Purpose
Maintenance of dam spillway gates are required to avoid degradation and eventual replacement. Cost analyses show it is economically favorable to maintain these gates rather than replace them. There are also reliability and safety concerns with allowing the gates to degrade to the point that they must be replaced.
Location
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) St. Paul District operates and maintains 13 locks and dams (LDs) from Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Guttenberg, Iowa.
Description
Each LD is a critical step in the "stairway of water" that allows navigation between Minneapolis, Minnesota, and St. Louis, Missouri. USACE constructed LDs 2 through 10 in the 1930s. Each site includes a dam bridge and varying numbers of dam gates. The gates are critical navigation components because they control the pool elevation for navigation, flood control and environmental purposes. Typically, the gates are partially submerged in flowing water and subjected to corrosion from numerous environmental factors, including ultraviolet light, moisture and impurities permeation, and abrasion from sediment and debris.
Status
The life expectancy of modern paint systems ranges from 15 to 25 years.
|
Site
|
Location
|
Length (ft)
|
Last Painted
|
|
LSAF
|
Minneapolis
|
168
|
1985
|
|
2
|
Hastings
|
570
|
1987
|
|
3
|
Red Wing
|
320
|
1988
|
|
4
|
Alma
|
990
|
2002
|
|
5
|
Minneiska
|
1,200
|
1978
|
|
5A
|
Winona
|
575
|
1982
|
|
6
|
Trempealeau
|
750
|
2005
|
|
7
|
Dresbach
|
715
|
1995
|
|
8
|
Genoa
|
680
|
1991
|
|
9
|
Lynxville
|
610
|
1992
|
|
10
|
Guttenberg
|
560
|
1980
|
The St. Paul District plans to pursue routine dam gate maintenance, including repair and painting, through individual contracts for the majority of the portfolio, as done to date on LD 5 and LD 5A. Funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) was used to develop and review plans and specifications for those sites. Approximately $24,640,000 was available in the fiscal year 2023 president’s budget to perform routine maintenance on LD 5. LD 5 was advertised for construction in July 2023, with contract award in September 2023. Construction started in March 2024. LD 5A was advertised for construction in May 2024, with contract award in August 2024. Construction at LD 5A started in March 2025.
Authority
The project was authorized as part of the Rivers and Harbors Act approved July 3, 1930.
Funding
The St. Paul District received $1 million from BIL in fiscal year 2022 to prepare plans and specifications for LDs 5 and 5A. LD 5 was awarded for $22.5 million and is scheduled for completion in November 2028. BIL funded the award of LD 5A in August 2024 for $18.7 million and is also scheduled for completion is November 2028. LDs 2, 10, 8, and 4 were included in the fiscal year 2025 budget submission. The fiscal year 2027 budget submissions included replacing select bulkheads and Tainter gates at these sites with fiber-reinforced polymer to allow for dam gate maintenance.