The Bureau of Reclamation and Garrison Diversion Conservancy District will host a series of public meetings regarding the Environmental Impact Statement for the Red River Valley Water Supply Project (RRVWSP). The RRVSWP is a study to identify the water needs and possible options for water shortages in the Red River Valley. The first meeting will be on June 23 at the Hilton Garden Inn, Grand Forks, starting at 7:00 p.m. Similar meetings will be conducted on subsequent days in Fargo, Valley City and Breckenridge, Minnesota.

During these meetings, the public will have an opportunity to provide feedback on potential alternatives for providing water to the Red River Valley over the next five decades.

Although the project would be designed specifically to provide municipal, rural, and industrial water for the North Dakota portion of the Red River Basin as well as Moorhead, East Grand Forks, and Breckenridge, Minnesota environmental impacts to the entire basin (which also covers areas of Minnesota, South Dakota, and Manitoba, Canada) will be considered.

As directed by the Dakota Water Resources Act of 2000, the Bureau of Reclamation and Garrison Diversion Conservancy District are working together to prepare the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Public scoping meetings held in the Red River Valley during the fall of 2002 introduced the public to the EIS process. Information presented at the upcoming public meetings will update interested persons on the EIS and introduce possible options for meeting the water needs.

The meeting facilities are physically accessible to people with disabilities. Please contact Signe Snortland at 701-250-4242 extension 3619 by June 13 so accommodations can be made.

For more information about this project refer to http://www.rrvwsp.com or contact Signe Snortland, Bureau of Reclamation at 701-250-4242 extension 3619 or Maria Effertz Hanson, Garrison Diversion Conservancy District at 800-532-0074.