Originally published in PlainsDaily.com
By Kate Bommarito on March 16, 2011 at 05:47 pm
Click here for original posting
The question of how best to increase the water supply to Western North Dakota was addressed again today, when the Senate Industry, Business and Labor Committee continued its hearing on HB 1206.
The bill proposes the creation of a western area water supply authority and gives that entity the ability to oversee the building of a new, public water pipeline as well as enter into water supply contracts with “member cities, water districts, and private users, such as oil and gas producers, for the sale of water for use within or outside the authority boundaries or the state.”
The Western Area Water Supply Project (WAWS) is an extensive pipeline project that would pump water from the Missouri River and transport it via new pipelines to western areas. If the bill passes, construction could begin as early as this summer and be completed by 2014.
The project is estimated to cost $200-300 million. The project would be financed by a state guaranteed bond issuance. The bonds would be paid back over thirteen years using revenues coming from WAWSA’s sale of water to the oil industry. Projected industry water sales estimate that the bonds would actually be repaid within the first 8 years.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
1 Million Gallon Wastewater Release in St. Joseph
blogmaster's note: Another sewage spill in St. Joseph, this time partially treated. These large spills due to equipment malfunction are what makes the news, but in many communities along the river (including St. Joseph, Kansas City, Omaha, others) raw sewage is released everytime it rains. This is due to Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) in which old sewer systems mix stormwater and wastewater when it rains. Wastewater treatment plants are unable to handle the increased load and often end up redirecting flow straight into tributaries or the Missouri River.
A lot of work in these communities is going on upgrading their wastewater systems. St. Joseph is one of these.
The article below was originally published in the St. Joseph News-Press on March 14.
Click here for original link.
A pump failure late Friday night contributed to the release of an estimated 1.2 million gallons of partially treated wastewater from St. Joseph’s wastewater treatment system.
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources said Monday that the release was combined with increased stormwater runoff. City officials notified the department early Saturday, reporting that a pump in a pump station between the primary and secondary treatment facilities malfunctioned a day earlier. The malfunction allowed the partially treated wastewater to overflow to the Missouri River.
Since the wastewater was already partially treated — and because of the increase of stormwater contributing to the overflow — the release is not expected to affect drinking water systems down river, according to officials.
The department considers discharges of wastewater from sanitary sewer collection systems to be potential threats to public health and the environment. Sanitary sewer overflows can be caused by mechanical failure, obstructions in sewer lines, infiltrations of rainwater and snow melt into aging systems, or undersized systems that cannot compensate for sudden increases in wastewater.
The department said it requires Missouri communities to take appropriate action to eliminate their sanitary sewer overflow issues.
A lot of work in these communities is going on upgrading their wastewater systems. St. Joseph is one of these.
The article below was originally published in the St. Joseph News-Press on March 14.
Click here for original link.
A pump failure late Friday night contributed to the release of an estimated 1.2 million gallons of partially treated wastewater from St. Joseph’s wastewater treatment system.
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources said Monday that the release was combined with increased stormwater runoff. City officials notified the department early Saturday, reporting that a pump in a pump station between the primary and secondary treatment facilities malfunctioned a day earlier. The malfunction allowed the partially treated wastewater to overflow to the Missouri River.
Since the wastewater was already partially treated — and because of the increase of stormwater contributing to the overflow — the release is not expected to affect drinking water systems down river, according to officials.
The department considers discharges of wastewater from sanitary sewer collection systems to be potential threats to public health and the environment. Sanitary sewer overflows can be caused by mechanical failure, obstructions in sewer lines, infiltrations of rainwater and snow melt into aging systems, or undersized systems that cannot compensate for sudden increases in wastewater.
The department said it requires Missouri communities to take appropriate action to eliminate their sanitary sewer overflow issues.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Missouri River Relief hits the skies looking for trash?
On March 11, a couple River Reliefers hit the skies with the Ecoflight crew. Looking for trash.
The great blue sky may seem like a strange place to look for trash, but maybe you haven't seen the massive trash deposits that the Missouri River leaves strewn across its floodplain when it floods.
From the air, you can see plumes of driftwood mixed with plastic barrels & bottles, refrigerators, toys and tires splayed across the floodplain. This is the first step in our Big Muddy Clean Sweep this fall. Figure out where the massive trash piles are, then figure out how to target them from a barge moving down from Kansas City to St. Louis.
Find out more about Missouri River Relief's "Aerial MegaScout" here
And check out the Kansas City NBC press clip here
OR
Check out the KOMU story about the flight.
The great blue sky may seem like a strange place to look for trash, but maybe you haven't seen the massive trash deposits that the Missouri River leaves strewn across its floodplain when it floods.
From the air, you can see plumes of driftwood mixed with plastic barrels & bottles, refrigerators, toys and tires splayed across the floodplain. This is the first step in our Big Muddy Clean Sweep this fall. Figure out where the massive trash piles are, then figure out how to target them from a barge moving down from Kansas City to St. Louis.
