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Headquarters, US Army Corps of Engineers
ATTN: CECW-P(IP)
7701 Telegraph Road
Alexandria, VA 22315-3860
Dear Sirs:
As a concerned resident of Fargo, North Dakota, I am writing you today to inform you of my opposition to the North Dakota Alignment commonly referred to as the Locally Preferred Plan (LPP).
As a college student very concerned about economics, and social justice, I cannot support a plan which is not economically viable or needed and does a grave injustice to not only the communities and farms in the proposed water staging area but also the entire Red River Basin.
To support a plan that is partially funded with 800 million federal tax dollars, I would think that it should benefit more than a single community in the Red River Valley. I realize that Fargo-Moorhead needs flood protection, but so does the entire Red River Basin. When there are other plans which will protect a much larger area than just our communities, they should be examined with much more scrutiny, especially when our U.S. economy is not thriving. I have examined the work of the Red River Basin Commission which states that flooding can be reduced throughout the basin by as much as 20% at a cost that is less than the federal dollars wanted for this project. This plan will also provide many environmental benefits instead of harm, not destroy communities and farms which have been here for generations and should be further studied.
I have worked on the flood lines not only in Fargo, but in several of our other area communities. By choosing this plan to support, you will destroy several of the communities and neighbors that I have and will continue to support during times of crisis. This plan is in total disregard for the rights of all peoples and by choosing winners and losers you will lose my respect for an agency whose mission I thought was to protect all people when there are viable options to be examined. You have not thoroughly examined basin wide water retention, grassland restoration and restoring prairie ecosystems as part of a comprehensive flood plan. These options, when combined with the home buyouts and flood walls being constructed in our towns will provide the needed protection for our cities so that we can all go to sleep at night in comfort.
By choosing the LPP, you are doing a grave injustice for not only the citizens of my hometown and its surrounding communities, but also for the nation.
Please reconsider this plan and do what is right for all peoples of this great union.
Thank you for your time and attention to this very important matter.
Claire Askegaard
1515 11th Ave N
Apt. #206
Fargo, ND 58102
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