Goodrich – A 100-year-old leaking dam has Mill Pond residents and village council members looking for answers.
Village Street Administrator Pete Morey said recent dam gate and structural problems prompted draining of the pond.
‘The gate wouldn’t come down,? said Morey. ‘So we had to lower the Mill Pond to get the rubber off. But there is another problem now, there is water coming out of the east bank on the left side. It’s coming out of the side of the dam like water from a fire hose. We don’t know what is going on there.?
Morey said the DEQ (Department of Environmental Quality) has been notified. Village Administrator Jakki Sidge said she has placed a call in to Paul Russell, the engineer who inspects the dam every five years, asking him to come out and take a look.
However, that’s not soon enough for Don and Donna Emch, who live on the south end of the Mill Pond, who said about a week ago they looked out at their backyard and saw a mudhole instead of water.
Since the dam was repaired, Don and Donna said water has returned to their pond. However, they said that hasn’t taken away their concerns.
‘We have called Christopher Clampett at the DEQ because the council has refused to listen to our concerns or do anything about them,? said Don.
Clampett, a biologist and environmentalist for the DEQ, hasn’t returned any of their phone calls, Don said.
‘The law is very clear about how we are supposed to protect the aquatic ecosystem in the pond,? said Donna. ‘One of the main issues we have is the dam water is being raised and lowered arbitrarily, which we believe is putting too much pressure on the gates and infrastructure at the dam. This dam is a hundred-years-old and it should not be tinkered with on a whim. The water should be left alone unless there is an imminent flood,? she said.
Don said the water is supposed to remain at 874 feet above sea level. ‘They should leave it alone unless there is an emergency,? he said. ‘It is probably down nine to 10 inches below where it should be.?
Concerned about the nature in and around the Mill Pond, Donna said, ‘It is against the law to disturb the wetlands and wildlife. When they drained the pond last week, it disturbed the pond’s ecosystem.?
Morey does not see it that way.
‘This is no fault of the village,? he said. ‘The dam was built in 1913 and was used for the sawmill to grind grain, and at one time it generated power. People have to remember that this is a manmade dam. All of the pressure from the water all of these years has taken its toll.?
To build a new dam, Morey said, would cost close to $1 million and said it wasn’t very likely that the state would fund a new dam.
‘The state has put out a report that indicates our dam is number four in the entire state that is in need of repair or replacement,? said Morey. ‘When residents bought their houses on the Mill Pond, the realtors may have stated in their deed that the Mill Pond is a lake instead of a pond. I feel bad for them.?
Morey is concerned the state may make the decision to drain the Mill Pond completely and turn it back to its natural state.
‘We did everything we could last year when we made a repair to the dam when water was getting under the spillway. But water will find its way. I don’t know what kind of decision the state will make when they inspect the dam. I do know that they will have to drain the entire Mill Pond to see why there is a leak on the east side.?