JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON – A dam safety awareness day is scheduled for May 31 at Moose Creek Dam at the Chena River Lakes Flood Control Project in North Pole.
The open house will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the dam’s control works deck. It is free and open to the public.
Chena Project park rangers and staff members will be available to answer questions about Moose Creek Dam, including flood risk mitigation operations, past flood events and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ mission. Additionally, information about fish and wildlife, including salmon migration and spawning, will be on display.
The Corps designed and constructed Moose Creek Dam in 1979 to provide flood damage reduction for the cities of Fairbanks and North Pole, the Fort Wainwright cantonment area and unincorporated areas in the vicinity by temporarily impounding floodwater behind the Moose Creek Dam and diverting it toward the Tanana River.
The open house is part of National Dam Safety Awareness Day, which is celebrated annually May 31.
Moose Creek Dam and the adjacent 20,000 acres of public land provide many benefits to the local communities, including flood risk management, recreational activities and wildlife habitat. The event is a reminder that dam safety is a shared responsibility. Everyone is encouraged to know the risks from floods and to learn about ways they can help protect the dam and associated lands to reduce flood risks for years to come.
Since Moose Creek Dam began operations in 1979, the Corps has successfully managed 22 flood events.
For more information, call Chena Project staff members at (907) 488-2748.
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Release no. 15-010