Bois d’Arc Lake is not officially open. The actual public opening for recreation will be a joint decision between the district, Texas Parks and Wildlife and other agencies.

Dam is complete, pump station startup underway

The Bois d’Arc Lake dam was deemed substantially complete on August 26. Construction crews connected power to the system that operates the gates to release water back to Bois d’Arc Creek. This was the last of many electrical elements finished at the dam, including power for the intake tower’s gates and bridge crane.

 North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) operators have been trained to operate the gates; much of that work will be handled remotely from the Leonard Water Treatment Plant. Freese and Nichols worked closely with NTMWD to ensure a smooth startup and meet all contractual requirements.

Now that local transformers have been powered up, various electrical components of the Raw Water Pump Station (RWPS) are being energized and individually tested.

Once all the smaller, individual pieces are tested and adjusted, the team will energize the entire station and be ready to pump water to the terminal storage reservoir at the Leonard Water Treatment Plant. The goal is to complete that process yet this fall.

As crews wrapped up efforts at the dam, they also finished another important and unique component—oxygenation for the lake.

A team connected and pulled 23,000 total feet of diffuser hoses out into the lake, submerging them beneath the surface. These hoses were then connected to a liquid oxygen tank system that converts the oxygen to gas and then pipes it into the water. Diffusing oxygen in this way will help maintain the quality of the water delivered and support the lake’s habitat.

The dam and RWPS include

• 17+ miles of electrical cables (some 2-3 inches thick).

• More than 3.5 miles of conduit — the pipe that holds and supports electrical wire.

• Currently three (and eventually nine) 11-by-8-foot-tall pumps. Each will be able to transmit around 35,000 gallons of water per minute.

Once the RWPS is energized, crews will pump some water to the Leonard Water Treatment Plant, where it will be used to test various components of the water treatment process.

As of Sept 23, 2022: 515.02 ft. Visit BoisdArcLake.org for the most up-to-date information.

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