Letter by: Andy Adamson, Jr.
(Pembina County commissioner)
In his column, Darrell Vanyo, chairman of the Flood Diversion Board of Authority, seeks the approval of Grand Forks and East Grand Forks for the Fargo-Moorhead Diversion (“Fargo-Moorhead Diversion Authority asks for GF-EGF’s support,” Page F1, Nov. 24).
The commissioner needs to realize that the Red River flows north of Grand Forks through Walsh and Pembina counties in North Dakota and Marshall and Kittson counties in Minnesota.
So, communities such as Oslo, Minn., and Drayton and Pembina, N.D., along with thousands of acres of prime Red River Valley farmland and farmsteads need flood protection as well.
These communities could use a diversion of their own.
For the past 50 or more years Fargo, Moorhead and West Fargo have expanded and built into the flood plain. They now expect the state and federal governments to fix this problem with our tax dollars.
A flood control project of this size should be expanded to provide protection to the entire Red River Valley, small and large communities alike. Otherwise, a $2 billion project such as this one, if approved, undoubtedly will make it difficult for other areas that need flood protection to get funds.
As columnist Trana Rogne mentioned, many other problems with the diversion still need to be solved, and it’s obvious that basinwide protection will not happen (“Basinwide protection? Not if pricey diversion goes through,” Page F1, Nov. 24).
The Fargo-Moorhead Diversion is a 35-mile-long, $2 billion Band-Aid that leaves 3/4 of the cut open and still bleeding.
Also published in the Grand Forks Herald
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Fargo diversion authority has shown for at least two years, they dont give a dam (pun intended) about anything or anyone other than Fargo.
For a long time, their meetings were not open to the public so as to not impede their self serving planning. There has always been a better way to protect Fargo, but that included helping their neighbors, and fargo wants nothing to do with helping others.
In their view, they are not part of the community, they ARE the community. Now they expect to get money from the federal government for their diversion ahead of other projects that have been on the books for many years.
A state with billions in the bank and counting, wants money from the feds who are trillions in the red.
For the same or less money, flood protection for the basin could be achieved. However, that does not make for easy million dollar projects for the engineering firms who have been pushing for this project and come up with any kind of study you want to read, as long as it is pro diversion.
The two major engineering firms even joined forces on this one so they don’t even have to bid against each other. Nice work if you can get it. They got it.