Man Told He’ll Have To Bolster Earthen Dams

State inspectors are not satisfied with the changes a Cassia County man has made over the last month to his two earthen dams that neighbors fear could cause flooding.

The Idaho Department of Water Resources told Bennie Smyer this week it will seek an order requiring him to breach the dams. But Smyer still has one week to make improvements before the state will formally request the order.

The department ordered Smyer last month to improve his dams for the safety of people and property downstream. Repairs were to have been completed by the end of March, but he was given more time to make them.

“We’re trying as best we can in this to be as cooperative as we can,” said Dick Larsen, spokesman for Water Resources.

Smyer said Wednesday he had not yet received the letter from Water Resources that defines its position and will consult his attorney.

“It sounds to me that I’m going to spend a lot of money fighting them,” Smyer said.

A Water Resources survey last week of the dams concluded that the largest of Smyer’s dams is 20.4 feet high, which means it must meet the more strict engineering standards required of dams more than 20 feet high. The department is giving Smyer the choice of either hiring a licensed engineer to bring the dam into compliance or to oversee lowering it to under 20 feet.

Smyer was puzzled by the calculation. He recalled Norm Young, administrator of Water Resources’ water management division, saying in a previous meeting that Smyer would not be penalized if he made his dam slightly larger in an attempt to make it safer.

Smyer also has been storing water behind the dam without a permit. His outlet system is inadequate to prevent water storage or to release impounded water, Water Resources officials say.

Water Resources received a petition in February from 15 downstream property owners asking it to ensure the safety of the dams. The department had begun to inspect the dams before it received the petition, Larsen said.

“It told us clearly that there were concerns with the citizens in the community,” he said.

Water Resources estimates there is nearly 45 acre-feet of storage capacity behind both dams.