by 50% at the City of Fremont, downstream, illustrating the diffusive nature of the channel and the limited risk of flooding downstream. Levels of suspended sediment and discharge during the removal were comparable to subsequent discharge events. Spatial distributions of turbidity in and upstream of the dam pool and archived turbidity data from the City of Tiffin, downstream of the dam, suggest that sediments stored in the impoundment did not statistically enhance turbidity up to 2 years after the removal. Generally, the removal had a minor impact on water quality and posed no risk to public safety or to downstream aquatic habitats.
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Acknowledgments
The writers thank Bob Vargo and Bob Gable (Scenic Rivers Program, Ohio DNR) for asking us to participate in their 5-year study of dam removal and river restoration. Special thanks to Ryan Murphy (Geologic Survey, Ohio DNR) for help deploying instruments, to Michael Perriguey (American Water Co.) for supplying archived turbidity data, and to Mike Eberline and Greg Koltun (USGS) for flow data. The writers also thank two anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments. This work was funded by the Great Lakes Protection Fund, Grant No. 671.UNSPECIFIED
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© 2008 ASCE.
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Received: Feb 18, 2005
Accepted: May 16, 2007
Published online: May 1, 2008
Published in print: May 2008
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