Edenville Dam was an earthen embankment dam at the confluence of the Tittabawassee River and the Tobacco River in Mid Michigan, United States, forming Wixom Lake. The dam was about one mile (1.6 km) north of Edenville, mostly in the southeast corner of Tobacco Township in Gladwin County, with its southeastern end reaching into Edenville Township in Midland County. Its height was 54 feet (16 m), the length was 6,600 feet (2,000 m) at its crest.

Edenville Dam
Edenville Dam is located in Michigan
Edenville Dam
Location within the state of Michigan
LocationGladwin and Midland counties, Michigan, United States
Coordinates43°48′51″N 84°22′35″W / 43.8141°N 84.3765°W / 43.8141; -84.3765
PurposePower, recreation
Opening date1925; 99 years ago (1925)
Demolition date2020; 4 years ago (2020)
(destroyed by flood)
Dam and spillways
Type of damEarth fill dam
ImpoundsTittabawassee River
Height54 ft (16 m)
Length6,600 ft (2,000 m)
Reservoir
CreatesWixom Lake
Total capacity66,200 acre-feet (81,700,000 m3)
Surface area5.7 sq mi (15 km2)
Normal elevation676 ft (206 m)[1]

The dam was built in 1924[2] for hydroelectric power and flood control.[3] The dam was equipped with two 2.4 MW turbines capable of generating 4.8 MW of electricity in total.[4]

In May 2020, following heavy rains, the Edenville Dam breached and the Sanford Dam downstream overflowed, which caused major flooding in Midland County, including the city of Midland.[5]

History

edit

The dam was built in 1924 by Frank Isaac Wixom, after whom the reservoir formed by the dam is named.[6] Wixom used to own a circus before he built the dam.[7]

The dam is privately owned and operated by Boyce Hydro Power, a company based in Edenville, which also owned three other hydroelectric facilities on the Tittabawassee: the Secord, Smallwood, and Sanford Dams.[8]

Safety and lake level disputes

edit

In an exercise of a rarely used legal authority, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) terminated Boyce Hydro Power's license in 2018, because of its "inability to pass the Probable Maximum Flood (PMF)",[9] as well as seven other failures.[10] The Commission was concerned that "the dam may not have the ability to pass enough water, if a severe flood were to hit, among other issues and violations."[11]

Following the Commission's 2018 license revocation, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) took oversight of the dam.[12] EGLE determined that the dam was structurally sound.[13] Edenville and the other former Boyce dams were taken over in 2019 by the Four Lakes Task Force, a county delegated authority,[14][15][16] with title to transfer in early 2022.[17] The State of Michigan appropriated $5 million for the purchase.[18][19] The Four Lakes Task Force operates under the Four Lakes Assessment District in the State of Michigan,[16] created in May 2019 by Judge Stephen Carras. In 2019, Michigan's 42nd Circuit Court was involved in determining if only the lakefront owners or all area residents would pay tax to the Four Lakes Assessment District.[20]

In October 2018, and again in mid-November 2019, the dam's operator lowered the water level, in what it called a safety move. It said it had requested a permit to lower the level from Michigan's EGLE, a permit that was not issued. The operator said it acted “due to concern for the safety of its operators and the downstream community,” and went on to sue EGLE in federal court, alleging "its safety concerns were paramount."[21][22]

In December 2019, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a permit to investigate expanding the hydropower plant with a second powerhouse containing one 1.2 MW turbine-generator unit for a total of 6 MW.[23]

The dam's operator said it began to raise the lake's water level in April 2020, under threat of being sued by Michigan's EGLE, and that it reached "normal pond level" in the first week of May 2020. Michigan's Attorney General Dana Nessel confirmed EGLE had directed the operator to raise the water level, stating: "Michigan EGLE directed Boyce to follow the court-ordered lake level requirements," but challenged that the operator had lowered it for safety reasons.[24]

In April 2020, EGLE sued Boyce, alleging it had lowered the water level without permission in 2018 and 2019, killing thousands of freshwater mussels.[25][26][27][28]

In October 2022, however, a federal judge accepted as basic facts that Boyce had conducted what the Michigan Attorney General called a "propaganda" campaign trying to blame the State of Michigan for keeping water levels high, when in fact, Boyce had continually touted the structural safety of the Edenville Dam.[29]

Dam failure

edit
 
Copernicus Programme image of the dam after failure, showing the new river channel east of the original spillway.

