Photo Courtesy of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Kansas City District and the Kansas Water Office are leading a demonstration project testing water injection dredging (WID) at Tuttle Creek Lake from September 17th through the 27th.
The effort will assess whether WID can serve as a sustainable alternative to mechanical dredging for managing sediment that has steadily reduced the reservoir’s capacity since its dam closure in 1962.
Using controlled water injections, WID re-suspends sediment to create a density current, allowing it to flow downstream naturally. Project Manager Laura Totten said the initiative marks a major step toward protecting storage, water supply, recreation, and flood control benefits for over 40 percent of Kansans who depend on the lake.
With sediment projected to fill 75 percent of capacity by 2049, the demonstration will evaluate sediment transport, environmental effects, and efficiency to guide future management across the nation.
