July 10, 2009 -- At Leech Lake

The wind today is the dominant factor on the weather scene. The wind is out of the west at 15-20 mph, with gusts pushing 25+ mph. There are white caps on the lake, and I've only seen a boat or two willing to battle the rough waters of Leech Lake today.

The temperature this morning was 66 degrees and it warmed to a high of 70 degrees by 4:00 p.m. The sky was mostly cloudy, with only little patches of blue here and there for most of the day, but after 4:00 p.m. there was more blue sky than clouds.

A couple of days ago I had left a message for Minnesota state senator Mary Olson, from District 04, which includes Leech Lake, regarding the issue of the Army Corps of Engineers Reservoir Operating Plan Evaluation (ROPE) and corresponding Draft Environmental Impact Study (DEIS). Today, Sen. Olson returned my call.

The long and short of our 30 minute conversation was that she agrees with me that we all want to do what's best for the Leech Lake, the surrounding water shed and the Mississippi River Headwaters. But we also want to ensure that no decisions are made about the water levels in any of the area lakes without feedback from property owners, lake associations, resort owners, the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

From the stand point of many of the concerned parties around Leech Lake, the Army Corps of Engineers is moving forward aggressively with its ROPE/DEIS without much input from anyone outside the Corps. Sen. Olson suggested that I contact other township associations around the lake, as well as the Leech Lake Association, to ask for a meeting with representatives from the Corps of Engineers.

After speaking with Sen. Olson, I spoke with Jason Hauser who is a member of the Federal Dam Army Corps of Engineers. He did his best to put the ROPE/DEIS in a good light, saying that the proposed drop in water level is necessary for the health of the water shed (which it may very well be), and that the proposed lower water levels wouldn't be much lower than they are currently.

Unfortunately, the water level in Leech Lake as of July 10, is low enough to where my neighbor can't get his boat on or off his boat lift. In addition to suggesting that the current low water mark be the norm for years to come, the ROPE/DEIS also proposes an increase in the minimum discharge flow; meaning that even if the Corps of Engineers isn't actively draining water out of Leech Lake, the normal minimum flow out of the lake would be increased.

Again, all of this may make perfect sense, but so far, no one I've talked to other than the Army Corps of Engineers seems to understand why this proposal is a good idea. Simply put, the Corps of Engineers has not done a good job of stating its case.

I continued on my mission by contacting Dave Laursen, secretary of the Leech Lake Association. Dave told me that he had heard the Army Corps of Engineers had put the ROPE/DEIS on hold because of lack of funds. I told Dave that that never came up in my conversation with Jason at the Army Corp of Engineers. That news troubled Dave and he promised to address the issue at the next Association meeting, which is Monday, July 13, and get back to me.

Dave went on to tell me that other lake associations -- such as the one on Big Sandy Lake -- were also opposed to the ROPE/DEIS and had filed formal complaints with the Corps of Engineers. I also know that the Cass Lake Association is opposed the plan.

It appears to me that no one is happy with what is outlined in the ROPE/DEIS. And worse still, no one is happy at the lack of communication from the Corps of Engineers. This is an issue of great importance to all who live on area lakes and to those who rely on area lakes for their livelihood.

I'm going to be making a presentation to the Otter Tail Peninsula township board on Monday evening and I'm going to urge them to contact other Leech Lake township boards and the Leech Lake Association so we can band together to ask for a meeting with the Army Corps of Engineers so that can explain to us the details of the ROPE/DEIS, if the project is moving forward, and if it is, what we as concerned individuals can do to modify its content.

Whew. As for fishing today, the strong wind has kept me on shore. I may go out later today if the wind dies down some.

John Newman arrived at the lake late this afternoon, and he and I plan to get together later this evening over a cold malted beverage to solve all the problems we're facing here on the lake, and around the world.

At 9:00 p.m. this evening the wind picked up considerably, to about 20 mph, and shifted from the west to the north. And for about 20 minutes it rained fairly hard. Then as the light faded from the sky the rain stopped and the wind began to slow. But because of the inclimate weather (primarily the wind), I didn't go fishing tonight.

Hopefully the weather will be better tomorrow, and I can get out onto Leech Lake to do some fishing.