One of several major infrastructure projects that Central is investing in was recently completed when the $6 million seepage mitigation project at Elwood Dam concluded.
Work began in September of 2023 to install a seepage mitigation system at the dam on Elwood Reservoir. The system covered the entire dam and near the Carl T. Curtis pump station.
BSB Construction of Curtis, Neb., was the contractor for the project with RJH Consultants doing the design work.
A new pipe was installed along the base of the dam for a controlled seepage system that will ensure the safety of the dam and long-term use of the reservoir.
On top of the new pipe, a weighted layer of soil and sand serves as a blanket to filter the seepage away from the reservoir and towards the toe drain. A channel was also cut to allow the water to flow away from the dam into a drainage pond.
With the completion of the seepage project, Central can safely return to operating Elwood Reservoir at higher elevations. It has a capacity of approximately 40,000 acre-feet.
Elwood Reservoir is the last place on Central’s system that is utilized to manage and save water, and this project ensures that the reservoir will be safe and operational to make the best use of the water for years to come.
Elwood Dam, constructed in the 1970s, consists of a main earthen embankment dam, two earthen saddle dams, a pump station, an inlet-outlet canal and a conduit that is surrounded by an earth fill embankment. Central stores irrigation water and recharge water in Elwood and water is conveyed into and out of the reservoir through the inlet-outlet conduit and the E-65 canal.
Central has received two financial commitments from the Platte River Recovery Implementation Program and the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources to help with the $6 million project.
