Federal funding of US$8M has been provided to earthquake-proof the Success dam in Tulare County, California, US.
Farmers downstream of the dam on the Tule river are backing the retrofit, agreeing to pay a percentage of costs, which could reach US$200M in a five-year project. The current allocation is sufficient for the design stage of the dam retrofit project.
The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) said the US$8M will pay for a combination of design work, beginning with an Environmental Impact Statement and some land acquisition to replace riparian habitat construction work damage along the Tule river.
USACE has selected a concrete-dam project over a substitute earthen dam or a project to strengthen the existing earthen dam. Investigations are to commence on exploring the material properties and the strength of the foundation under the dam.