SHUTESBURY — Preliminary work related to repairs to the Lake Wyola Dam can begin using a $41,325 grant awarded through the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs’s Dam and Sea Wall Program.
The grant was recently announced as part of more than $10.9 million that will go toward repair or removal of aging dams, seawalls, levees and other critical infrastructure across the state.
For Shutesbury, the money will support wetland delineations, a dam-seepage investigation, engineering drawings, permit applications and construction documents for the dam, formally known as the Raymond “Red” Moriarty Dam and located at the intersection of Locks Pond and Lakeview roads.
“This award will strengthen Lake Wyola’s defense against stormwater erosion,” Town Administrator Hayley Bolton wrote in an email on behalf of the Select Board. “The town thanks the Healey-Driscoll Administration, the Lake Wyola Storm Water Erosion Task Force and all involved in helping to secure this funding.”
The actual project, according to information provided by the state, includes clearing vegetation and debris downstream of the spillway, repairing the grout in the dam’s low-level outlet to mitigate leakage, repairing voids and replacing missing stones in the downstream masonry wall, and making various concrete repairs along the primary spillway’s training wall, crest and apron.
An inspection completed by GZA GeoEnvironmental Inc. in May, a phase one inspection and evaluation report, shows the dam is in fair condition, the same rating it received two years earlier. The dam is classified by the state Department of Conservation and Recreation’s Office of Dam Safety as a large size, high hazard potential dam.
GZA provided estimates of studies, analyses and minor repairs at a cost of between $260,000 and $340,000.
The dam was last rehabilitated in 2008, with riprap repair, tree stump removal, dam crest improvements with a concrete slab to allow safe overtopping, concrete repair of spillway training walls and installation of a seepage monitoring weir.
Previously, repairs happened following the Hurricane of 1938, while a new slide gate was installed in 1990.
The Shutesbury project is one of 23 municipalities and nonprofit organizations in getting money for what state officials consider long-overdue repairs, and taking down outdated structures that put homes, roads and neighborhoods at risk.
“By investing in these projects now, we’re helping communities prevent future problems, save money over time, and keep people and neighborhoods safe,” Gov. Maura Healey said.
Holyoke secures $250K for level pumps
Also in the region, Holyoke was awarded $250,000 for improvements to the city’s Levee Pump Stations 5-7 and bolstering its inland flood control systems
Mayor Joshua A. Garcia issued a statement calling the investment “a game-changer for several reasons.”
“First, it directly addresses the vulnerabilities of our decades-old levee systems along the Connecticut River,” Garcia said. “By improving pump stations, we’ll enhance flood protection, reduce the risk of environmental harm from blocked waterways, and lower long-term maintenance costs, saving taxpayer dollars while preventing future disasters.”
In Greenfield, the Connecticut River Conservancy got $180,000 for improvements to the Greenfield Electric Light & Power Dam along the Green River.
