Young people here might not remember, but in the heady days of the 1980s, the Garrison Diversion Project was stopped from happening.
It would have "diverted" lots of water from North Dakota and other states into Manitoba's "watershed" and into the Hudson Bay.
Well, 30 years on, its "on" again, now known as the "Northwest Area Water Supply (NAWS) project"
For a time, this issue was a constant news item on CBC Manitoba's "24Hours" programme, almost nightly. Gawd I miss that programme.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manito...kota-1.4351612
Quote:
Gov't of Manitoba Statement on Garrison Diversion Project:
https://gov.mb.ca/waterstewardship/w...potential.html
Since the Garrison dam on the Missouri River in North Dakota was completed in the mid-1950s (creating a huge reservoir known as Lake Sakakawea/Lake Audubon) there have been a variety of proposed irrigation projects and water distribution proposals for municipal, rural and industrial uses. The initial Garrison diversion project proposed the large-scale transfer of Missouri River water into the Hudson Bay drainage basin for irrigation purposes, using the Snake Creek Pumping Station to move water (up to 2000 cfs) from the reservoir via the 74 mile long McClusky Canal over the continental divide to link with the 44 mile long New Rockford Canal in the James River Valley. Several major Garrison features were constructed prior to the investigation by the International Joint Commission (1977) which determined that using Missouri River water for irrigation in the Hudson Bay drainage basin should not be allowed. In addition the IJC expressed concerns over the negative environmental impacts which could occur, for example, from the transfer of non-native species between basins and the introduction of invasive species, fish disease and pathogens.
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