DEVILS LAKE, N.D. – A proposal to release water from Devils Lake is raising concerns on the Canadian side of the border.
The United States Army Corps of Engineers has developed plans for an outlet into the Sheyenne River. The Sheyenne connects to the Red River, which flows north into Manitoba and eventually empties into Lake Winnipeg.
“We have had major concerns with regards to the project for some while,” said Richard Kellow, executive director for Environment Canada’s transboundary waters unit. “Those concerns remain.”
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The waters of Devils Lake began rising in 1993 and have since engulfed large tracts of farmland and threatened to flood communities.
An outlet from the lake is being offered as a way to alleviate flooding.
The Manitoba government fears work on the project could start as early as October 2000.
Ottawa and Manitoba both question the idea, concerned about what it might do to fish stocks and water quality of Lake Winnipeg and the Red River. They point to the high salt content of Devils Lake and uncertainty about what kinds of fish and parasites might lurk there.
“There’s never been a comprehensive inventory of what is in the lake,” Kellow said. “There may be things in the lake that we’re not aware of.”
There’s also concern that a law resurrecting the Garrison, North Dakota, diversion plan could be passed by the United States Congress within a month. That would allow water from the Missouri and Mississippi River basin through North Dakota and into the Red River basin.
If that went ahead, it would foster an even greater risk of unwanted fish, parasites and other organisms coming into Canada, said Rick Bowering, Manitoba Conservation’s manager of surface water.
Manitoba premier Gary Doer was in Washington, D.C., Oct. 25 and 26 to make his case against the Devils Lake outlet and the Garrison diversion scheme.
Among his allies is Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, who also worries about the possible effects on the Red River.
Following his visit to Washington, Doer said Manitoba’s position was made clear to the U.S. government. But he worries that proponents of the two projects might prevail by taking advantage of last minute “horse trading” during U.S. budget deliberations.
Devils Lake county commissioner Joe Belford said time is running out for communities threatened by flooding at the lake. He expects the lake to rise for several more years before it levels out.
“Our livelihoods are slipping away,” he said. “We’re already having an exodus of people.”
Belford said proponents of the Devils Lake outlet won’t ignore issues of water quality. And he suggested the lake’s aquatic life is compatible with fish in the Sheyenne and Red rivers.
Manitoba wants a full environmental assessment before water is released from the Sheyenne.
