Eken’s flood project provision not liked by all

• Rep. Kent Eken

Rep. Kent Eken, DFL-Twin Valley

Talk about it

ST. PAUL – Red River Valley legislators agree that communities downstream from a Fargo-Moorhead flood diversion project need to be protected, but not all like a provision Rep. Kent Eken, DFL-Twin Valley, inserted into a House bill.

“We have no problem with what he wants to do,” Sen. Keith Langseth, DFL-Glyndon, said Tuesday, but how Eken goes about the protection could be a problem.

Eken’s provision, an amendment to the public works funding bill, forbids Minnesota from paying for the diversion unless the federal government fixes any problems the diversion may cause downstream. The diversion likely would add up to 10.4 inches of water downstream.

The amendment went in the House bill, but is not in the Senate version. Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s office did not immediately respond to a request to find out where he stands on the issue.

Langseth, lead Senate public works negotiator on a conference committee that will take up the issue, said work already has begun to store water upstream from Fargo-Moorhead, so it does not flow downstream during floods.

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