Construction Begins at Lemon Dam

Written by: Justyn Liff

Lemon DamConstruction mobilization began on October 31, 2016, on high pressure slide gates at Lemon Dam, part of the Florida Project located near Durango, Colo. The purpose of construction is to perform preventative maintenance on the high pressure slide gates that are used to regulate the water releases from Lemon Dam. Work will begin with setting a new steel bulkhead gate on the intake structure to provide a dry work environment for working on the high pressure slide gates while allowing flows into the Florida River to continue.

The bulkhead will be set in the intake structure starting in early November 2016, and will take several weeks to complete. During this time the releases from Lemon Dam will be approximately 3 to 4 cubic-feet-per-second and will be pumped over the crest of the dam. After the bulkhead is set in the intake structure limited releases will be made through the bulkhead of approximately 8 to 10 cfs while preventive maintenance is being performed on the high-pressure slide gates.

Once the preventive maintenance is complete, which is scheduled for late January 2017 to February 2017, the bulkhead will be remove from the intake structure. While the bulkhead is being removed the releases from Lemon Dam will be approximately 3 to 4 cubic-feet-per-second and will again be pumped over the crest of the dam. Once the bulkhead is removed the releases from Lemon Dam will resume as usual.

Published on October 31, 2016