Oakland Dam Removal - The Largest Dam Removal in Pennsylvania History

The Oakland Dam was a 755 foot long, 16-foot-high reinforced concrete dam on the Susqhehanna River that provided power to railroad industries and a local hospital before being deemed obsolete in the 1990s. The dam was in extremely poor condition prior to removal. A breach in the center of the dam resulted in exposed rebar and turbulent stream conditions at the site.

Beran Environmental Services Inc received final DEP and USACE approvals for the design and removal of the Oakland Dam in February 2023 and subsequently removed the dam over the course of ten weeks during the months of August and September 2023. As part of the project , Beran Environmental Services, Inc. demolished the dam in its entirety, moved and stabilized significant sediment deposits to restore the river's natural flow regime and streambanks to natural conditions which had not existed since the 1800s, and placed dam rubble in the existing riverbed scour hole, all of which will now provide significant ecological benefit to aquatic species and allow for safe recreational activities to take place on this stretch of the Susqhehanna River.