Sulphur River logjam tops SRBA agenda

By LYNN MONTGOMERY | East Texas Edition

June 3, 2004 -- The logjam, on the Sulphur River along Highway 37 near Hagansport, and the initiatives of the Texas Water Allocation Assessment (TWAA) study performed in 2001, were of prime importance to Sulphur River Board Authority (SRBA) members and the audience who attended the May 18 SRBA meeting in Mount Pleasant.

Kevin Craig, chief of the Plan Formulation Section in the Fort Worth District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, briefly detailed the role of the Corps and their missions, which include two missions. One is flood damage reduction, ecosystem restoration and navigation; the second mission is water supply, hydropower, water quality, and recreation.

Because of these missions, a reconnaissance study was initiated in February 1999 by a congressional addition in the appropriations bill. The purpose of the reconnaissance study was threefold. One, it was to identify water resource problems, need, and opportunities, with emphasis on the "logjam."

Audience members who live along the banks of the Sulphur River wanted to know why a study could not be done to combat the logjam and only the logjam.

Craig response was they had studied the logjam but "the Corps feels it would be better to do a comprehensive study."

Second purpose of the reconnaissance study was to identify a federal interest, and third, to identify a potential non-federal sponsor.

The report of the study findings was completed in November of 1999, with a federal interest identified but a non-federal sponsor had not been found.

"In 2001, the Marvin Nichols Reservoir Study was initiated with the SRBA and Region C (Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex) active in the study. The purpose of this study was to identify an optimal site for construction of a reservoir, identify economic impacts of the reservoir and to prepare a preliminary design of the reservoir," Craig added.

"This (TWAA) study was 100 percent federally funded, with its purpose to assist the state of Texas in determining if existing water can be better allocated to support more balanced water use to meet future needs," stated Craig.

One of the initiatives of the TWAA was a system assessment of the Wright Patman Reservoir near Texarkana and the Jim Chapman Reservoir (also known as Cooper Lake) near Cooper.

"This study investigated additional yield that could be made in the basin," Craig said.

"It also investigated the potential impact to the White Oak Creek Mitigation Area." This area was land mitigated for the Jim Chapman Reservoir.

"It did not investigate impacts to environmental or cultural resources, recreational facilities, water supply contracts, or seasonal flood control operations," the chief added.

The study concluded there is a potential to add additional acre-feet of water through modifying some of the operations. One of these modifications is to lower the conservation pool at Wright Patman to 215.25 feet. The top of the conservation pool would be 228.64 feet, which would give an additional 368,259 acre feet of water.

Further detailed studies are required prior to selection and implementation of the modification plan, according to Craig.

The additional studies process would be the reconnaissance study and a feasibility study. The reconnaissance study has been completed and a report was certified on April 15.

The feasibility study requires a 50/50 cost share (federal and non-federal) and most would be conducted in phases to provide multiple checkpoint meetings and promote extensive public involvement. It also identifies a recommended plan, preparation of a feasibility report, and a submittal to Congress, if necessary.

The two phases of the feasibility study, Craig explained, include phase one which involves existing conditions of the basin, public involvement, an independent technical review (ITR), and a feasibility scoping meeting. The second phase involves a plan formulation, more public involvement, and ITR, Alternative Formulation review, Feasibility scoping meeting, and then the final report.

Once these phases are completed, a feasibility cost sharing agreement will need to be executed and a feasibility study will begin.

"The Sulphur Basin is a key component in the state water plan," Craig said.

One question, following Craig's presentation, came from SRBA Vice President Dick Goodman. "So, what you said about the agency (the Corps) doing this study, they can't be bought off?"

"That's what I said," Craig responded.

So basically, until the funding is obtained and the feasibility study is completed, the process to clear the logjam is jammed.

The next SRBA meeting will be June 15, at 1:30 p.m. (note new time), at the civic center in Mount Pleasant.