Find out more about Missouri River Relief's "Aerial MegaScout" here
And check out the Kansas City NBC press clip here
OR
Check out the KOMU story about the flight.
The Vegetation Communities of the Big Muddy National Fish & Wildlife Refuge
Here's a link to the just released report from the US Geological Survey on the vegetational communities of the Big Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge. http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2011/1038/
The study covers plots in the Jameson Island, Lisbon Bottoms, Overton Bottoms, St. Aubert's Island and Boone Crossing Units of the refuge along the Missouri River. The report compiles data collected during bird and aerial photography studies in 2002-07 with a more complete vegetation dataset collected in 2009.
The study was completed by Matthew Struckoff, Keith Grabner and Esther Stroh of USGS and published in March, 2011.
Some interesting stuff follows the dynamic changes in young cottonwood and willow forests as they mature following their establishment after the 1993 flood, when many areas of the refuge were taken out of agriculture. As the refuge has grown, some flood protection has been removed allowing for substantial annual flooding. This flooding, in just the past few years, has drastically changed some of the "old field" communities into dynamic and diverse ephemeral wetlands and wet prairies. Cool stuff.
Here's the link to the USGS announcement. From there you can download the report and the detailed appendices.
http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2011/1038/
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
MRAPs releases Draft Scoping Summary
The Missouri River Authorized Purposes Study run by the US Army Corps of Engineers has released its Draft Scoping Summary. It's a 347 page document distilling the hundreds of public comments received last year during the first phase of the study.
Now MRAPs is moving into a public comment period on the Scoping Summary. Several meetings have been scheduled throughout the basin for public comment.
Click here for more information.
Click here to download the draft Scoping Summary (5.8 MB pdf)
Now MRAPs is moving into a public comment period on the Scoping Summary. Several meetings have been scheduled throughout the basin for public comment.
Click here for more information.
Click here to download the draft Scoping Summary (5.8 MB pdf)
Friday, March 4, 2011
Western ND looks at regional water pipeline
Originally published by Associated Press on March 3, 2011 in the Plains Daily
Original Link click here
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) -- North Dakota's booming oil industry requires huge amounts of water for drilling, a need the state could use to bring clean drinking water to rural towns, backers of a proposed water pipeline project say.
The Western Area Water Supply project, which the North Dakota Senate's Industry, Business and Labor Committee reviewed Thursday, would pump water from the Missouri River near Williston and sell it to oil companies and cities.
The legislation would set up a board to oversee the project and have the state back the bonds that would finance it. The pipeline network's estimated cost ranges from $150 million to $300 million.
The project's supporters call it an opportunity to build pipelines that will supply drinking water for cities and rural areas, while laying most of the expense onto an oil industry that is ravenous for water.
Skeptics say that if oil prices collapse, the state could be left holding a sizable bill. Water haulers said they have already invested in facilities to serve the industry, which a state-financed pipeline system would undercut.
"We have a great opportunity to build infrastructure to service western North Dakota for the next 100 years," said the bill's sponsor, Rep. Bob Skarphol, R-Tioga. "We have the opportunity to fund it with the help of the private sector's need for water."
North Dakota's oil industry uses a process called hydraulic fracturing to break down underground shale formations to extract oil. A single well can require 1 million to 1.5 million gallons of water during the process.
Companies now often have to haul water by truck, sometimes as far as 40 miles. A pipeline system would reduce hauling time, cut down truck traffic and provide better access to water. Supporters of the project expect oil companies will buy enough water in five to seven years to cover the system's cost.
"It'll benefit the people, and it'll benefit industry by allowing us to buy water," said Ron Ness, the president of the North Dakota Petroleum Council, which represents oil companies working in western North Dakota. "This opportunity only comes so often, when a big commercial user is ready to pay the bill."
The city of Williston and some neighboring water districts have been working on the proposal for more than two years.
Their plan envisions beginning pipeline construction on the Missouri River southwest of Williston and extending in four directions, reaching Grenora to the northwest, Ray to the northeast and Alexander and Watford City to the south.
City officials say Williston has the right to pump up to 30 million gallons of water from the river per day, but it uses only about 3 million gallons.
The city's water treatment plant was renovated in 2006, and can now handle 10 million gallons of water daily. If the Western Water Supply initiative is approved, its treatment capacity could be expanded to 14 million gallons, city officials said.
Opponents say the plan is too risky and could leave the state on the hook for a huge debt. The project's finances depend on oil companies being willing to buy most of the treated water.
"You never, ever can bank on the oil and gas industry," said Michael Nash, who runs a water trucking company in Williston. "We're a transient industry, that's all there is to it. If you bank on this industry, you will get burned. It's not a matter of if, but when."
Owners of private water businesses said the government would be unfairly competing with their industry and could undercut prices. Some said they'd invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in water depots for oil companies, which the pipeline could put out of business.
"If it were not for the entrepreneurs that spent their hard-earned money to respond to the needs of the industry at the time, we wouldn't have the oil industry doing like it is today," said Robert Harms, a lobbyist for independent water companies. "It's because the private sector invested its own money to develop the depots we're talking about."
