An Upcoming Pilot Project For Reservoir Sediment Removal Via Water Injection Dredging

Reservoir sedimentation is a serious problem impacting reservoirs worldwide. At Tuttle Creek Lake in north-central Kansas, the multipurpose pool has filled in at a rate of 6.1 million cubic yards per year and the flood pool and a rate of 2 million cubic yards per year. Traditional dredging with land storage would cost over $57 million per year, just to maintain current storage.

Starting in the Fall of 2023, a sediment removal demonstration project using water injection dredging will take place at Tuttle Creek Lake. Water injection dredging discharges water into deposited sediment in order to induce a density current. The density current will flow down slope with gravity and be released downstream through gates at the bottom of the lake. This will be the first time water injection dredging has been used at a lake anywhere in the world.

This presentation will explain the basics of water injection dredging, discuss the parameters under which this technology can be successful, and present baseline data, operational, and monitoring plans for the upcoming demonstration.