Some of the sediment that has been washing down the Bear River into Rollins Reservoir will be removed this fall in a test program approved Wednesday by directors of the Nevada Irrigation District.
The board approved a $150,000 time and materials contract with Hansen Brothers Enterprises, Inc. of Grass Valley, which operates a nearby gravel lease.
Asst. General Manager Tim Crough said the work would take advantage of seasonal low water levels at Rollins and would be carried out if ground conditions and the weather allow.
Hansen Brothers will excavate the sediment collection area, east of the Greenhorn Campground, and haul the material to an upstream stockpile. Crough said NID is notifying nearby residents of the plan.
The project is expected to remove up to 100,000 cubic yards of sediment, which equates to about 60-acre-feet of water storage space. NID estimates that since 1965 from 10,000 to 20,000 acre-feet of storage space has been lost to sedimentation in Rollins, which has a rated capacity of 65,988 acre-feet.
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Press Release, October 14, 2013