Federal and state engineers have started an innovative dredging project at Tuttle Creek Reservoir which aims to address decades of sediment buildup.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Kansas Water Office on Wednesday began a 10-day demonstration of water injection dredging — a technology never before tested in a reservoir. It’s the first of three phases to gauge whether the method can remove sediment and extend Tuttle Creek Lake’s lifespan.
“We are about half full of sediment right now from the original constructed storage that we had there in the multi-purpose pool,” said Laura Totten, Army Corps of Engineers project manager, in an interview on KMAN’s Within Reason. “So it is expected, but we’re at a different time frame and we have a lot of demand for that water. We need to try to find a solution to try to sustain it for long term.”
