• USACE Louisville District shares Rough River Lake Inundation Viewer to help keep communities informed as lake levels rise

    As water levels continue to rise in Rough River Lake, Falls of Rough, Kentucky, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Louisville District has developed the Rough River Lake Viewer—an inundation map for residents and emergency planners to enhance community preparedness. USACE is working with local and state emergency operation managers to keep people who may be affected by this situation safe and informed. This new publicly accessible interactive map allows property owners to evaluate where their properties are in relation to water levels ranging from 510 to 536 feet.
  • USACE-Albuquerque District receives Army Safety and Occupational Health Star recognition

    The Albuquerque District received the Army Safety and Occupational Health Star flag in a ceremony at the district’s headquarters, April 1, 2025. The district is the first district in USACE’s South Pacific Division to achieve this recognition.
  • Rough River Lake will reach spillway elevation following significant rainfall, dam operating as intended

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Louisville District is actively monitoring this week’s forecasted heavy rainfall and is preparing for potential wide-spread, moderate to major flooding throughout portions of Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio. Cumulative rainfall totals for this event may range from 2 to more than15 inches, resulting in elevated lake levels at the district’s Flood Risk Management (FRM) reservoirs. Based on current data, the Louisville District is forecasting that Rough River Lake, Falls of Rough, Kentucky, could reach its spillway pool of 524 feet Mean Sea Level (MSL) as early as tonight, April 4, 2025. Current forecasts show that the pool could reach anywhere between 530 and 532 MSL. As of today, April 4, 2025, the project is currently 91 percent full and can store approximately another 1.2 inches of additional runoff before reaching the spillway.
  • USACE and Partners Break Ground on New Barracks at Fort Johnson

    Brig. Gen. Jason Curl, Commanding General of the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Johnson, and Arnold “Rob” Newman, the Army Corps of Engineers’ Fort Worth District Deputy District Engineer, leaned onto their shovels March 13th to break ground with their teammates on the new unaccompanied enlisted personnel housing facility.
  • Central City North Bypass Channel Construction Contract Solicitation

    Fort Worth District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is currently soliciting contractor bids for the Fort Worth Central City North Bypass Channel construction contract. Offers are due by May 29 with an anticipated contract award date in September 2025.
  • Army Corps and contractor begin construction of new dredge

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers joined contractors Eastern Shipbuilding Group and Royal IHC on April 4, 2025, in Panama City, FL for a steel cutting ceremony, kicking off construction of a Medium Class Hopper Dredge (MCHD) to replace the Dredge McFARLAND of the Army Corps’ Philadelphia District. The event was attended by USACE Headquarters, North Atlantic Division, Marine Design Center, and Philadelphia District leadership as well as Royal IHC and Eastern Shipbuilding Group leadership.
  • Huntington District Monitoring On-going Flooding

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Huntington District is actively monitoring this week’s forecasted heavy rainfall and preparing for potential wide-spread moderate to major flooding throughout portions of Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio.
  • Agencies push Columbia River environmental review

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), or co-lead agencies, are pushing back virtual public scoping meetings they previously scheduled for the week of April 7, 2025. The co-lead agencies will also extend the scoping period for a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the Columbia River System Operations.
  • Living Shoreline in USACE Projects: A Review

    Abstract: The term living shoreline (LS) refers to the practice of shoreline stabilization using natural elements (e.g., vegetation, oysters, logs, etc.) in a way that maintains continuity and connectivity between terrestrial and aquatic habitats. This report provides a review of LS practices to assess the applicability of these engineering techniques for US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) projects. Specifically, this review examines the current state of knowledge regarding LS efforts through evaluation of peer-reviewed literature, agency reports, web tools, applications, and relevant guidance. It is important to gain a deeper understanding of the potential ecological, engineering, environmental, and socioeconomic benefits in comparison with traditional gray infrastructure shoreline stabilization techniques. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) encourages the use of LS as a shoreline stabilization technique along sheltered coasts (i.e., coasts not exposed to open ocean wave energy) to preserve and improve habitats and maintain their ecosystem services at the land–water interface. Research has examined aspects of LSs, but there are relevant knowledge gaps yet to be explored. Overall, there is a lot of information from different sources on LSs with limited application to USACE projects. Therefore, a consolidated planning and design consideration report specific to USACE is recommended.
  • Field Evaluations of Diquat for Controlling Submersed Flowering Rush in Lake Pend Oreille, Idaho

    Abstract: The invasive plant flowering rush (Butomus umbellatus L.) was first observed in Lake Pend Oreille, Idaho, within the Columbia River basin in 2008, and it covered several hundred hectares by 2016. Dense infestations of this perennial weed destroy native plant communities and seriously degrade fish and wildlife habitat. Sometimes growing as an emergent on saturated soils or in shallow water, the plant also forms persistent submersed stands in deeper water, which is the typical growth form in Lake Pend Oreille. In 2016, field trials evaluated the herbicide diquat dibromide, formulated as the product Reward, for controlling submersed flowering rush. A 4 ha plot in Oden Bay was treated with diquat at a rate of 18.7 L/ha in late summer 2016 and again in 2017 using a subsurface injection method by boat. Water exchange processes were measured in treated plots in 2017 with rhodamine WT dye mixed with the herbicide. Flowering rush shoots were reduced by 87% in 2016 and 29% in 2017. No adverse effects were measured on water quality (temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, and conductivity). Diquat should be added to the project’s operational management strategy for controlling flowering rush in Lake Pend Oreille.