ELKO - Scheduled repairs to the spillway and intake at South Fork Dam were completed in late 2012. Through November 2012 and the beginning of December 2012, a temporary cofferdam allowed repairs to a spillway gate, and a commercial diving contractor installed two new hydraulic cylinders located near the dam face.
The state's Division of Water Resources planned and carried out the repairs with help from the Division of State Parks and several hired contractors.
The South Fork reservoir is currently 7.5 feet below its full pool elevation, which is 70 percent of its volume capacity.
The Nevada Division of Water Resources operates the dam under a "water in-water out" reservoir management plan subject to water rights priorities defined in the Humboldt River Decree.
A good snow pack and spring melt on the South Fork of the Humboldt River will greatly aid in building and maintaining reservoir volume in the future.
The original design of South Fork dam was funded by the Elko County Recreation Board, generally supported by room taxes imposed by the City of Elko.
In 1985, the Nevada Legislature supplied state participation through revenue bonds to construct the dam, which became what is now known as South Fork State Recreation Area.
The Nevada Division of Water Resources conserves, protects, manages and enhances the state's water resources for Nevada's citizens through the appropriation and reallocation of the public waters. Water Resources is a division within the Nevada Department of Conservation of Natural
Resources.
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