The Lake Churchill Spot Dredging Project was proposed for an existing stormwater-management facility in the Lake Churchill subdivision in Germantown, Maryland. Lake Churchill was constructed as a stormwater-management facility designed to provide treatment of runoff prior to discharge into Little Seneca Creek. The subsequent construction of an impoundment on Little Seneca Creek, for the purpose of establishing a reservoir from which to draw drinking water, makes maintenance of Lake Churchill a necessity. The dredging project was intended to restore original design storage volume, bottom contours, and water surface area only. No dredging in excess of these goals was performed.
The site consisted of approximately 18.8 acres and included a man-made stormwater facility with a concrete riser structure at the western end. Lake Churchill accepts runoff from surrounding residential developments for treatment, and also from an unnamed tributary to Little Seneca Creek. The Project dredged approximately 28,000 cubic yards of sediment from three locations. The aerial extent of disturbance in these three areas was approximately 7.63 acres. An additional 0.48 acre of disturbance occurred in uplands at the south end of Area B, and consisted of the staging area for access to the lake. No vegetated wetlands were impacted at the staging area or during the dredging operations.
All dredging took place within the limits of the original water surface. Spoils were loaded onto a barge, transported to the staging area, and loaded into sealed trucks for transport to an off-site disposal area.
During the project (which lasted around 3 months) a detour was be implemented at the CVS meadow. A temporary mulch trail was installed to allow residents to walk around the construction area.
Timeline
- 2015 – May – Hired GKY & Associates, Inc. as engineer to evaluate/design the project and obtain all permits for the spot dredge.
- 2017 – February – first permit received
- 2017 – April – all permits received
- 2017 – May – RFP applications received and CCF Board hired the team of Edwin A. & John O. Crandell, Inc. and Lake Services, Inc. to be the contractors for the project. GKY continued as oversight
- 2017 – June – contracting work and preconstruction meeting held on site with various inspectors
- 2017 – July – signed contract with Edwin A. and John O. Crandell, Inc. to remove sediment from Lake Churchill. Barges floated on lake
- 2017 – August – Sediment removed from Area B
- 2017 – August – Sediment removal started in Area A in late August
- 2017 – October – Sediment removal completed in Area A and Area C
- 2017 – November – Equipment removed, landscaping and grading completed
Table 1. — Areas of disturbance | Dredge Volume (CY) | Disturbed Area (SF) | Disturbed Area (AC)* |
A | 20.200 | 205,849 | 4.73 |
B | 4,300 | 57,268 | 1.31 |
C | 3,500 | 48.655 | 1.12 |
Staging Area | N/A | 20,749 | 0.48 |
Totals | 28,000 | 332,521 | 7.63 |