Purpose
Maintenance of the dam spillway gates are required to avoid degradation and eventual replacement. Benefit – cost analyses show it is economically favorable to maintain the gates rather than the replacement option. There are also reliability and safety concerns with allowing the gates to degrade to the point that they must be replaced.
Location
The St. Paul District operates and maintains 13 locks and dams from Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Guttenberg, Iowa.
Description
Each lock and dam is a critical step in the "stairway of water" that allows navigation between Minneapolis and St. Louis, Missouri. The Corps constructed Locks and Dams 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 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 district will pursue routine dam gate maintenance, including repair and painting, through an IDIQ contract for the majority of our portfolio. Funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) will be used to develop and review routine dam gate maintenance plans and specifications. Approximately $24,640,000 is available in the fiscal year 2023 president’s budget to perform routine maintenance on Lock and Dam 5. Lock and Dam 5 was advertised for construction in July 2023, with contract award in September 2023. Construction is scheduled for completion in November 2029. Lock and Dam 5A will be soliciated for contruction in third quarter of fiscal year 2024.
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 Lock and Dam 5 and 5A. Additionally, there is $15.2 million available from BIL in fiscal year 2024 to perform routine gate maintenance on Lock and Dam 5A. Lock and Dams 2, 10, 8, and 4 were included in fiscal year 2025 budget submission. Lock and Dam 5 was awarded for $22.5 million.