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Don't Waste Federal Money Studying Dead-End Dams
7/7/2010 |
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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Idaho Water Resource Board are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to study a new water storage dam on the Boise River. What, precisely, is the problem, and why is a new dam the first option to be considered?
These are the questions the public must ask at public meetings the agencies will hold June 29 to July 1. A new dam on the Boise River, at any of the six locations under study, would be exceedingly expensive, harmful to the environment and of questionable value if the objective is reliable water supply.
A dam at one location, on Mores Creek, would bury Highway 21 and private homes under the reservoir. Two dam sites on the Middle Fork Boise River and one on the North Fork Boise River also are being considered along with a new dam at Arrowrock and a major overhaul of Lucky Peak.
Reliable water supply - water security - is essential to a healthy community and a healthy economy. Water security is of even greater importance today as our Valley strives to pull out of the economic doldrums. Our plentiful, but not infinite, water supplies can work to our competitive advantage if we develop an achievable plan for water security. A plan that relies on the cash-strapped federal government to build a new dam is chancy and unconvincing.
The corps and water board are heading in the wrong direction, and we need to protest the use of our tax dollars to study dead-end dams. They need to use the limited study dollars at hand to investigate realistic, effective, affordable options that don't depend on major federal investment. The options also need to be drought-resistant, which would further eliminate a new dam.
Idaho Rivers United's goal is to protect the free-flowing Boise River while meeting agricultural, urban and environmental demands for clean water supply. Water-efficient technology is now available for our homes, businesses and farms. Communities around the West have slashed their demand for water. Seattle, as one example, has stretched water supplies out by 50 years through conservation measures. The trend extends to Boise, where United Water customers have reduced use over 20 percent in the last few years.
Food producers use the vast majority of the area's water. Some local irrigation companies are installing automated irrigation systems to save water, and farmers use less water by switching to sprinkler and drip irrigation. Idaho water law protects legal users and allows the flexibility we need to make saved water available to new industries and new residents. Demand reduction should be the first option for the corps and the water board, not an afterthought.
The free-flowing sections of the Boise River and the public land that surrounds them are priceless and irreplaceable. A partial list of areas that would be affected by one or more of the potential dams is sobering: Cottonwood Canyon, Dutch Creek, Barber Flats, Black Rock, Alexander Flats, Troutdale, Neinmeyer, Willow Creek, Badger Creek, South Fork Boise, Dunnigan Creek, Grimes Creek, William Pogue National Recreation Trail, Robie Creek, Thorn Creek, and miles and miles of Mores Creek and the North Fork and Middle Fork of the Boise River.
Attend the public meetings and speak up in defense of the places you love. Visit www.idahorivers.org for more information.
Liz Paul is Boise River campaign coordinator for Idaho Rivers United.
This article appeared in the Idaho Statesman on June 26th, 2010.
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