It’s been almost six months since the end of the Missouri River flood. Since then, the upstream reservoirs have been drained of their floodwaters, the lower Missouri Valley has dried out, and the Corps has commenced the reconstruction of damaged dams, levees, and channelization structures. To add to the apparent good news, officials recently stated that the lack of snow in the mountains and dry conditions across the prairie-plains region have dramatically reduced the probability of flooding along the Missouri main-stem in 2012. All appears well along the Missouri. The worst is behind us – or so it seems. But before we engage in a collective sigh of relief, we should recognize that big, big problems still confront the residents of the Missouri basin. Continue Reading »
Tagged Blake Hurst, Brigadier General John McMahon, Claire McCaskill, Corn Grower's Association, Farm Bureau Federation, Gavin's Point Dam, Jay Nixon, Missouri Levee and Drainage District Association, Missouri River, Missouri River Degradation, Missouri River Flood 2011, Missouri River Navigation Project, Roy Blunt, Tom Waters
The Missouri River once carried impressive amounts of suspended sediment. That sediment found its way into the stream from the prairie-pothole region of North Dakota, the badlands of South Dakota, the short-grass plains of northeastern Nebraska, and the tall grass prairies of Iowa. It came in many forms, including fine granules of sand, tiny particles of clay, bits of pulverized coal, and even pea-sized gravel. It floated, rolled, and spun its way downstream. A portion of it spilled onto the valley lowlands during the Missouri’s annual floods. Some of it became sandbars or islands. A percentage of it flowed all the way to the Mississippi and beyond. The Missouri acted as a conveyor belt, moving soils from the Rocky Mountains and northern plains to and thru the agricultural Midwest. According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the annual suspended sediment load past Omaha equaled 100,375,000 tons. That was enough goop to fill 5,500 railroad cars (with fifty ton capacities) every single day. Continue Reading »
