Royal Lake Rehabilitation Plan Signed

Just outside Washington, D.C., Royal Lake has helped relieve downstream flood damages and provided water quality, wildlife habitat, recreational, and aesthetic benefits for residents of Burke, Virginia for almost three decades. Recently, the project sponsors and NRCS signed a dam rehabilitation plan to ensure these benefits continue into the future.

This federally-assisted dam was built by NRCS in cooperation with the Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District and Fairfax County in 1967 as part of the Pohick Creek Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Project. The watershed project was the ‘first’ of its kind, because it provided an innovative way to guard against flooding and property damage in a developing watershed.  The project required developers to install conservation measures for erosion and sediment control during this rapidly urbanizing phase. 

Fairfax County has done an excellent job of operating and maintaining the dam and has been recognized for its efforts nationwide.  However, based on a detailed engineering analysis, it was determined that rehabilitation was needed for Royal Lake to protect the auxiliary spillway from eroding during extreme storm events.  

Rehabilitating the dam will protect 168 homes, 35 businesses, two public buildings, two major highways, two railroad lines and three bridges.  Estimated cost for the rehabilitation work is slightly over three million dollars.  NRCS can potentially fund 65 percent of the cost.

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