If the bill is approved, pipeline construction would begin this summer.
The House approved the measure earlier, 91-3. The Senate committee took no action on it after a five-hour hearing Thursday. The panel intends to take testimony from Todd Sando, the state Water Commission's chief engineer, next week.
The bill is HB1206.
Original Link click here
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) -- North Dakota's booming oil industry requires huge amounts of water for drilling, a need the state could use to bring clean drinking water to rural towns, backers of a proposed water pipeline project say.
The Western Area Water Supply project, which the North Dakota Senate's Industry, Business and Labor Committee reviewed Thursday, would pump water from the Missouri River near Williston and sell it to oil companies and cities.
The legislation would set up a board to oversee the project and have the state back the bonds that would finance it. The pipeline network's estimated cost ranges from $150 million to $300 million.
The project's supporters call it an opportunity to build pipelines that will supply drinking water for cities and rural areas, while laying most of the expense onto an oil industry that is ravenous for water.
Skeptics say that if oil prices collapse, the state could be left holding a sizable bill. Water haulers said they have already invested in facilities to serve the industry, which a state-financed pipeline system would undercut.
"We have a great opportunity to build infrastructure to service western North Dakota for the next 100 years," said the bill's sponsor, Rep. Bob Skarphol, R-Tioga. "We have the opportunity to fund it with the help of the private sector's need for water."
North Dakota's oil industry uses a process called hydraulic fracturing to break down underground shale formations to extract oil. A single well can require 1 million to 1.5 million gallons of water during the process.
Companies now often have to haul water by truck, sometimes as far as 40 miles. A pipeline system would reduce hauling time, cut down truck traffic and provide better access to water. Supporters of the project expect oil companies will buy enough water in five to seven years to cover the system's cost.
"It'll benefit the people, and it'll benefit industry by allowing us to buy water," said Ron Ness, the president of the North Dakota Petroleum Council, which represents oil companies working in western North Dakota. "This opportunity only comes so often, when a big commercial user is ready to pay the bill."
The city of Williston and some neighboring water districts have been working on the proposal for more than two years.
Their plan envisions beginning pipeline construction on the Missouri River southwest of Williston and extending in four directions, reaching Grenora to the northwest, Ray to the northeast and Alexander and Watford City to the south.
City officials say Williston has the right to pump up to 30 million gallons of water from the river per day, but it uses only about 3 million gallons.
The city's water treatment plant was renovated in 2006, and can now handle 10 million gallons of water daily. If the Western Water Supply initiative is approved, its treatment capacity could be expanded to 14 million gallons, city officials said.
Opponents say the plan is too risky and could leave the state on the hook for a huge debt. The project's finances depend on oil companies being willing to buy most of the treated water.
"You never, ever can bank on the oil and gas industry," said Michael Nash, who runs a water trucking company in Williston. "We're a transient industry, that's all there is to it. If you bank on this industry, you will get burned. It's not a matter of if, but when."
Owners of private water businesses said the government would be unfairly competing with their industry and could undercut prices. Some said they'd invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in water depots for oil companies, which the pipeline could put out of business.
"If it were not for the entrepreneurs that spent their hard-earned money to respond to the needs of the industry at the time, we wouldn't have the oil industry doing like it is today," said Robert Harms, a lobbyist for independent water companies. "It's because the private sector invested its own money to develop the depots we're talking about."
If the bill is approved, pipeline construction would begin this summer.
The House approved the measure earlier, 91-3. The Senate committee took no action on it after a five-hour hearing Thursday. The panel intends to take testimony from Todd Sando, the state Water Commission's chief engineer, next week.
The bill is HB1206.
Spring Flood Outlook Missouri River Basin
The National Weather Service has released its update of the Spring Flood Outlook maps. Values are not given for the mainstem Lower Missouri River, but gives good information on tributaries. These maps reflect snowpack, soil moisture and existing runoff, but don't take into account precipitation. Some sources are predicting a wet spring so that will definitely affect the Missouri River.
Here's the link to the report, with probability maps
Here's an analysis for North Dakota tributaries.
Here's the text from the NWS report:
THIS SNOWMELT OUTLOOK IS FOR THE MISSOURI RIVER DRAINAGE WHICH
INCLUDES RIVERS IN MONTANA, WYOMING, COLORADO, NORTH DAKOTA, SOUTH
DAKOTA, MINNESOTA, NEBRASKA, KANSAS, IOWA, AND MISSOURI.
Here's the link to the report, with probability maps
Here's an analysis for North Dakota tributaries.
Here's the text from the NWS report:
THIS SNOWMELT OUTLOOK IS FOR THE MISSOURI RIVER DRAINAGE WHICH
INCLUDES RIVERS IN MONTANA, WYOMING, COLORADO, NORTH DAKOTA, SOUTH
DAKOTA, MINNESOTA, NEBRASKA, KANSAS, IOWA, AND MISSOURI.
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