On May 19, 2020, 5:46 p.m., due to massive inflow from heavy rains in the area, the eastern side of the dam collapsed, prompting immediate evacuations in the towns of Edenville and Sanford.[30] The Sanford Dam, about 10 miles (16 km) downstream, subsequently overflowed, requiring evacuations in much of Midland six miles (9.7 km) farther downstream.[31] Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency, and announced an investigation into the dam's operators for alleged neglect.[32][33][34] Over 10,000 local residents were ultimately evacuated, as officials cautioned residents to maintain social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.[35]

The Tittabawassee River crested at 35.05 feet (10.68 m) late on May 20, resulting in extensive flooding throughout eastern Midland and low-lying parts of its downtown district, and severely damaging most of the village of Sanford.[36][37][38] The extent of the floodwaters could be clearly seen in satellite imagery on May 22.[39] Dow Chemical's Midland operations were threatened by the flooding, but reportedly suffered no serious damage.[40] As of the morning of May 20, no casualties had been reported as a result of the flooding.[41]

Lawsuits

edit

In the wake of the flooding, three class-action lawsuits were filed by the victims, of which two named Michigan's EGLE as defendant and two named the dam's operator as defendant.[42] Michigan's Attorney General Dana Nessel is also being sued.[43]

On September 8, 2023 a state of Michigan court of appeals refused to dismiss the lawsuits, noting a 2020 ruling concerning the state’s liability in the Flint water crisis.[44]

Forensic Report

edit

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission appointed an Independent Forensic Team (IFT) of expert engineers to examine the failure and issue an expert opinion on the cause. Their final report was issued on 4 May 2022, and determined that the cause was “foreseeable and preventable,” and resulted from multiple errors committed over nearly a century. They reported the dam was improperly designed, and that it was also improperly constructed, resulting in built-in flaws that doomed it from the start.

The IFT understands the natural desire to place 'blame' for the failure. However, the IFT found that the failure cannot reasonably be attributed to any one individual, group, or organization. Instead, it was the overall system for financing, designing, constructing, operating, evaluating, and upgrading the four dams, involving many parties during the nearly 100 years of project history, which fell short in ensuring a safe dam at the Edenville site.[45]

The IFT found that neither internal erosion nor overtopping caused the failure. Instead the IFT believes loose sands, inside a portion of the dam, became saturated with water, which led to their static liquefaction which is a sudden loss of strength. [45](p. S-4) The use of sand in the original construction was a significant deviation from the construction specifications in the original plans. [45](p. S-5)

The part of the embankment that failed was constructed with steep slopes on the downstream side. These steep slopes violated safety requirements that were in place for many years prior to the failure.

During multiple inspections of the dam, and analyses of the current structural integrity of the dam, over a period spanning more than 90 years, these two major flaws were not reported. Both could have been fixed.[46]

Repair

edit

A $4.8 billion infrastructure plan was approved by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in March 2022. A portion of the approved funds are to be used to repair the dam.[47]

A somewhat unexpected side effect of the dam failure was the creation of a waterfall downstream of the dam breach along the new river path. At 5-10 feet tall, Edenville Falls was the tallest waterfall in the Lower Peninsula. As part of the dam reconstruction, the Tittabawassee River has been redirected back through the spillway and the old river path, resulting in Edenville Falls drying up.[citation needed]

Midland roads & bridges

edit

Damage to Midland County bridges and roadways totaled $17 million, according to the Midland County Road Commission.[48]

