BUCKEYE LAKE

ODNR has permission to move soil into Buckeye Lake

Anna Bisaro
abisaro@gannett.com

COLUMBUS – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers regulatory office has granted the Ohio Department of Natural Resources permission to move soil into Buckeye Lake.

The Corps expedited the approval of the permit, but Chuck Minsker, spokesman for the Corps, said that’s not uncommon.

“I don’t think it’s terribly unusual, particularly when a state agency calls,” Minsker said Friday.

The 404 permit was required from the regulatory office for ODNR to start construction on a new Buckeye Lake Dam, Minsker said.

“We’ve got quite a ways to go,” ODNR spokesman John Wisse said. “Our hope is that we can start (construction) by the end of the year.”

Engineers from the ODNR have said the new design will require at least 30 feet of land to extend out from the current dam for construction. It is unclear how far out the finished dam will extend.

“We have a consultant engineer on board,” Wisse said of the recent approval of Gannett Fleming by the state control board. But a firm is still needed to take on the movement of dirt.

The ODNR will be requesting qualifications for professional engineering services until Sept. 10 to begin construction on the new Buckeye Lake Dam.

abisaro@gannett.com

740-328-8822

Twitter: @abisaro_NEW