Friday, November 3, 2006
CONTACT: Barry E. Piatt
or Brenden Timpe
PHONE: 202-224-2551
DORGAN CALLS ON CORPS OF ENGINEERS TO IDENTIFY ADDITIONAL POTENTIAL PROBLEMS CAUSED BY LOW WATER LEVELS ON LAKE SAKAKAWEA
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) --- U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) said Friday the revelation that Highway 83 in North Dakota is threatened by low water levels on Lake Sakakawea is further proof that that U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is mismanaging the Missouri River. Dorgan said he is sending a letter to the Corps calling on them to identify other problems that may arise if the water level in Lake Sakakawea continues to fall.
Lake Audubon and Lake Sakakawea are separated by an embankment, on which Highway 83 sits. Because the Corps increased the release of water from drought-stricken Lake Sakakawea this summer, the higher water in Lake Audubon is now threatening to wash out the roadway.
The text of the statement is below.
BY SENATOR BYRON DORGAN
November 3, 2006
“Today’s action by the Army Corps is an unfortunate result of earlier decisions to accelerate the release of water from Lake Sakakawea. The present danger posed to Highway 83 is another symptom of the Corps’ chronic mismanagement of the Missouri River.
“It is unbelievable to me that the Corps continues to release water from upstream reservoirs that are in the midst of a drought. We have communities whose access to potable water is threatened by dropping lake levels, yet the Corps has continued to send water downstream to bail out a tiny barge industry.
“I want to understand the consequences of the actions the Corps has taken, but more importantly, I want them to stop taking actions that are going to hurt upstream interests and reward downstream interests. We’re tired of the mismanagement of the Missouri River.”
--END--