Update: 04/30/2025 - Walterville Canal Outage: 

EWEB will not be able to repair a leak at the forebay of the Walterville Canal this year. Additional analyses into seismic and flood hazards will be required before EWEB can obtain regulatory approvals for the work. As a result, the project will need to remain offline until at least the fall of 2026.

The Walterville Canal will remain dewatered through the 2025 irrigation season.

“We are disappointed to report that the canal will be empty again this summer. We know that this announcement is hard for our neighbors to hear – especially those who irrigate from the canal. But we cannot return the canal to service until we gain a better understanding of the risks that earthquakes and floods pose to the project,” Generation Manager Lisa Krentz said.

EWEB dewatered the Walterville Canal on February 27, 2024 following an unexpected increase of water seeping through the canal forebay embankment near the Walterville Powerhouse.

Unlike the seepage concerns along portions of the Leaburg Canal that prompted EWEB’s investigation and eventual decision to decommission the Leaburg Hydroelectric Project, the seepage at the Walterville Canal is localized to the forebay. The forebay is the structure at the lower end of the canal that directs water to either drop into the powerhouse to spin a turbine to generate electricity or releases the water through a spillway into the tailrace.

EWEB intends to bring the project back online and is contracting with a company to develop a repair plan for the forebay leak. Pending regulatory approval, EWEB would authorize the firm, Carpi, Inc., to manufacture and install their synthetic liner system to seal the forebay and prevent further seepage.

However, preliminary results from a study into the forebay’s vulnerability to earthquakes indicate that a portion of the forebay could be seismically unstable during a large earthquake. Another study found that extreme flooding of the creeks that feed into the canal could result in overtopping.

As a result, EWEB will need to compile additional information for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to approve repair plans – delaying the targeted 2025 return-to-service and pushing the date into late 2026.

If approved by EWEB’s regulator, the current repair plan would cost approximately $3 million and the project could recuperate such an expense in two to five years of generation, depending on water availability and energy prices. 

“At this point, with the information we have, we will continue working to get the project safely up and running at the earliest opportunity,” Krentz said. “We will continue to communicate our findings regarding the project’s seismic vulnerabilities once we know more.”

October 2024 Board Correspondence: download Walterville Canal Forebay Repair (PDF)

 

Frequently Asked Questions:

 

When will the Walterville Project be back in service? 

• We are currently targeting the 2026 construction season for the repair work and would not expect the canal to return to service until late 2026.

 

What happened? 

• The Walterville Canal is formed by an earthen-embankment wall built in 1910. EWEB has monitored the canal for leaks for several years, as water finds a way to seep through the earthworks of the canal. The seepage primarily occurs at the downstream (western) end of the canal at the canal forebay.  
• When a seepage monitoring device observed an unexpected increase in seepage flow on February 27, 2024 it triggered a dam safety process to dewater the canal to prevent a further increase in flow. EWEB investigated the dewatered canal but could not clearly identify the cause of the increase in seepage flow. 

 

Is the Walterville Canal safe? 

• Yes, the canal is safe and EWEB believes there is not a public safety risk at this time, with the canal intake gate closed. 
• If you notice anything out of the ordinary on or near any EWEB canal, reservoir or dam, call our main number 541-685-7000 and ask to speak with EWEB's Generation Engineering Supervisor. After hours, contact the Leaburg-Walterville Duty Operator at 541-852-1906. 

 

What has EWEB done in response?   

• EWEB Generation staff inspected the canal and are working with an engineering consultant to develop plans to fix the portion of the canal where the seepage occurred. EWEB is still exploring the best options while considering the dam safety implications, costs, regulatory compliance concerns, and operational needs.
• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) must approve any plans to investigate and repair the canal. EWEB is following FERC orders and continues to accommodate FERC dam safety requirements while developing plans to further investigate and/or repair the Walterville Canal.
• However, preliminary results from a study into the forebay’s vulnerability to earthquakes indicate that a portion of the forebay could be seismically unstable during a large earthquake. Another study found that extreme flooding of the creeks that feed into the canal could result in overtopping if combined with McKenzie River water coming in the intake gate.  