References

edit
  1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Edenville Dam
  2. ^ "Dam Information – Gladwin County".
  3. ^ "findlakes.com". ww5.findlakes.com.[permanent dead link]
  4. ^ FERC issues preliminary permit for 6-MW Edenville Dam Hydroelectric Project in Michigan Archived December 8, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, December 3, 2019
  5. ^ Jackson, Angie; Spangler, Todd. "'Do not hesitate': Michigan governor urges evacuations, warns Midland could be under 9 feet of water". USA TODAY.
  6. ^ "History". www.edenvilletwp.org.
  7. ^ Virginia Florey (April 4, 2019). "Midland Remembers: Genius burning: The story of Frank Isaac Wixom, Part I". Midland Daily News. Retrieved May 20, 2020. In 1893, Wixom sold his circus for $25,000. He hadn't forgotten his dream of bringing prosperity back to the lumbering towns like Edenville, Sanford, Averill and Coleman but he needed money to build dams.
  8. ^ "Compliance report" (PDF). sanfordlakeassociation.org. 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 28, 2016. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  9. ^ "FERC Denies Stay of Hydro Project License Termination". Washington Energy Report. October 30, 2018.
  10. ^ "Federal government orders dam owner to cease operations". mlive. November 22, 2017.
  11. ^ Trylch, Rebecca. "FERC revokes license for Edenville Dam". www.abc12.com. Archived from the original on May 22, 2020. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  12. ^ Wixom Lake drops more than 7 feet Archived May 22, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, abc12 News, Rebecca Trylch, October 29, 2018
  13. ^ Erin Ailworth; John D. Stoll (May 20, 2020). "Failed Michigan Dam Lost License in 2018". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved May 21, 2020. After its license was revoked by FERC, regulation of the Edenville dam was taken over by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy in 2018. Spokesman Nick Assendelft said the agency inspected the dam in October 2018 and found it structurally sound
  14. ^ Lyden, David (April 25, 2019). "Wixom Lake Levels Expected to Return to Normal as Task Force Agrees to Buy Dams". 9 and 10 News. Archived from the original on June 6, 2020. Retrieved May 20, 2020. The Four Lakes Task Force agreed to buy Wixom, Sanford, Secord and Smallwood dams from Boyce Hydro for nearly $9.5 million
  15. ^ Chris Clor (April 24, 2019). "Task Force Agrees to Buy Dams, Restore Wixom Lake in Gladwin Co". 9 and 10 News. Archived from the original on May 29, 2020. Retrieved May 20, 2020. Wednesday the task force announced it agreed to buy the Wixom, Sanford, Secord and Smallwood dams from Boyce for nearly $9.5 million.
  16. ^ a b "Four Lakes Task Force, as Delegated Authority for the Counties of Midland and Gladwin, Michigan" (PDF). County Government. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 20, 2020. Retrieved May 20, 2020. the Four Lakes Task Force, in its capacity as the County Delegated Authority for the Four Lakes Special Assessment District
  17. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". Four Lakes Task Force. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  18. ^ Tereasa Nims (March 14, 2019). "Task Force wants Midland, Gladwin counties to help with dam". Midland Daily News. Retrieved May 20, 2020. The state reportedly issued the task force a $5 million grant
  19. ^ Kukulka, Mitchell (January 3, 2020). "Boyce Hydro, Four Lakes Task Force sign dam agreement". Midland Daily News. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  20. ^ Nims, Tereasa (May 6, 2019). "Some lakefront property owners want everyone to pay". Midland Daily News. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  21. ^ David Welch (May 21, 2020). "Michigan Flood Puts Privately Owned Dams in Harsh Spotlight". Bloomberg. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Boyce said it lowered lake-water levels as a safety move in October 2018
  22. ^ Garret Ellison (May 21, 2020). "Failed dam owner fought with state over Wixom Lake levels before flood". Booth Newspapers. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Boyce says it asked EGLE for permission to lower Wixom Lake last fall "due to concern for the safety of its operators and the downstream community." EGLE and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources denied the request. Boyce lowered the lake without approval in mid-November "believing its safety concerns were paramount." Boyce sued the state on April 29 in Grand Rapids federal court
  23. ^ FERC issues preliminary permit for 6-MW Edenville Dam Hydroelectric Project in Michigan Archived December 8, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, Hydro Review, December 3, 2019
