The Savannah Riverkeeper organization released more information about its proposal to demolish the New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam and replace it with a controllable weir to allow for fish passage and create a recreational whitewater course; however, some city leaders remain unimpressed.
The Riverkeeper organization wants to demolish the current dam, built in 1937, to create Savannah Run at Convergence Park. The group says the new plan will solve all the problems with the current dam and will also create a massive new public park and whitewater course.
MORE: Savannah Riverkeeper Unveils Plan to Replace Lock And Dam, Maintain Pool in Downtown Augusta
The cost of the Savannah Run plan is estimated by the Riverkeeper organization at more than $75 million.
At a digital press conference on Wednesday, Oct. 6, Savannah Riverkeeper Director Tonya Bonitatibus and members of her panel, which included attorney Bill Sapp of the Southern Environmental Law Center, outlined the proposals for the use of 25 Oberheim crest gates placed atop a rock weir that will allow for passage of endangered Sturgeon while also maintaining pool levels in downtown Augusta at 114.5-feet over sea level.
The crest gates use a system of Kevlar air bladders to control the water flow, maintain the pool and prevent flooding.
[adrotate banner=”19″]
Concern over the endangered sturgeon seemingly began a flurry of lawsuits when the port at Savannah, Ga., was dredged and deepened, destroying the fish’s spawning grounds. However, according to Bonitatibus, the issue of protecting the fish species was raised decades ago.
“Back in 1986, when the dam was decommissioned, it was always agreed that measures should be put in place to allow for the fish to pass upstream to their historic spawning areas, so city leaders are aware that this is not some new issue,” Bonitatibus said.
Legal battles over what to do with the lock and dam have now gone on for years with the city of Augusta and North Augusta suing the Corps to prevent it from following through with a plan to demolish the dam.
Most recently, in January, the Corps announced it would appeal the 2020 verdict of South Carolina District Judge Richard Gergel who issued an injunction barring the Corps from demolishing the dam.
Bonitatibus says her group has found a middle ground that everyone can agree to. She says that her group’s plan will not only solve the infrastructure issues regarding the aging dam, give the sturgeon as well as other migratory fish species a renewed spawning territory and also reinvigorate a long neglected park that is currently managed by the Augusta Parks and Recreation Department.
[adrotate banner=”13″]
According to Bonitatibus, the majority of the cost to bring the project to completion would be borne by the Corps, who would be in charge of demolition and rebuilding at a cost of between $65 to $68 million. She says the city would need to provide $6 million to create a whitewater park, and the rest of the funding could be raised through public-private investment.
However, city officials remain wary of Savannah Riverkeepers plans.
District 3 Commissioner Catherine Smith-McKnight is on record as saying she wants the lock and dam to remain just where it is and is totally against a city-run whitewater park. McKnight says she is primarily worried about liability issues and cited Cape Fear, N.C. as attempting to build a whitewater park with disastrous results.
“Who is going to run this water park? The Parks and Recreation Department? I’m sorry. I just can’t support that,” she said.
District 10 Commissioner John Clarke agreed with Smith-McKnight and said that he was not sure the monetary figures provided to complete such a project are even ballpark accurate.
“You can put out any number of dollars as a cost and make it look good in pictures and on paper and it suddenly sounds real good, but realistically it will turn out to be a failure,” Clarke said.
[adrotate banner=”54″]
District 8 Commissioner Brandon Garrett is even more vocal against any plan that would remove the lock and dam, saying he has studied the issue thoroughly and has not seen any evidence that sturgeon would ever migrate to an area that has been closed to them for almost a century.
“I am not willing to let them experiment with Augusta-Richmond County’s water source just so Savannah can quickly satisfy the dam buster enthusiasts for the purpose of locking in its billion dollar SHEP investment,” he said.
Garrett was referring to the Savannah Harbor Expansion Program.
MORE: Augusta Mayor Says Lock and Dam Is A Priority
Bonitatabus admits that her group has no ability to launch any such endeavor on their own and Savannah Riverkeeper was barred from participating in the current legal battle over the fate of the dam. She says her group is simply trying to identify solutions that will make everyone happy.
“We just hope people will look at our plan and if they think this is the right way to move forward, they will contact their elected officials and show their support,” Bonitatabus said.
Scott Hudson is the Senior Reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com.
[adrotate banner=”51″]
