Posted on July 31, 2024
An engineering report yielded positive results for the county as it continues working toward acquiring a permit to dredge Lake Contrary.
Terracon, an engineering consultant based out of Lenexa, Kansas, collected soil samples around Lake Contrary in June. It was a seepage analysis to assess the risk of undermining the nearby levee, according to the report, which the county received this month.
“The (Army) Corps of Engineers asked for a small sample of what kind of soil was going to be coming out of the lake and going into the river if they approve this particular permit,” Buchanan County Commissioner Ron Hook said.
The proposed dredging project will not negatively impact the structural integrity of the levee or worsen seepage issues in the area, according to Terracon’s report.
“It’s good news,” Hook said. “And the Corps of Engineers, has done a great job over the years putting in those relief wells to relieve the pressure off of the base of the levee.”
Terracon’s report included the county’s intent to dredge Lake Contrary to a depth of 6 feet, and there is a chance it could reach 8 feet in the middle of the lake.
This depth was decided when the county conducted testing with a hydrologist when the lake ran at 2.5 feet this past winter.
“We thought, ‘Okay, if the river is at 2.5 feet, how far down will we have to dredge so we know that there’s always water in the lake,’” Hook said.
At this point, the county is not required to conduct any more testing to gain a permit to dredge Lake Contrary. But Hook said the Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can make a request for additional testing or information at any time.
“We’ve worked with them in the past on certain things,” he said. “And so, at the last minute, they may ask for something else, and we’ll just have to respond to it.”
