Richard Betting, Valley City

Devils Lake is about as high as water ought to go, the Devils Lake City Commission sang in chorus May 18, as commissioners voted unanimously to "establish 1,446 as the ultimate level of Devils Lake." Devils Lake Journal articles noted that the Ramsey County Commission voted unanimously to support the concept two days later.

Picture it: Establish Devils Lake at a height of 1,446 feet msl. This plan would require digging a 13-foot ditch from Stump Lake through the Tolna Coulee into the Sheyenne River (four feet lower than the lake is right now).

Otherwise, Devils Lake will have to rise to 1,459 feet nine feet higher than it is now before overflowing through the coulee. Before overflowing then, the lake will have doubled its present size. Truly a problem for folks whose land will be flooded.

Instead, the commission plan would run the water down through the Tolna Coulee, then to the Sheyenne, making it someone else's problem. Had this ditch been in place this spring, all of the drainage from the upper basin of Devils Lake would have stormed through. In other words, this new Devils Lake "outlet" would have effectively doubled the 8,000 cubic feet per second flow down the Sheyenne, through Valley City, Lisbon, Horace, and West Fargo.

Will downstream Sheyenne River cities support doubling the size of the river with Devils Lake water?

That both the Ramsey County and Devils Lake City Commissions could seriously approve this kind of plan indicates their level of competence in dealing with water issues on Devils Lake. To avoid having to deal with rising lake levels, they concocted this pass-the-flood-along nightmare.

At the city meeting, Joe Belford, Downstream Devils Lake Outlet Acceptance Coordinator, said that he was already in contact with the Fargo mayor, and he would contact other towns downstream, like Cooperstown, Lisbon, and Valley City. One wonders if Mr. Belford spoke on behalf of the North Dakota State Water Commission in support of this newest ditching project.

Another question: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to build dikes around the city high enough to hold back water to 1,459 feet msl. If the Tolna Ditch is dug, that project won't be needed. So which will it be, a ditch or dikes?

Realistically, rationally and logically, the only method of reducing inflows from the upper basin is to restore some of the drained wetlands there. Using a modified Waffle Plan, many of the larger and deeper wetlands could be restored and gated.

As this spring's flooding illustrates, dealing with water issues involves everyone. The public needs to get involved now with planning for how to prepare for future flood events.