State and federal officials are developing a plan to clean up trash washed into the Black River by a forgotten dump at Clearwater Dam.
The dump is located southeast of the project office, near a work compound that was destroyed when water crossed the overflow spillway in May.
Used for the first time in the lake's history, the power of the water crossing the secondary spillway cut out a new valley south of the concrete structure.
This runs from the spillway, across Highway HH and through the former work compound, before cutting into the area where the dump was buried.
The trash was found a few hundred feet from where the water re-entered the Black River.
The dump contains layers of park trash believed to be up to 40 years old, said deputy operations project manager Fred Esser.
This appears from photos to include old soda bottles, beer cans, food packaging, license plates, shredded plastic bags and other debris.
"As soon as we discovered it, we got a hold of DNR (the Missouri Department of Natural Resources), and have been working with DNR to figure out what our steps are," Esser said.
The two agencies are coordinating to develop a corrective action plan for the site and the material carried downstream, he said.
The DNR requirements for clean up were not known at press time. Messages left last week for a DNR spokesperson had not been returned as of Thursday morning.
"It is our issue," Esser said. "We're trying to get a handle on what is down there, how much is down there and what we're going to do as far as clean up."
Access and funding for clean up will be issues.
The new valley is anywhere from 20-50 feet deep in spots.
The dump is located on the far side of this valley, with no access currently for heavy equipment, Esser said.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project is also nearing the end of its fiscal year, he continued. With the added burden of flood response, clean up and recovery, much of this year's money already has been expended.
The Corps cannot expend money off project property, Esser continued. While the dump site is on project property, other methods will have to be used to clean up the material deposited into the river, he said.
"A lot of that material went down beyond Corps property, which is why we're trying to coordinate some efforts with some non-profits, like stream teams," he said.
The dump is considered a pre-law site by DNR, Esser said.
It was used to dispose of park trash before state law changes and the start of contracted trash service in the early 1980s, he explained.
The current project staff were not aware of the dump's location, he said.
"During that peak flow period when we used the spillway, it evidently cut through an area we didn't expect water to ever really go through," said Esser.
More than 4,000 cubic feet per second of water passed through the spillway at times over a period of 13 days.