The Lake Olmstead dredging project that started in February, and the section workers are currently digging out is only a few weeks away from completion, according to the foreman on the job.
Richard Humphries of Gator Dredging said his team has made great progress since beginning the dredging process in February, and they have about two or three weeks to go before they complete the upper section of the lake.
MORE: $6 Million Dredging Project Begins at Lake Olmstead
The section they’re currently dredging is the upper section of Lake Olmstead, the smaller segment west of Broad Street. When that’s done, Humphries and his team will move to the lower section, or the larger portion, which he expects will take a few months to complete. That portion of the work should be mostly routine despite additional submerged trees in the section, Humphries said.
Humphries explained that his team is hydraulically dredging down to a depth of eight feet, removing sediment, slurry and sand build-up. The dredge itself is a vessel equipped with a tiller-like device that breaks up the material building up in the lake. The material is pumped out using a submerged pump. A floating barge with a backhoe seated on top can also scoop up the material.
The build-up is then pumped over to nearby ponds by Riverwatch Parkway where the water and material can safely filter over time into the Savannah River. Humphries said they are dredging 500 to 1,200 cubic yards every day. They also take water samples, monitoring the material that’s dredged up, and remove debris that’s been caught in the lake.
This process couldn’t have come at a better time, Humphries said. That’s because the lake depth is severely low.
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“I’ve got places that are six inches deep,” Humphries said. “Until you get to those shallow areas on a boat, you don’t realize how little water there is.”
The last time Lake Olmstead was hydraulically dredged was around 1993, according to Humphries. He said that storm water, run-off from roads and materials from trees has to go somewhere, and the lake bottom builds up slowly over time.
“We’re trying to do our work and make as little a footprint as possible,” Humphries said. “Homeowners nearby have talked to us and said they’re glad it’s happening.”
Margaret Johnson is one of those homeowners.
“I’m just thankful,” Johnson said. “I’d started to have problems with my water, and now I see them digging that backhoe what looks like six feet deep into the water, cleaning it up, and I’m just thankful.”
Once the dredging process is complete, the lake will be made as deep as eight to 10 feet.
Tyler Strong is the Business Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at tyler@theaugustapress.com.
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