Ocklawaha River's Rodman Dam a 'High Hazard Structure' at Risk of Catastrophic Breach

OCALA, Fla., March 10, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Rodman Dam on the Ocklawaha River should be reclassified as a "high hazard structure" based on a new independent civil engineering analysis of previously undisclosed government inspection reports.

The report released by the Florida Defenders of the Environment shows that the state Department of Environmental Protection has ignored a long list of structural weaknesses documented at the dam for more than five years, raising the risk of a dam breach that would threaten downstream communities, including hundreds of homes and other buildings valued at nearly $60 million.

The report, by Givler Engineering Inc., concludes that Rodman Dam should be removed unless the state commits to a large and ongoing investment of tax dollars to address years of neglect and ongoing legal liability. The report notes that removing the dam would provide the added benefit of restoring the river to its natural state, benefiting fish migratory routes and the passage of manatees up and down the river.

The report found that serious safety concerns were identified as early as 2015, but documents obtained through open records requests show no indication the Florida Department of Environmental Protection has allocated funds to address those concerns. Florida Defenders of the Environment attorney Bruce Kaster said the findings add another strong argument for a permanent drawdown of the upstream Rodman Reservoir, or removal of the dam.

"The state has withheld findings of its own inspections and neglected routine maintenance to the point that Rodman Dam is now a ticking time bomb for downstream communities," Mr. Kaster said. "This dam that has never served a purpose in its 54-year life has now become a very serious safety liability for the state."

The 6,100-foot dam on the Ocklawaha River in Putnam County was built in 1968 as part of a federal project to build the Cross Florida Barge Canal. The project was shuttered before work on the canal began, but the dam remained. Over the last five decades, it has throttled freshwater flow of the largest tributary into the St. Johns River, disrupting a delicate ecology. The 20-square-mile reservoir must be drawn down every three or four years to flush out muck and debris, and only then are a series of hidden springs exposed, enabling visitors to see the beauty of the river's natural state. In 2020, the Washington, D.C.-based American Rivers declared the Ocklawaha among the most endangered in the United States.

The Givler Engineering report catalogs a long list of structural deficiencies from previously undisclosed inspections, stating:

The inspection reports failed to communicate the level of urgency appropriate for replacing the debris barrier, removing logs and trees from the reservoir, maintaining operable spillway gates, arresting erosion on upstream and downstream slopes, stopping the formation of voids under the grouted riprap, and curtailing the piping failure that may be in progress under the spillway slab … Although the inspection reports did identify needs for repairing and maintaining the dam since 2015, the needs were understated. The Florida DEP's correspondence shows no evidence that any expenditures have been made since 2015 on implementing any of the recommended maintenance or repairs.

For more information about the Rodman Dam report, contact Florida Defenders of the Environment Executive Director Jim Gross at [email protected] or Defenders of the Environment attorney Bruce Kaster at 352-622-1600.  

SOURCE Florida Defenders of the Environment