Debris removal underway at Mount Morris Dam

Published Aug. 14, 2015
This year $300,000 will be used to remove approximately 3,200 cubic yards of floatable material, to include trees, tires, and other material that has floated down the Genesee River, and approximately 9,000 cubic yards of sediment from behind the dam.

This year $300,000 will be used to remove approximately 3,200 cubic yards of floatable material, to include trees, tires, and other material that has floated down the Genesee River, and approximately 9,000 cubic yards of sediment from behind the dam.

Buffalo, NY – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Buffalo District awarded a five year $1.7 million contract, April 2015, to Strock Enterprises, Ltd., Cheektowaga, New York, for the removal of floatable material and sediment from behind Mount Morris Dam, Mount Morris, New York.

This year $300,000 will be used to remove approximately 3,200 cubic yards of floatable material, to include trees, tires, and other material that has floated down the Genesee River, and approximately 9,000 cubic yards of sediment from behind the dam.

“Debris removal is an annual event that ensures during high water events Mount Morris Dam will be able to function as designed,” said Keith Jones, USACE Buffalo District project manager. “The sediment that is removed will be placed upstream of the dam back into the flood plain. Tires and other man-made debris will be removed from the floatable material and recycled, and a wood chipper will be used to grind the trees before they are hauled away and recycled.”

Mount Morris Dam is the largest dam of its type east of the Mississippi, located on the Genesee River near the Village of Mount Morris in Livingston County, New York. The dam is situated deep in the Genesee River gorge near the northern end of Letchworth State Park. Before the Mount Morris Dam was built, frequent and severe flood events caused major destruction in the city of Rochester and areas south of the city.

Congress authorized the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to build Mount Morris Dam in the Flood Control Act of 1944 at a cost of $24 million. Since it was built the dam has prevented over $2 billion worth of flood damages.

 

 


Contact
Andrew Kornacki
716-879-4349
andrew.a.kornacki@usace.army.mil

Release no. 15-019