At a joint public hearing on June 11, 2012, Missouri Farm Bureau (MFB) President
Blake Hurst testified before the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the
Missouri Clean Water Commission (MCWC) concerning the Corps’ request for a water
quality permit from the MCWC for modifications to the Jameson Island Chute
located within the Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge to rectify
problems with the chute’s current alignment.
“You have a critical
decision to make; your actions will not affect just Jameson Island but also the
construction of future chutes in Missouri,” Hurst said. “You are setting a
precedent that goes beyond the box you’ve been put in today.”
In 2007, the Corps
halted shallow water habitat (SWH) construction to allow for an independent
scientific review of sediment management in response to concerns expressed by
the MCWC. The Corps is now seeking to resume SWH restoration efforts in
Missouri.
To correct the current
alignment of the Jameson Island Chute, the Corps’ preferred alternative would
involve constructing a new 6000-foot chute, excavated to 100 feet wide. When
the project is complete, approximately one million cubic yards of soil will have
been pumped, or “integrated through natural river processes,” into the Missouri
River bedload.
MFB opposes the
dumping, or designed erosion of soil, into the Missouri River by the Corps and
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in conjunction with the construction of chutes
along the river. The chutes, or shallow water ditches, are designed to increase
habitat for the endangered pallid sturgeon.
“Our organization has
serious reservations about the effectiveness of the chutes. There is not a
consensus within the scientific community that they enhance the pallid sturgeon
population. This is simply an expensive experiment that contradicts common
sense,” Hurst said. “At what point do we ask ourselves if the $4 million cost of
this project modification is justified? Or is the $3 billion cost of the
Missouri River Recovery Program so important that every American should
contribute $9.50? The chutes do not stimulate fish nor should we be shouldered
with a fish stimulus package.”
In addition to
construction costs, Hurst expressed concern with ongoing maintenance costs. “How
can we support the construction of new chutes when the Bank Stabilization and
Navigation Program is underfunded on an annual basis? And, can maintenance
funds be assured given the uncertainty of the annual federal appropriations
process?”
MFB advocates closing
the existing chute at the top end and eliminating any further work on the
project; however, in the absence of this choice, Hurst urged the MCWC to approve
Alternative 3, which ensures the soil is side cast and not pumped into the
Missouri River.
MFB led efforts to
gather enough signatures to place the Soil and Water tax on the statewide ballot
in 1984. The 1/10 cent sales tax was approved in 1988, 1996 and more than 70
percent of voters supported the measure in 2006. An estimated 148 million tons
of soil have been saved since its inception.
On May 22, the Natural
Resources Conservation Service issued a press release stating the U.S.
Department of Agriculture and its partners plan to invest $32 million in
Mississippi River Basin water quality and wetlands projects. The money, to be
spent this year in financial and technical assistance, “will prevent sediment
and nutrients from entering waterways, decrease flooding and improve bird and
fish habitat.”
“There is a pattern
here,’ Hurst said. “Federal and state government, landowners and even taxpayers
are taking steps to reduce sediment loadings, while this project will
intentionally increase them. It is impossible to justify adding, or integrating
through natural river processes, approximately one million cubic yards of soil
to the Missouri River from this project.”
The public comment
period on this issue will close on June 30, 2012. Send written comments on the
project to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, P.O. Box 176, Jefferson
City, Missouri 65102.
No comments:
Post a Comment