Construction of the deep cut-off at the Walter F George dam

The Walter F. George dam was built in 1962 on the Chattahoochee River by the Corps of Engineers and it soon developed seepage problems. Two partial cut-offs were built in the past to attempt to remedy the situation, but the problems continued, jeopardizing the safety of the structure as well as reducing its power generating potential. In 2001 the Mobile district of the Corps advertised a design-build contract for the construction of a 200 feet deep cut-off in front of the concrete structure of the dam starting from 90 feet of water, cutting through a concrete lock structure, a submerged retaining wall and extending on both sides on the earthen embankments. The winning proposal of the joint venture of Treviicos and Rodio anticipated the use of a secant pile wall in the portion to be built in front of the structure, working from barges with a reverse circulation drilling rig, and a conventional slurry wall built with a hydromill rig for the portion out of the water.