Bullock Pen Lake Dam Wins ACEC National Honor Award

We’re proud to announce that the Bullock Pen Lake Dam Rehabilitation project has won an American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) National Honor Award!

Bullock Pen was identified as a first priority for the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s State-Owned Dam Repair Program (SODR) due to its high hazard potential and identified dam safety deficiencies including, most significantly, the ongoing erosion and potential for breach of the rock cut primary spillway.

Schnabel was selected to assess the condition of the dam and spillway, conducting a subsurface investigation and developing alternatives for addressing the identified deficiencies. Modifications included the construction of a 12½-cycle, 260-foot-wide reinforced concrete labyrinth spillway over the dam embankment, including a reinforced concrete stepped chute and stilling basin. This passive labyrinth spillway system was sized to pass the PMP without overtopping the dam, while also minimizing changes to upstream and downstream flooding.