  24. ^ Stephanie Parkinson (May 21, 2020). "Dam owner raised lake levels just before dam failures; claims state AG threatened lawsuit". NBC 25 News. Retrieved May 22, 2020. The Michigan Attorney General's office issued this statement: "[...] Michigan EGLE directed Boyce to follow the court-ordered lake level requirements."
  25. ^ JOHN FLESHER (May 20, 2020). "Michigan dam had repeated safety violations before flooding". The Wichita Eagle. Associated Press. Archived from the original on May 22, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2020. The company twice lowered Wixom Lake's level without permission after the federal license was revoked, said Nick Assendelft, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, which has overseen the Edenville barrier since its federal license was withdrawn [...] A lawsuit filed April 30 says the lengthy drawdowns in 2018 and 2019 killed "thousands, if not millions" of freshwater mussels, many listed as endangered species
  26. ^ Riley Beggin; Mike Wilkinson; Kelly House, Bridge Magazine (May 20, 2020). "Feds revoked dam's license over safety issues. Then Michigan deemed it safe". Archived from the original on January 18, 2021. Retrieved May 21, 2020. State officials alleged Boyce's dams lowered the lake without permission in 2018 and 2019, and sued the company in April alleging the actions killed "thousands if not millions" of endangered freshwater mussels.
  27. ^ "Michigan dam had repeated safety violations before flooding". Washington Post. Retrieved May 21, 2020. A lawsuit filed April 30 says the lengthy drawdowns in 2018 and 2019 killed "thousands, if not millions" of freshwater mussels, many listed as endangered species.
  28. ^ "Did state pressure to keep Wixom Lake level high contribute to Edenville Dam's failure?".
  29. ^ "The Detroit News".
  30. ^ "Edenville Dam structure breaks; evacuate immediately". May 19, 2020. Archived from the original on November 6, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  31. ^ Schafer, Ashely (May 19, 2020). "Sanford Dam failure imminent; Midland residents evacuating". Midland Daily News.
  32. ^ "Residents told to evacuate after Edenville Dam failure in Midland County". May 19, 2020. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  33. ^ Schafer, Ashely (May 19, 2020). "Sanford Dam failure imminent; Midland residents evacuating". Midland Daily News. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  34. ^ "'Long Ways to Go' Before Residents Can Return Home After Michigan Dam Failures".
  35. ^ "Michigan dam failures force 10,000 to evacuate and could leave one city under 9 feet of water". CBS News. May 21, 2020.
  36. ^ "Weather Service: Tittabawassee River crests at 35.05 feet". May 20, 2020. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  37. ^ "Midland County communities assess flood damage after dam failures". May 21, 2020. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  38. ^ "Michigan floods: Evacuations after Edenville and Sanford dams breached". BBC News. May 20, 2020.
  39. ^ "NASA Shares Satellite Images Of Historic Flooding In Michigan". International Business Times. May 21, 2020.
  40. ^ "Dow shifts to clean-up, recovery mode". May 21, 2020. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020. Retrieved May 23, 2020.
  41. ^ Gray, Kathleen; Bosman, Julie (May 21, 2020). "As Virus Lingers in Michigan, a New Crisis Arrives: Flooding". The New York Times.
  42. ^ "After Edenville Dam failure, lawsuits pour in against owners, state regulators". May 26, 2020.
  43. ^ "Lawsuit Filed Against AG Nessel, County Officials for Edenville Dam Failure". May 28, 2020.
  44. ^ "Victims of Michigan dam collapse win key ruling in lawsuits against state - CBS Detroit". www.cbsnews.com. September 8, 2023. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  45. ^ a b c France, Jonn; Alvi, Irfan; Miller, Arthur; Williams, Jennifer; Higinbotham, Steve (May 4, 2022). FINAL REPORT Investigation of Failures of Edenville and Sanford Dams (PDF). Independent Forensic Team. p. S-2. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  46. ^ "Report says Michigan 2020 dam failures were 'preventable'". Michigan Radio. The Associated Press. May 6, 2022. Retrieved January 13, 2023.
  47. ^ Bleu, Rayvin; Paxson, James (March 31, 2022). "Part of $4.8B infrastructure plan going to fix Edenville, Sanford Dams". WNEM-TV. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  48. ^ Kennett, John (June 22, 2018). "Flooding caused $14 million in damage to roads, bridges". Midland Daily News. ourmidland.com. Retrieved July 15, 2023.