Originally published in Bismark Tribune on May 13, 2011
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by Brian Gehring and Leanne Eckroth
With the latest forecast for the Missouri River to rise another 2 feet and remain there for the summer, some are planning to do what they can to lessen the impact. Some have already felt it.
Tracy Potter, executive director of Fort Lincoln Foundation, operators of the Lewis and Clark riverboat, said the group is already down about $8,000 from lost charters even before the unofficial Memorial Day weekend opener.
Potter said the month of May is normally a busy time with school groups and other charters, but with the weather and the river conditions, most have canceled.
As for the rest of the season, "It's scary," Potter said. "As a non-profit organization, we already live on the edge of the break-even point."
The riverboat attracts about 15,000 passengers a season, Potter said.
Some worry the current will make navigation more difficult, if they are able to launch at all, Potter said. They looked for a more secure place from which to launch, "but we don't know of one."
He said the mooring posts where the riverboat ties up are already submerged and a new dock has to be built to reach the gang plank.
Potter said along with the lost revenue, there will be the added expense of purchasing new lines to tie off the boat and more than likely relocating the electrical service on shore which is only about 1½ feet from going under water.
"We're sort of writing off the whole month of May," Potter said.
At Fort Lincoln State Park south of Mandan, park manager Dan Schilske said the river water is already lapping the benches on the fishing pier and 2 more feet of water will likely mean some flooded camp sites.
"We've been talking about it all morning," he said.
Campsites on the south end of the park are the lowest in elevation, Schilske said, and a natural drainage could mean the river water will back up into those sites.
Schilske said the park's most popular sites on the west side, designed for big pull-through units, also could be flooded.
Sandbags are available if needed. It's a matter of when, he said.
"It's my guess it will back up," he said. "We have the sandbags and we're ready to roll."
As far as how the higher water will affect fishing on the river - it's probably already happened.
The water has covered sandbars, jetties and other structures that walleyes and other fish use and the normal response is for the fish to scatter.
Greg Power, fisheries chief for the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, said one of the results of higher flows into the river could be that anglers will fish smaller lakes in the area more or, go bigger and fish the reservoirs like Lake Oahe and Lake Sakakawea in favor of the river.
Power said he has been visiting with some anglers who were around in 1997 when conditions were similar and some said by the end of the summer, the fishing had straightened out.
But for those who have been fishing the river so far this year, it's just bad timing. Many say the walleye fishing has been the best it's ever been in Bismarck-Mandan.
At an inter-agency meeting Thursday to address river issues, the Corps of Engineers said releases from Garrison Dam water will reach 55,000 cubic feet per second by next weekend, with 30,000 cfs coming thought the power plant and the remainder through regulating tunnels.
Morton County Parks Director Vern Davis said the sewer dump station at Graner Park will be closed until further notice because high water is expected in that area.
Mandan City Administrator Jim Neubauer said increased flows from the Missouri makes the water dirtier in the city's water intake system and "will be dirtier longer."
He said residents should not notice the difference after treatment. At 12 feet, the Missouri River is 10 feet below creating a risk to Mandan operations, he said.
"The information we're getting is that this is going to happen by Wednesday (55,000 cfs) releases," said Morton County Emergency Manager Tammy Lapp Harris.
"In Morton, we just have some areas. One is in Tokach Timber Haven, mostly that's roads. It's the same with the Jetty Beach area and that is going to be access."
"Property owners along the Missouri River are encouraged to evaluate their current river levels with an expectation of an additional 1.5 to 2 feet in river stage and take appropriate measures to mitigate impasse," Lapp Harris said.
"Right now, we're not looking at any homes whatsoever ... it's just mostly access points," Lapp Harris said.
She said emergency and corps officials tell her it will be a long-term problem. "They're telling us these flows are most likely going to be like this the whole summer," she said.
"So far, we are going to be OK, but we are going to take some precautions. We just put that out to the people so they pay closer attention to everything. We're going to be pumping a lot of information out," Lapp Harris said.
"They need to start paying attention. If there are any problems, they should let us know."
She said the Lakewood and Marina Bay areas will be getting notice about sump pumps to use them properly so they don't overload the city system sewer system. She expects groundwater and sewers there might pose a problem if water levels get too high.
At 15 feet, things would become problematic for Mandan, Lapp Harris said. "Right now the city is just over 12 feet."
"We're OK. We've just got some stuff we've got to keep an eye on," Lapp Harris said. "We're not anticipating any huge issues at this point."
At only 22 feet, would water overflow at the Mandan-Morton side of the river bank, she said.
Boat ramp access will be an issue on the river in the middle reaches, from Washburn to Kimball Bottoms.
Bob Frohlich of the Game and Fish Department said Friday there are six ramps that were either under water or within three-tenths of an inch of going under as of Wednesday.
Those ramps are Fox Island, Sanger landing at Cross Ranch, Houge's Island, Grant Marsh Bridge, Sibley Island and Little Heart.
South of that, Frohlich said ramp access should be OK through the summer.
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