 

For Irrigators:

Can EWEB open the canal to let some water in for irrigation? 

• EWEB must prioritize its dam safety obligations and cannot accommodate requests to open the canal intake to provide water to neighbors, as project operation is under strict FERC supervision while addressing the dam safety concerns.
• There are also unique and conflicting challenges considering our obligations to protect fish when considering opening the intake gate to allow water to flow.
• While providing an opportunity for a handful of irrigators to draw water is an added community benefit, the primary purpose of the canal is to generate electricity. 

 

I have an agreement to draw water from the Walterville Canal. How will EWEB continue to support my needs?  

• EWEB has allowed several neighboring farms to draw water from the Walterville Canal. These agreements are interruptible, meaning EWEB is not obligated to provide the water or a replacement if providing water conflicts with the canal’s primary function of conveying water for hydropower generation.  
• Please contact Generation Planner Jeremy Somogye at 541-685-7439 or jeremy.somogye@eweb.org to learn more. 

If my well goes dry, is EWEB going to compensate me to dig a deeper well? 

• EWEB has consulted with the Oregon Water Resources Department, in particular, the Region 2 Water Master about this issue. The Water Master has assured EWEB that it has no obligation or responsibility, legal or otherwise, to support the recharge of the local groundwater table through the operation of EWEB canals.  
• In addition, EWEB would caution that shallow wells for drinking water that are influenced by EWEB’s canal may also be shallow enough to be vulnerable to water quality issues.
• Although EWEB empathizes with property owners along the Walterville Canal that may experience an impact due to shallow wells, EWEB’s water rights for the Walterville Canal are solely for power production. While the proximity to the canal may have provided a benefit to property owners who rely on groundwater wells in the past, it has never been EWEB’s intention to either directly or indirectly provide a source of water for nearby property owners from the canal. 
• EWEB does not have a plan or program in place to assist property owners with this issue, but it might be worthwhile to contact your local State Representative and County Commissioner to let them know of the issue so they are aware in the event that well assistance programs become available and they can lobby to get assistance for Lane County residents. 
• The Water Resources Department has financial assistance to help Oregonians repair, replace and abandoned wells unable to supply water for household purposes. For more information about eligibility, see the Well Abandonment, Repair, and Replacement Fund (WARRF) website.

 

Water Quality 

• EWEB’s Drinking Water Source Protection Team monitors several water bodies throughout the McKenzie Watershed for water quality. The team tests for Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) throughout the warm weather season (usually May through October) and have already begun preliminary HAB (algae/cyanotoxins) sampling in the reservoirs.
• The team has been testing the Leaburg Canal for water quality issues and will continue testing the Walterville tailrace on a monthly basis.

Does the Walterville Canal outage have anything to do with decommissioning the Leaburg Hydroelectric Project? 

• No – this outage was unplanned and in response to an unexpected increase in seepage flow. EWEB dewatered the Walterville Canal in accordance with dam safety protocols.  
• The FERC license for the Walterville Hydroelectric Project expires in 2040. As part of decommissioning the Leaburg Project, EWEB is planning a Walterville Strategic Evaluation to determine whether to pursue a new license after 2040 or to begin planning to decommission the Walterville Project. EWEB plans to conduct the Walterville Strategic Evaluation over the next few years.  
• EWEB’s priority is to resolve the current issue with the Walterville Canal and get back to generation to make the most of the time remaining on the license.  
• With the canal dewatered, however, there may be opportunities to begin some of the investigations that would contribute to the Walterville Strategic Evaluation. 

 

Are there any updates on decommissioning the Leaburg Hydroelectric Project? 

