Devils Lake Outlet
After years of fighting the Devils Lake outlet is flowing. But, how well is the plan working and was all the money worth it? So far many believe the plan is a failure, others think it is too early to tell. The outlet flowing out of Devils Lake in North Dakota has been shut down for 2007. The intake structure for the floodwater diversion project was removed for the winter.
The outlet drains lake floodwaters into the Sheyenne River and ultimately the Red River, which flows north along the North Dakota-Minnesota border into Canada. It has operated for only 38 days this year.
Low flows and high sulfate levels in the Sheyenne River have hampered operation of the outlet. Rules limit how much the Devils Lake outlet can add to the sulfate levels in the river. Since testing was completed in 2005, the 28 million dollar outlet has run for only about 60 days. It was shut down all of last year.
The state may only pump water from May through November, and must stop when the lake recedes to 1,445 feet above sea level.
October 30, 2007 6:41 AM | Category: Flood