Montana, North Dakota Delegations Urge Support for Critical Dam

(U.S. Congress) – U.S. Senators Jon Tester (D-MT), Steve Daines (R-MT), John Hoeven (R-ND) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) and U.S. Representatives Greg Gianforte (R-MT) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) today voiced strong support for the Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project (LYIP) which provides a critical source of water for farmers and ranchers in Montana and North Dakota.

The members sent a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation urging those agencies to continue to support the project and not reallocate funding currently provided for the LYIP.

On July 5, U.S. District Court Judge Brian Morris granted an injunction that will further delay construction on the fish passage around the LYIP weir.

“This project is critical to close to four hundred farms and irrigates over 50,000 acres of cropland,” the members wrote. “That is why we also encourage you to address the concerns of the Court and conduct the necessary analyses in a timely manner, thereby ensuring that this essential source of water for farmers, ranchers, and communities throughout much of northeastern Montana and northwestern North Dakota is not unduly disrupted.”

You can read the letter HERE.