Buckeye Lake Dam Improvements

The Buckeye Lake Dam Improvements Project holds the title of 2019 National Dam Rehabilitation Project of the Year from the Association of State Dam Safety Officials and is the largest capital improvements project for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) in the agency’s 70-year history. The team completed the $107 million new construction project in three years, eliminating unsafe conditions that threatened the life of downstream residences and restoring safe use of Buckeye Lake for the residents of Fairfield, Licking, and Perry counties in Ohio.

The 180-year-old and 4.1-mile-long Class I earthen embankment dam, located on a lake popular for fishing, swimming, and boating, was deemed in 2015 by the Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) as a high hazard potential at risk of imminent catastrophic failure. The warning came after the dam did not meet safety requirements, posing a threat to homes and businesses downstream if the dam failed.