U.S. Water News Online
PIERRE, S.D. -- South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds wants a summit meeting of states to settle ongoing issues involving the Missouri River.
A request for such a session was made recently in a letter to Lee Brownlee, acting assistant secretary of civil works for the Army. The Corps of Engineers is in charge of managing Missouri River dams in the Dakotas and Montana.
Rounds said the multitude of lawsuits in recent years over operation of the river have failed to settle disputes between states, and a summit meeting possibly could provide solutions.
Upstream and downstream states have wrangled for years over the river.
Interests in upstream states complain that too much water is released through the dams in the spring and summer, endangering the multimillion-dollar fishing and recreational industry. Downstream states argue that too little water is a threat to the economic well-being of the barge industry and endangers critical water supplies.
The corps, which is caught in the middle of those competing views, has been working for 14 years to revise the manual that is used as a guide for operation of the dams. The corps plans to issue the new Master Manual later this year and begin using it next spring. The operating plan was first published in 1960 and last revised in 1979.
Current review of the document was prompted in 1989 by the worst drought since the reservoir system became fully operational more than two decades earlier.
In the latest flurry of court action, the corps has refused to reduce water levels on the Missouri River, despite orders from a federal judge to cut flows to protect endangered birds and fish.
The corps said the judge's order conflicts with another federal judge's ruling last year that requires enough water for barge navigation and cooling of power plants along the river.
``All the court cases have failed to produce an agreed upon revision for managing Missouri River water,'' Rounds said. ``While the damage has been done this year, it would be nice to have some upper basin water in reserve, should the drought continue next year.
``Our position continues to call for the Army Corps of Engineers to update the Master Manual to reflect the interests of the upstream states as well as the downstream states. Given the changed economic and river conditions since the last revision, as soon as all interested parties feel the need to come to the negotiating table, the sooner we'll get this issue resolved.''
The South Dakota governor offered to host a river summit this fall. He suggested that state, federal and private interests be invited.
``I am writing to offer my assistance in trying to reach an equitable resolution to the current deadlock on the Missouri River,'' the Republican governor said in his letter. ``I am willing to propose a plan that takes into considerati on all uses of the river and is environmentally friendly.''
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