• EWEB's publicly-elected Commissioners voted to decommission the Leaburg Hydroelectric Project in January 2023 after an independent engineering assessment determined it would cost $250M to repair the facility. Such high costs would not be recuperated by operating the facility when EWEB can purchase replacement power at a much lower cost. Decommissioning the facility would also protect EWEB from future liability and risks and have positive environmental effects for the McKenzie River and its fishery. Uncertainties due to varying water flows and fisheries regulations also challenge the project’s financial and environmental viability. 
• EWEB conducted over twenty public meetings between 2019-2022 discussing the future of the Leaburg Project. 
• EWEB created a Leaburg Decommissioning Action Plan to understand the regulatory steps required to surrender the FERC license, and will report quarterly updates to the public, including opportunities for feedback. 
• To satisfy FERC license surrender requirements, and to eliminate long-term risks and obligations, EWEB will need to remove Leaburg Dam and restore Leaburg Lake to river form. 
• EWEB is working with Lane County and Oregon Department of Transportation and has hired a consultant to explore options for impacts to the transportation system resulting from the decommissioning effort. 
• EWEB will modify Leaburg Canal for safe stormwater conveyance, pursuing opportunities to support obligated water rights holders. 
• EWEB aims to begin on-the-ground decommissioning construction work by 2033. 
• Although the on-the-ground decommissioning work is not expected to begin until 2033, EWEB plans to complete FERC required near-term risk mitigation work along portions of the Leaburg Canal prior to 2030.

 

Dam safety  

• Dam safety is a very high priority at EWEB.  
• All of EWEB's spillways are constructed on bedrock, so the type of damage seen at places like Oroville, CA is unlikely to happen here.  
• All of our dams are monitored and evaluated in accordance with state and federal regulations. Any identified deficiencies are proactively managed.   
• Portions of the Leaburg Canal embankment have potential structural issues, however, the de-watering of the canal in 2018 and risk reduction measures that EWEB has already implemented greatly reduce the risk to nearby residents and properties. 
• Unlike the Leaburg Canal, the seepage issue with the Walterville Canal is localized to the forebay, simplifying potential long-term repairs compared to the Leaburg Canal.       
• We perform daily observations of all our hydro facilities as part of our routine operations, and we do more thorough inspections of the hydro facilities on a weekly, monthly, semi-annually and annually basis – over 50 inspections each year. The facilities are inspected at least annually by our dam safety regulator and at least every five years by an independent dam safety engineering consultant. 
• We maintain Emergency Action Plans to protect the residents and property in the McKenzie River Valley in the unlikely event of a dam or canal breach. Every five years, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission requires EWEB to test emergency action plans for the Carmen-Smith and Leaburg-Walterville Hydroelectric Projects.  
• If you notice anything out of the ordinary on or near any EWEB canal, reservoir or dam, call our main number 541-685-7000 and ask to speak with EWEB's Generation Engineering Supervisor. After hours, contact the Leaburg-Walterville Dam Duty Operator at 541-852-1906. 

 

Update: 09/05/2024 - Walterville Canal Outage: 

We regret to inform you that the Walterville Hydroelectric Project will likely be shut down until next summer.

We know this is unwelcome news to many of you who enjoy walking the canal trails and is particularly concerning for those of you who irrigate with water from the canal.

We are disappointed that we've been unable to resolve this issue. We have identified repair options, but have been unable to get them approved in time for this summer. That means that we'll likely have to wait until next summer, after the end of the winter/spring rainy season that naturally fills up the canal with tributary water, to be able to implement repairs.

We apologize for the inconvenience the continued outage may cause you and your family. While it was a dam safety concern that led to the canal being dewatered, there is not a public safety risk while the canal is in its current dewatered condition. We must comply with our regulatory partners' continued guidance, however, and keep the canal intake gate closed until we can address it properly.

Why is the Canal empty?

EWEB dewatered the Walterville Canal in February after an automated alert from a device that monitors water seepage triggered a dam safety process. 

The leak detection instrument near the Walterville Powerhouse monitors seepage through the 110-year-old canal’s earthen embankment. When the device observed an unexpected increase in seepage flow, it triggered a dam safety risk mitigation process that required dewatering of the canal for close-up inspections.

Why is it still not fixed?

Our goal is to start generating electricity as soon as possible, but we need to ensure it is done safely and in accordance with Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC’s) dam safety requirements.

