Regulacje i polityka gospodarcza · 21.10.1997

Intent to Prepare a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), Devils Lake, North Dakota, Emergency Outlet

The 1997 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act, Public Law (Pub. L.) 105-18, directed the Secretary of the Army to conduct preconstruction engineering and design (PED) for an emergency outlet from Devils Lake, North Dakota, to the Sheyenne River. The PED authorization also required that an EIS be prepared. The construction of an emergency outlet was not authorized by Pub. L. 105-18. Devils Lake is a terminal lake located in northeastern North Dakota. Devils Lake has a long history of a wide range of fluctuating lake levels. Since 1993, the lake has risen about 20 feet. Rising lake levels have resulted in damage to houses, businesses, infrastructure, transportation systems, and land uses. Significant expenditures of Federal, State, and local funds have been required to relocate structures and to raise and strengthen roads and levees. While these efforts will provide immediate protection, there is great concern that the lake could continue to rise. The Devils Lake Basin is a subbasin of the Hudson Bay drainage system, although Devils Lake has not contributed to the Hudson Bay drainage for many centuries.