By Dave Thompson
Bismarck, ND – The Bureau of Reclamation is starting to work on an environmental impact statement for the Dakota Water Resources act.
And regional Bureau director Mary Anne Bach says it will take some time.
The Dakota Water Resources Act calls for Missouri River Water to be used to help water supplies in the Red River Valley. It was passed by Congress. Bach says that legislation had the requirement for an E-I-S.
"What the legislation called for is the Secretary of the Interior to produce a 'needs and options' report to Conngress that would lay out what are the requirements, what are the needs, what are the future demands for the Red River Valley Basin," said Bach. "Then, the department would conduct an EIS on those options to identify what the perferred option would be."
Bach says that could take up to three years to complete.