Public comment period opens on Fargo-Moorhead flood diversion project

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced Monday that it is accepting public comments on a draft environmental impact statement for a flood diversion project that would put a high-hazard dam on the Red River, potentially affecting the Fargo-Moorhead area.

The project was proposed by the Fargo-Moorhead Diversion Authority with the goal of reducing flood risk in the metropolitan area. It would create two dams: one on North Dakota’s Wild Rice River and one on the Red River, which borders both North Dakota and Minnesota.

Due to state regulations, the construction of the high-hazard dam on the Red River requires environmental review in the form of the environmental impact statement, and the project cannot go forward until the final statement is approved by the DNR.

The draft environmental impact statement covers the potential environmental and social impacts of the project. Its public comment period began Monday and will continue until Oct. 28. There will be an open house on Oct. 14 from 5-10 p.m. at the Courtyard Marriott, 1080 28th. Ave. S., in Moorhead, Minnesota, where attendees can learn more about the project and ask questions.

The statement is available online and in hard copy at several DNR facilities and public libraries throughout the state.