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Inspection of the Lake Murray Dam intake towers began on Aug. 3, 2022, in preparation for Dominion Energy's renovation of the towers. Leah Hincks/Staff

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Inspection of the Lake Murray Dam intake towers began on Aug. 3, 2022, in preparation for Dominion Energy's renovation of the towers. Leah Hincks/Staff

LEXINGTON — Lake Murray boaters are being asked to steer clear of the Lake Murray Dam, where Dominion Energy has begun preliminary work on a project to improve the dam's intake towers.

The intake towers, which supply water to the Lower Saluda River, rely on a set of steel gates inside the towers to start and stop the flow of water downstream. After almost 100 years of use, Dominion, which owns the dam, is replacing the gates. 

Crews began inspecting the five 223-foot-high intake towers on Aug. 3, and will continue through September. Construction on the project is scheduled from early 2024 to late 2025, according to a statement from Dominion. 

While the intake towers are working well, it is time for them to be updated, said Matt Long, a spokesman for Dominion Energy South Carolina. 

"While we have carefully maintained these headgates since since the dam's construction, they are 95 years old and original to the facility," Long said. "Investing in their replacement will ensure continued safe and reliable operation." 

To complete inspection and reconstruction of the towers, Dominion will have boats in the area and divers in the water, so the energy company is asking that boats stay outside of the markers in the water, about 300 feet from the towers, Long said. The company does not expect the project to affect water levels, he said. 

Inspection of the Lake Murray Dam intake towers began on Aug. 3, 2022, in preparation of Dominion Energy's renovation of the towers. Staff/Leah Hincks.

Improvements to the intake towers are intended to ensure that the Saluda Hydroelectric Project continues to work properly, a statement from Dominion said.

The Saluda Hydroelectric project installed a massive rock-and-concrete wall to serve as a fail-safe to contain the lake if Lake Murray Dam broke. The project was completed in the early 2000s after a study by South Carolina Electric & Gas found that in the case of an earthquake with a magnitude of 7 or higher, similar to an event which devastated South Carolina in 1886, the Lake Murray dam would fail and put hundreds of thousands of Lexington and Richland residents at risk. 

Dominion Energy took control of the dam, the intake towers and Saluda Hydroelectric project wall after the company bought SCE&G in 2019. 

“Investing in (the intake tower gates) replacement will enhance the safety and reliability of the Saluda Hydro facility’s operations for many years to come,” said Iris Griffin, Dominion Energy South Carolina vice president of generation. 

The Lake Murray Dam and the dam's intake towers were built in the 1920s, forming Lake Murray, at the time the largest reservoir in the world. At 48,000 acres, Lake Murray spans three counties in the Midlands and is known as the "Jewel of South Carolina." The Lake Murray Dam is one of the largest and most profitable hydropower facilities in South Carolina, according to the Hydropower Reform Coalition. 

Reach Leah Hincks at 843-830-2555. Follow her on Twitter @LeahHincks

Leah Hincks covers Lexington County for the Post and Courier in Columbia. She is a Massachusetts native who studied journalism at the University of Richmond, and spends her free time running and reading.

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