A leaking dam that forms a world-class fishing reservoir in Putnam County is showing its decades-old age with hairline cracks, corrosion and rust.
The condition of the Rodman-Kirkpatrick Dam, near Palatka, is at “high hazard,” according to a new report released by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. The aging dam is reclassified to greater risk but the structure from the 1960s is not at risk of immediate failure, according to the assessment.
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The deteriorating structure from the 1960s is a concern for the more than 500 homes situated downstream around Welaka, which could flood if water levels rose by 4 feet in a dam failure.
Thousands of dams across the country are facing similar infrastructure hazard risks.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency describes high hazard as “a dam in which failure or mis-operation is expected to result in loss of life and may also cause significant economic losses, including damages to downstream property, or critical infrastructure, environmental damage, or disruption of lifeline facilities.”
The true conditions of the dam are incomplete because a number of logs and debris prevented underwater divers from completing a comprehensive assessment of corrosion.
The log debris may prevent gates from working according to engineering company Mead & Hunt whose inspection found the spillway does not show immediate safety concerns, but heavy rain could “surcharge and overtop the embankment.”
Repairs are estimated to cost around $1.3 to $1.6 million -- a price dam proponents say is reasonable given the recreational boost it provides to the economies of Putnam and Marion counties estimated around $6 to 7 million per year, according to Florida Tax Watch.
But the watchdog group points out restoring the dam would actually cost between $4 million and $14 million at a time when an “average number of reservoir visitors have decreased by approximately 3,627 parties every year since 2010.”
Florida TaxWatch President and CEO Dominic M. Calabro said, “It’s been a long-term problem for taxpayers in this part of the state. “Given the public safety risks posed by dams, as well as the reasonable costs associated with the project and Florida’s favorable economic position, Florida TaxWatch supports the breaching of the dam and partial restoration of the natural flow of the Ocklawaha River.”
Steve Miller, President of Save Rodman Reservoir, questions the validity of the Florida TaxWatch estimate. Miller who grew up along the 9600-acre waterbody says it is a big asset to the fishing community and helps trap excessive nutrients and pollutants that would otherwise flow into the St. Johns. He values the dam’s capacity to mitigate flood impacts through prestorm drawdowns.
Environmentalists say restoring the Ocklawaha River to what it was before the dam construction in 1968 would boost flow into the St. Johns River, increase fishing opportunities, improve manatee and wildlife corridors while improving water quality throughout the watershed.