County Conference

Communities may not grow on trees but they do need water to grow That s part of the reason behind a 700-million water project that will pump Missouri River water to the Red River Valley Garrison Diversion Executive Director Dave Koland told area county officials that the water supply project will only supplement the current water supply for eastern communities in drought years He says in spite of all of the talk about out-migration Fargo has enjoyed steady growth over the past few decades And he says the types of industries state officials are courting rely heavily on water Dave Koland Garrison Diversion Conservancy Dist Water is absolutely essential to growth whether it s ethanol plants biodiesel plants biomass plants or new neighborhoods I think we ve experienced a turn around in the type of industry that we re attracting to North Dakota and the type of jobs that are coming here And that can only continue if we can be assured a reliable supply of water Koland says the Red River Valley Project should not have an impact on the NAWS project at all He says when it s fully operational it should only draw down the level of Lake Sakakawea about an inch