{"id":649269,"date":"2026-03-12T01:42:17","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T01:42:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/649269\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T01:42:17","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T01:42:17","slug":"environmental-groups-push-for-removal-of-craggy-dam-as-debate-over-aging-structure-begins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/649269\/","title":{"rendered":"Environmental groups push for removal of Craggy Dam as debate over aging structure begins"},"content":{"rendered":"

WOODFIN, N.C. (WLOS) \u2014 The future of the Craggy Dam along the French Broad River in Woodfin is now under discussion as a coalition of environmental organizations proposes removing the more than century-old structure, saying it could reduce flooding and improve river health.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe craggy dam in Woodfin actually increases the levels of flooding,\u201d said Erin McCombs, director of American Rivers.<\/p>\n

The proposal comes from the Craggy Coalition<\/a><\/strong>, which includes partners such as American Rivers, MountainTrue and RiverLink.<\/p>\n

NONPROFIT’S STUDY TO LOOK AT PROS, CONS OF REMOVING CRAGGY DAM<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cBack in 2022, American Rivers entered into conversations with the metropolitan sewage district about the potential removal of the craggy dam. Studies have been done, we see that there are no barriers, financial or otherwise, to be able to move forward with this project,\u201d McCombs said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The dam, built in 1903, is currently owned by the Metropolitan Sewerage District (MSD)<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

MSD was not available for an interview, but said in an email that it has not taken a position on the proposal. The district emphasized the dam\u2019s role in producing electricity for its operations.<\/p>\n

\"MARCH<\/p>\n

MARCH 11, 2026 – The future of the Craggy Dam along the French Broad River in Woodfin is now under discussion as a coalition of environmental organizations proposes removing the more than century-old structure, saying it could reduce flooding and improve river health. (Photo: WLOS Staff)<\/p>\n

\u201cMSD\u2019s Hydroelectric facility provides 45% of the District’s electricity needed to treat wastewater. This clean energy reduces the amount of electricity needed from the \u2018Grid\u2019 and thus reduces our carbon footprint and the emission of Green House Gas(GHG). This also saves the District’s customers between $300,000 and $600,000 per year in energy costs.\u201d Tom Hartye, general manager of MSD, wrote.<\/p>\n

MSD also said repairing the dam would require about $3.4 million in capital improvements over the next 10 years.<\/p>\n

McCombs said if MSD sells the dam to the coalition, the long-term benefits could outweigh restoring it. She said removing the dam would cost roughly $6 million to $8 million, but the coalition plans to raise the funding, saying it would come at no cost to ratepayers.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome of these sources that we\u2019ve used on other projects include money from the US Fish and Wildlife Service, from NOAA, and then there\u2019s also state funds like the Department of Environmental Quality,\u201d McCombs said.<\/p>\n

\"MARCH<\/p>\n

MARCH 11, 2026 – The future of the Craggy Dam along the French Broad River in Woodfin is now under discussion as a coalition of environmental organizations proposes removing the more than century-old structure, saying it could reduce flooding and improve river health. (Photo: WLOS Staff)<\/p>\n

According to a study by the coalition, removing the dam could also bring health and recreational benefits to the French Broad River and nearby communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe found that removal of the dam would lower flood elevations close to the dam by 7 to ten feet for local business owners that experience periodic flooding that are on a much lower level than Helene. This would have real economic impacts for them to not to experience regular flooding events,\u201d McCombs said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Before the proposal can move forward, McCombs said both parties would need to conduct a collaborative study to determine the dam\u2019s value.<\/p>\n

‘PEOPLE HAVE TO START CARING MORE’: COMMUNITY MEETING TO ADDRESS WATER QUALITY ISSUES<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe that it should be a public competitive bid so that people can propose on this and so we can have a cost-effective proposal that meets the needs of both parties,\u201d McCombs said.<\/p>\n

The coalition plans to present its proposal at MSD\u2019s next board meeting on March 18 at 2 p.m., located at 2028 Riverside Drive in Asheville.<\/p>\n

MSD said it has not made any decisions regarding the issue because there has not yet been a formal proposal submitted by American Rivers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WOODFIN, N.C. (WLOS) \u2014 The future of the Craggy Dam along the French Broad River in Woodfin is…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":649270,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[746,159,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-649269","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-environment","9":"tag-science","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116213667976815958","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/649269","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=649269"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/649269\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/649270"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=649269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=649269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=649269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}