Posted on May 7, 2025
A critical project to preserve water supply and remove sediment at Tuttle Creek Lake will begin this summer.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials are preparing for a first-of-its-kind water injection dredging project. Operations Project Manager Brian McNulty said the technology has been around for while but has never been used at an inland lake.
“It uses gravity to transport the sediment out of the lake through the outlet works,” he said. “Tuttle Creek is a prime candidate for that, since our gates are the lowest point of the lake.”
McNulty said the process involves a barge with large pumps and a ladder boom that goes to the bottom of the lake.
“They take lake water, run it through the pumps, inject it into the ladder boom, and it stirs up the sediment in the bottom and creates a density current,” he said. “That density current has a higher specific gravity, so it hugs the bottom of the lake, and it basically moves slowly down slope.”
He said the theory is that sediment will move through the outlet works and go down the river.
“It won’t do anything to regain lost space at the lake, but if feasible, it’s a tool that can at least maintain and slow the loss of the multipurpose pool space over the remainder of the lake’s lifetime.
“It won’t do anything to regain the lost space that we’ve experienced in the lake,” he said. “But if this technology is feasible and cost effective, it’s a tool that we can use to at least maintain and slow down the loss of that multipurpose pool space over the next remainder of the life of the lake.”
McNulty estimates Tuttle Creek Lake has lost about half of its multipurpose pool, which is utilized to for water supply and recreation.
Michels Construction, of Brownville, Wisconsin was awarded a contract in December totaling nearly $7.8 million for the project. The project is anticipated to be completed in April 2027.
Temporary closures and reductions
The upcoming dredging project will result in at least one temporary closure. The Tuttle Creek Cove boat ramp area will close after July 4 and remain closed until at least mid-August.
In late April, the Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also announced some adjustments will be made at all 18 of its district lakes, the result of federal budget cuts, primarily impacting staffing.
McNulty said both Tuttle Creek and Milford lakes are in good shape with full-time ranger staffs in place.
“We don’t have any vacancies,” he said. “In fact, we’ve carried a lot of our seasonal employees from last year to this year.”
The federal budget cuts won’t impact any of the ongoing construction at the lake.
“Those are all awarded contracts and they were fully funded,” he said. “They’ll move through to completion and the work downstream, the contractor there is working to finish that up and should be finished easily by the end of May.”
Once completed, the contractor will shift work to the upstream side of the dam and begin removing some of the woody flood debris.