We have identified a couple of options that we are currently exploring from a budgetary, regulatory, constructability and operational standpoint. The solutions we’ve identified involve lining the portion of canal that is experiencing seepage, but there is additional analysis in progress because we have to ensure that additional mitigation is not needed to address potential structural issues beyond installing a liner to address the seepage.

We have not yet received FERC approval for our proposal and we are continuing to coordinate with them on this issue. As installing a liner requires the canal be dry in the work area, we likely will be unable to do the work until the next dry season, when we are able to manage the storm and creek flows the canal intercepts more easily.

For any questions, please refer to our Walterville Canal Updates webpage.

You can also email or call with any questions: WaltervilleInfo@eweb.org.

We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work towards getting the project generating again, and we apologize for any issues or inconveniences this is causing.

Update: 03/15/2024 - Walterville Canal Outage: EWEB expects Walterville Canal outage to last through summer.

EWEB expects the temporary shutdown of the Walterville Hydroelectric Project to continue into the summer as it investigates a dam safety concern on the Walterville Canal.

EWEB dewatered the Walterville Canal last month following an unexpected increase of water seeping through the canal near the Walterville Powerhouse.

The issue of water seeping through the 110-year-old canal’s earthen embankment is not new. EWEB and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) have known about the seepage at this site and years ago EWEB installed several devices to monitor seepage flow. An unexpected increase in seepage flow on February 27 triggered an alarm at one of the monitoring devices, prompting dam safety response actions and dewatering of the canal.

EWEB Generation staff have inspected the canal and determined that more information is needed to identify the cause of the seepage spike. Working with a geotechnical engineering consultant, EWEB is developing plans for further investigation, and had hoped to quickly resolve the issue and return to normal operation.

“Fortunately, the seepage concern on the Walterville Canal is localized to the forebay,” Generation Manager Lisa Krentz said. The forebay is the structure at the lower end of the canal where water either drops into the powerhouse to spin a turbine to generate electricity or is released through a spillway into the tailrace. “We think we can resolve the seepage issue by developing a solid repair plan for the forebay.”

Further investigation and repairs may take months, however, and generation staff anticipate the drawdown will extend into the summer. Moving forward requires a repair plan, getting FERC approval for the plan, and contracting for the job.

The Walterville Canal starts near Walterville Elementary School and runs four miles through the middle of the valley, passes under the highway, then parallels Camp Creek Road until delivering water to the powerhouse at Kickbush Lane. Although the primary purpose of the canal is to generate electricity, it has provided an added benefit to the community by allowing neighboring farms to draw water from the canal for irrigation.

“While we are still determining next steps, we’d like to notify our neighbors in case they need to prepare to enter the summer season with the canal dewatered," Krentz said.

EWEB will send letters to canal neighbors to ensure they’re aware of the issue. Those concerned they may be affected by the outage can contact EWEB Generation Planner Jeremy Somogye at 541-685-7439 or jeremy.somogye@eweb.org to learn more.

For more information and FAQs, please go to: https://www.eweb.org/projects/mckenzie-river-hydro-projects/walterville-canal-updates

03/01/2024 - EWEB dewaters Walterville Canal, following leak-detection protocol

EWEB dewatered the Walterville Canal Tuesday after an automated alert from a device that monitors water seepage triggered a dam safety process.

The leak detection instrument near the Walterville Powerhouse monitors seepage through the 110-year-old canal’s earthen embankment. When the device observed an increase in seepage flow, it triggered a dam safety risk mitigation process that requires dewatering of the canal for close-up inspections.

The issue is not a public safety concern.

EWEB Generation staff inspected the site on Tuesday and confirmed that the seepage monitoring device was working correctly. Staff were unable to identify any obvious reasons for the increased seepage.

To fully investigate the seepage change and arrest any potential progression, EWEB decided to dewater the canal to look for issues. EWEB will conduct additional investigations over the next several weeks to determine the causes and timing for rewatering the canal and returning to service.

Investigations will be performed under the oversight of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC’s) dam safety program. EWEB must receive FERC approval to resume normal generation activities. The FERC review may include oversight into the investigatory procedures, certification of the findings, and approving a planned course of action, if needed.

EWEB will provide an update after determining more about this developing issue.