Maple River Aqueduct
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March 29, 2024

FM Area Diversion March Construction Update

FARGO, ND (March 29, 2024) – The Metro Flood Diversion Authority has released the March construction update for the FM Area Diversion project at https://youtu.be/Cf9tDjM16M0.

March 2024 Construction Update

In recent weeks, contractors have placed thousands of cubic yards of concrete at the Red River Structure and the Maple River Aqueduct. They have also made significant progress on some of the 12 county road bridges that will cross the 30-mile stormwater diversion channel.

Among this month’s construction highlights are:

  • Red River Structure: Nearly 3,000 cubic yards of concrete have been placed as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ contractor moves closer to completing the structure’s abutments and piers and prepares to receive the three 50-foot-wide radial-arm gates that will be installed to control floodwaters. This will be the largest of the three control structures for the project.
  • Maple River Aqueduct: ASN Constructors continues to pour and form concrete for the aqueduct’s base, abutments and piers. This component is the first of two aqueducts in the project to begin construction. Once completed, it’s believed that it will be the northernmost aqueduct in the world and the only to incorporate heat.
  • BNSF Prosper Railroad Crossing: ASN Constructors began forming the concrete substructure on what will be one of the three railroad crossings over the stormwater diversion channel.
  • County Road Crossings: Once the project is completed, the stormwater diversion channel will have 12 county roads crossing over it. In recent weeks, ASN Constructors installed bridge girders for the combined channel crossing for County Roads 4 and 31, which is east of Argusville, North Dakota. Farther south, at County Roads 20 and 22, they began driving H-piles for those crossings.
  • Stormwater Diversion Channel: ASN Constructors continues to work 24/7 to excavate the 30-mile-long channel. To date, they’ve moved 19 million cubic yards of material, which would be enough to fill the Fargodome nearly nine times.

The FM Area Diversion project is expected to be operational by 2027. By using a public-private partnership, the completion will be achieved 10 years sooner and for $300 million less than with traditional design-bid-build construction projects. Additional construction progress can be accessed at https://fmdiversion.gov/project-status-road-closures/construction-status/.

About the Metro Flood Diversion Authority

The MFDA is a permanent North Dakota political subdivision that is cooperatively implementing the Fargo-Moorhead Area Diversion comprehensive project with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The MFDA works in partnership with the Red River Valley Alliance in a public-private partnership as well as the City of Fargo, City of Moorhead, Cass County, Clay County and the Cass County Joint Water Resource District. More information is available at www.FMDiversion.gov.