September 14, 2006

The Manitoba government has joined with several North Dakota and federal American organizations to appeal a recent decision by the North Dakota Department of Health to modify the operating permit for the Devils Lake outlet, Water Stewardship Minister Steve Ashton said today.

The organizations include People to Save the Sheyenne River, the Peterson Coulee Outlet Association and the National Wildlife Federation. The groups have been concerned about the potential environmental impact of the Devils Lake outlet. The appeal is being filed today in North Dakota District Court located in the city of Devils Lake.

“The decision by North Dakota to allow these permit modifications lowers the environmental safeguards governing the operation of the Devils Lake outlet,” Ashton said. “We have a solid basis for appealing this decision.”

This legal challenge is in response to the recent decision by the North Dakota Department of Health to weaken the environmental standards contained in the Devils Lake outlet operating permit. These changes allow for higher levels of sulphate (up to 450 micrograms per litre) to be discharged from Devils Lake to the Sheyenne River and expand the time period each year during which the outlet can be operated. These changes had been requested by the North Dakota State Water Commission.

Raising the allowable limit for sulphate, combined with extending the annual operating period, will increase the amount of water that can be discharged from Devils Lake. This increases the risk that alien and invasive species will be transferred into the Manitoba portion of the Hudson Bay basin and increases the frequency of exceedances of the International Joint Commission’s water quality guidelines for salt content in the Red River at the border, Ashton noted.

The legal challenge launched today is based on the assertions that North Dakota failed to demonstrate adequate cause for the permit modifications and failed to conduct an anti-degradation review as required for a major permit modification, Ashton said.

“The appeal asks the court for a reversal of the Department of Health’s decision and a ruling that would prevent the State Water Commission from operating the Devils Lake outlet in excess of the original permit conditions,” the minister added.

Manitoba has also requested the Canadian government call on the United States federal government to remove North Dakota’s delegated authority over environmental licensing and to have the federal Environmental Protection Agency intervene.

Devils Lake has dropped about 20 inches so far this year despite the fact the outlet has not operated due to high sulphate levels in the Sheyenne River.

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