The Commission had lowered the lake when flooding in the fall of 2004 damaged the dam’s emergency spillway. A fish salvage operation was held in conjunction with the draw down. The lake remained drained until recent heavy rains in the area temporarily refilled the impoundment last weekend. While the rainfall that caused the lake levels to rise dramatically was an unusual event, DEP and PFBC engineers agree that excavating the spillway down to bedrock will prevent any future such phenomena.

“The dam at Dutch Fork Lake is characterized as a ‘high hazard dam,’ meaning if the structure were to fail there would be a significant risk of downstream property damage. While there is no immediate threat of dam failure at this time, excavating the spillway is a precautionary measure in the interest of public safety,” said PFBC Executive Director Dr. Douglas Austen.

“We have experienced two extremely wet years in Pennsylvania, resulting in emergency dam breaches and decisions to empty some popular ponds and lakes, including Dutch Fork,” DEP Deputy Secretary of Water Management Cathy Curran Myers said. “DEP and the PFBC are working closely in this case to prevent further damage, hasten repairs and ensure the removal of any risk to downstream residents.”

Once the work plan is approved, Commission construction crews will move into the area to remove the spillway. The dam breast will remain in place. Long-term plans call for armoring the dam breast and building a new concrete spillway. The work planned for excavating the spillway would have been required before any rebuild could occur. The cost estimate for the refurbishing of the dam is in excess of $3 million and the PFBC has no money for the larger project.

Statewide, the Commission faces a $100+ million backlog of infrastructure needs. Commission operations are funded from the sale of fishing licenses and boat registrations. Currently there is no funding source the agency can tap into to address major capital project needs, such as rebuilding the dam at Dutch Fork Lake. A Green Ribbon Panel created by the General Assembly and Governor Rendell is actively exploring legislation to address a wide scope of environmental and natural resource funding needs. The draining of Dutch Fork Lake further illustrates the importance of including funding for PFBC projects in any future funding initiative.

Public access to the spillway area will be closed once excavation work begins.

• Dutch Fork Lake

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