Engineers say the inoperable gates on the New Savannah Bluff lock could be repaired at a cost of $30,000.

"It's been determined the problem is hydraulic, rather than mechanical, which is a better problem to have to fix than the valves themselves," said Tom Beck, the director of the Augusta Recreation & Parks Department.

The locks on the Savannah River near Augusta Regional Airport were closed in March after operators could no longer make the gates function.

Initially, engineers believed repairs would require new butterfly valves, costing $100,000 or more.

Although the locks are no longer used for commercial navigation -- the purpose for which they were built in 1937 -- the gates are opened periodically to accommodate recreational boat traffic and to allow migrating American shad to swim upriver each spring to spawn in the Augusta shoals.

Mr. Beck said a proposal to hire a repair firm will be offered Monday to the Augusta Commission's Public Services Committee.

Even if commissioners authorize the repairs, which would take about a month, there is no guarantee the valves and other components of the aging dam won't fail in the future, he said.

"It's a very old structure," Mr. Beck said. "The issue here is that these valves are still over 70 years old, but they were determined to still be working."

Augusta operates the lock and dam, which is owned by the Army Corps of Engineers.

The corps plans to turn the site over to a consortium of local governments at some point, but major renovations will be required before then.