The nearly 100-year dam in Meander Reservoir that provides water to communities around the Valley is about to get a major update.

The Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) announced Thursday that the Mahoning Valley Sanitary District (MVSD) has been awarded a $38,181,390 Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities grant for the dam in Meander Reservoir.

The funds will be used to strengthen and improve the Mineral Ridge Dam which was completed in 1932, while upgrading and modifying the structure.

In the event of a major rainfall or an earthquake, the primary spillway has the possibility to shift. To reinforce it's stability, crews will put two anchors into the spillway. To take additional pressure off the primary, crews will make two more spillways so water will have another route to flow into the creek. 

The last major modifications and repairs were made to the dam nearly 30 years ago.

While there is no current threat to communities upstream of the dam, but because of extreme weather changes in recent decades, FEMA is looking to ensure the dam can withstand the probable maximum flood levels from a 500-year storm, which would be able to withstand a rainfall of 19 inches in 24 hours. And while that is a near-impossible amount of rain by today's standards, the goal is to future-proof the dam to prevent a future extreme weather event.

Another concern would be should the dam fail, Meander is the source of drinking water for more than 220,000 people in northeast Ohio, including Youngstown, Niles, McDonald, Girard, Canfield, Mineral Ridge, Lordstown, Craig Beach, and portions of ten townships in Trumbull and Mahoning counties. The plan is to reduce disaster impacts and minimize future disaster costs.

The maps shows the planned improves to the dam

 

"FEMA's Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program seeks to shift the focus from reactive disaster spending toward proactive investment in community resilience," said FEMA Region 5 Regional Administrator Tom Sivak. "As the largest BRIC grant to be awarded by FEMA Region 5, today's announcement aligns with FEMA's Year of Resilience commitment to spur game-changing actions and build local capacity to withstand the threats of tomorrow."

"Over the years, Ohio has witnessed many floods," said Ohio Emergency Management Agency Executive Director Sima Merick. "The Mineral Ridge Dam BRIC project is a shining example of how the pre-disaster mitigation grant program works towards helping communities become resilient."

However, MVSD is still on the hook for the remaining costs - meaning that it needs to come up with nearly $16.4 million to complete the project, which will come from capital improvement funds.

The total projected cost for the project is $54,544,890. Construction is expected to start in the fall of 2024 and take three years to complete. 

To protect the water during construction, MVSD will lower the water level below where crews will be. It will not effect water supply to residents. 

The remediation of the dam is expected to add 50 years to its life with scheduled maintenance.

FEMA chose the MVSD dam project as one of the recipients of the funds from 803 sub-applications.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources classifies the Mineral Ridge Dam as a Class I structure, meaning it is a high-hazard classification that indicates that failure of the dam would result in the probable loss of human life. Construction of the 90-year-old dam was completed in 1932, and major modifications and repairs were made to the dam in 1995.

In 2014, MVSD hired a firm that performed a comprehensive assessment of the dam, found deficiencies related to deterioration of the structure over time, addressed potential failure concerns, and noted updates needed to bring the facility into compliance with current ODNR and federal
dam safety criteria, and address necessary upgrades and repairs.