CUYAHOGA FALLS, Ohio — The more than 100-year-old Gorge Dam in Cuyahoga Falls stands 57 feet high, with millions of gallons of water flowing over it each day. It once produced hydroelectricity, but today it serves no useful purpose. The slow, methodical process to tear it down is progressing.
Heavy equipment is slowly making its way along a 1.5-mile section of the Cuyahoga River, dredging up about 900,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment along the way.
The methodical process, led by the U.S. EPA, began last year and will continue this year and next, eventually clearing the way to bring down the massive concrete structure.
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RELATED: Gorge Dam could be torn down following 2-year dredging phase
"We are in the most important part of the project," said Michael Johnson, the chief of conservation for Summit Metro Parks. "We are removing the dam to restore a free-flowing river for fish and wildlife as well as for recreational value."
That move toward the future is also providing a fascinating glimpse at biological history for Jason Whittle, the supervisor of wildlife resources for Summit Metro Parks.
"It is. It is. It's a treasure hunt," Whittle said, describing his search for mussels as an exciting adventure.
As the dam removal process continues, Whittle has been searching for mussel shells and has discovered at least eight species, which he will send to Ohio State to add to its Museum of Biological Diversity collections.
"No, this was all a surprise," Whittle said when asked whether he expected to find so many species. "This is literally a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to look through 100 years of sediment deposition in the Gorge Dam pool."
Meanwhile, park visitors are picturing the eventual changes — the return of a free-flowing river to this section of the Cuyahoga River.
"Change can be a hard thing, but I think that we're actually changing it back to what it originally was, and there's so much beauty in that," said Audrey Wallace, a park visitor.
"This is something that has probably been a long time coming, and so if this is a plan that they've put in place and they're actually bringing it to life, I think it's amazing," said Ashie Shadie, another park visitor.
Once the dredging is finished — likely in 2027 — a plan to secure funding and tear down the dam in the next few years will come into focus.
"One of the last remaining unresolved water quality problems on the Cuyahoga is this dam," Johnson said.
