Palmetto Settling Area No 1 is an earth dam located in Polk County, Florida, built in 1960. It carries a Low hazard potential classification.
Dam profile
NID height · 22 ft22 ft tall and 21,400 ft long. Height is drawn to scale against a two-story house, about 25 ft; the profile is a generic embankment section and the water level is illustrative.
About Palmetto Settling Area No 1
The primary purpose of Palmetto Settling Area No 1 is tailings. Tailings dams contain waste material from mining operations — typically a slurry of finely ground rock left over after valuable minerals have been extracted. These structures require ongoing monitoring because tailings can contain heavy metals and other contaminants. The dam is owned by The Mosaic Company (private). It impounds the Little Payne Creek near Fort Meade.
The dam stands 22 feet tall and stretches 21,400 feet across, creates a reservoir covering 389 acres, and has a maximum storage capacity of 8,550 acre-feet. Completed in 1960, the structure is well into its service life at over 50 years old.
This dam has a low hazard potential classification, meaning that failure would cause minimal damage, limited primarily to the dam owner's property, with no expected loss of life.
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Location
| State | Florida |
| County | Polk |
| Nearest City | Fort Meade |
| River/Stream | Little Payne Creek |
| Coordinates | 27.67000, -81.93000 |
Physical Characteristics
| Dam Type | Earth |
| NID Height | 22 ft |
| Dam Height | 22 ft |
| Dam Length | 21,400 ft |
| Year Completed | 1960 (66 years old) |
Storage & Hydraulics
| NID Storage | 8,550 acre-ft |
| Max Storage | 8,550 acre-ft |
| Normal Storage | 5,500 acre-ft |
| Surface Area | 389 acres |
Ownership & Safety
| Purpose | Tailings |
| Owner | The Mosaic Company |
| Owner Type | Private |
| Hazard Classification | Low |
| Condition Assessment | Not assessed |
| Emergency Action Plan | No |
Identifiers
| NID ID | FL00252 |
| Federal ID | FL00252 |
| More Info | State Dam Safety Program |