First meeting set on Missouri River study

FORT PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — The Army Corps of Engineers is holding its first public meeting to kick off a study to compare modern uses of the Missouri River to those that were authorized by the federal Flood Control Act of 1944.

The first meeting was scheduled for Thursday night in Fort Pierre. The next session will be Oct. 8 in Kansas City, Kan.

Federal lawmakers have approved $25 million for the study. Congress would have to approve any changes to the 65-year-old law.

Downstream and upstream Missouri River basin residents have long been at odds over the corps' management of the river. Downstream interests want more water for barge traffic, while those upstream put a priority on other uses such as recreation and wildlife habitat.

John Cooper, a former South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks secretary, says it's important for upstream interests to provide comments at the Fort Pierre meeting.

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