Adams Lake Dam, Rehabilitation Work After Emergency Actions

The dam is located approximately 1 mile northeast of the Village of West Union in Adams County across Lick Fork Creek which is a tributary to Ohio Brush Creek in the Ohio River Basin. The dam is owned and operated by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Division of Parks and Recreation. Construction of the dam was completed in 1947 and the 40-acre lake impounded by the dam was used for recreation and public water supply. The lake has a drainage area of 4.9 square miles. In 1960, the spillway was repaired and 4 years later it was replaced. The Village has discontinued using the lake for public water supply. The dam is an earthen embankment approximately 30 feet in height and 500 feet in length. The embankment has a crest width of 8 feet with an upstream slope of 3 horizontal to 1 vertical (3H: lV) and a downstream slope of 2H: lV. The right abutment consists of highly fractured layers of limestone and shale. The original plans indicate that a concrete corewall was installed to cut off any seepage through the rock foundation. A 75-foot-long concrete ogee weir with a discharge chute serves as the spillway. The lake drain is a 12-inch diameter concrete pipe with the gate house located in the lake, and outletting in a former quarry pond at the downstream toe of the dam. This dam is classified as a Class I dam, because the downstream hazard consists of four mobile homes located immediately downstream of the dam along the outlet channel. Another home is located along the channel but further up the bank. In addition to the homes, a state route traverses the stream 2,600 feet downstream of the dam, The design flood for a CISSS1 dam is the Probable Maximum Flood (PMF).