Safety Improvements for Significant Hazard Dam
Eames Mill Pond Dam is an intermediate size earthen embankment dam measuring 225 feet long with a maximum height of 16.88 feet. The dam impounds Eames Mill Pond for recreational purposes and is located in Moore State Park. Due to the dam size and its close proximity to historical buildings and infrastructure, the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) classifies it as a significant hazard dam.
The Eames Mill Pond Dam Repairs Project included several repairs and improvements that have been developed by our firm through past inspections and studies at the dam. These repairs and improvements were required to bring the dam into compliance with current Massachusetts dam safety regulations. The following actions were taken to address the deficiencies at Eames Mill Pond Dam:
- Clearing and grubbing of trees and brush on the embankment and abutments within 20 feet of the dam in compliance with the Office of Dam Safety’s Policy on Trees on Dams.
- Construction of a new concrete stone-faced upstream embankment wall and raising of the spillway training and return walls to an elevation of approximately 1003.15 feet to increase the capacity of the spillway to accommodate the Spillway Design Flood SDF Elevation of 1001.82 feet with one foot of freeboard.
- Repair of the existing stone-faced masonry for the spillway training and return walls.
- Repair of the segments of the stone masonry downstream embankment masonry walls and the stone masonry training walls
downstream of the spillway. - Decommissioning of the north low-level outlet with controlled density fill or concrete.
- Installation of stone facing on the raised spillway training and return walls as well as the wall installed on the downstream side of the north sluiceway outlet.
- Replacement of the south upstream low-level outlet sluice gate with a new single stem gate and operator.
- Installation of a new timber bridge structure with handicap access ramps and stairs on each side to facilitate access to both sides of the dam.
- Installation of a 5-foot wide access path from the street along the embankments to provide access from the parking lot to the embankments and the timber bridge structure.
- Installation of a wooden split rail fencing along the downstream embankment walls and the downstream spillway training walls.
Services Snapshot
Tighe & Bond performed the hydrologic and hydraulic analyses, seepage and stability analyses, design engineering, permitting, bidding assistance, and construction phase services all with in-house resources.
