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Farmers and environmentalists at odds over plans to dump sediment into Missouri River

St. Louis Public Radio | By Marshall Griffin,
Marshall Griffin
Published June 11, 2012 at 6:16 PM CDT

Farmers and environmentalists faced off at a hearing today in Jefferson City over a water project on the Missouri River west of Boonville.

TheU.S. Army Corps of Engineerswants to build a new chute at Jameson Islanddesigned to protect thepallid sturgeonand other native fish species.  Building it would involve dredging along the Missouri River, and the Corps wants to dump the sediment back into the river.  The move is strongly opposed by farm interests.  Dale Ludwig with theMissouri Soybean Associationsays up to a million cubic yards of sediment could be dumped into the Missouri River.

“If we let common sense be our guide, dumping this amount of soil in a river will have an effect on water quality," Ludwig said.

Ludwig addressed a joint meeting of the Missouri Clean Water Commissionand the Corps of Engineers.  Several farmers and other agricultural groups said the sediment would raise phosphorus levels in the Missouri River and could contribute to the "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico.

Several environmental advocates spoke in favor of the Corps' plans, saying that the process is not only safe, but would benefit the endangered pallid sturgeon.  Susan Flader of theMissouri Parks Associationsaid the soil in question is sediment that’s natural to river bottoms.

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“We’re talking about materials that have been deposited, eroded, (and) re-deposited in a natural, dynamic process by the shifting channels of the Missouri River over time," Flader said.

Jameson Island is on the Missouri River about 15 miles west-northwest of Boonville, located within theBig Muddy National Fish and Wildlife Refuge.  The Army Corps of Engineers suspended work on the chute in 2007 after the Clean Water Commission threatened to file a lawsuit to block sediment dumping.  Corps officials latercommissioned a study by the National Academy of Sciences.  Steve Iverson, Deputy District Engineer for the Corps' Kansas City office, says the study shows that dumping sediment into the Missouri River would not significantly impact it or the Gulf of Mexico.

The Clean Water Commission is scheduled to vote next month on whether sediment from the project can be dumped back into the river. 

Copyright 2021 St. Louis Public Radio. To see more, visit St. Louis Public Radio.

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Environment missouri rivermarshall griffinchuteus army corps
Marshall Griffin
Missouri Public Radio State House Reporter Marshall Griffin is a proud alumnus of the University of Mississippi (a.k.a., Ole Miss), and has been in radio for over 20 years, starting out as a deejay. His big break in news came when the first President Bush ordered the invasion of Panama in 1989. Marshall was working the graveyard shift at a rock station, and began ripping news bulletins off the old AP teletype and reading updates between songs. From there on, his radio career turned toward news reporting and anchoring. In 1999, he became the capital bureau chief for Florida's Radio Networks, and in 2003 he became News Director at WFSU-FM/Florida Public Radio. During his time in Tallahassee he covered seven legislative sessions, Governor Jeb Bush's administration, four hurricanes, the Terri Schiavo saga, and the 2000 presidential recount. Before coming to Missouri, he enjoyed a brief stint in the Blue Ridge Mountains, reporting and anchoring for WWNC-AM in Asheville, North Carolina. Marshall lives in Jefferson City with his wife, Julie, their dogs, Max and Mason, and their cat, Honey.
See stories by Marshall Griffin
Marshall Griffin
St. Louis Public Radio State House Reporter Marshall Griffin is a native of Mississippi and proud alumnus of Ole Miss (welcome to the SEC, Mizzou!). He has been in radio for over 20 years, starting out as a deejay. His big break in news came when the first President Bush ordered the invasion of Panama in 1989. Marshall was working the graveyard shift at a rock station, and began ripping news bulletins off an old AP teletype and reading updates between songs. From there on, his radio career turned toward news reporting and anchoring. In 1999, he became the capital bureau chief for Florida's Radio Networks, and in 2003 he became News Director at WFSU-FM/Florida Public Radio. During his time in Tallahassee he covered seven legislative sessions, Governor Jeb Bush's administration, four hurricanes, the Terri Schiavo saga, and the 2000 presidential recount. Before coming to Missouri, he enjoyed a brief stint in the Blue Ridge Mountains, reporting and anchoring for WWNC-AM in Asheville, North Carolina. Marshall lives in Jefferson City with his wife, Julie, their dogs, Max and Liberty Belle, and their cat, Honey.