Devils Lake landowners draft petition for lake level management

May 5—CHURCHS FERRY, N.D. — Emotions ran high at times at a meeting of Devils Lake-area landowners unhappy with how lake levels are managed.

A group of approximately 50 landowners and farmers met on Thursday evening, May 4, to discuss a petition they plan to submit to the Devils Lake Outlets Management Advisory Committee, State Water Board and Gov. Doug Burgum. The meeting was held at the Alumni Center in Churchs Ferry, an unincorporated community that

dissolved in 2022 after its own battle with rising water.

The community's former mayor, Paul Christenson, led and organized the meeting. Though neither a landowner nor a farmer, he has lived in the area his whole life and has seen the effect of Devils Lake flooding on his community and surrounding communities.

"This isn't an agenda-type meeting (and) it's not a meeting that's got the answers to all the problems here, unfortunately," Christenson said. "But all the people in this room came tonight for the same reason — we've got to get some more water off this lake."

The petition asks for the Devils Lake Outlets Management Advisory Committee, State Water Commission and Gov. Doug Burgum to take a "better look" at operating the two outlet pumps on either side of the lake, with a lake elevation goal of 1,446 feet. The petition also asks that the Devils Lake Basin be labeled as a disaster area in a state of emergency.

Devils Lake has risen to 1,450.29 feet so far this spring.

The meeting comes after 30 years of Devils Lake flooding. During a wet cycle that began in the early 1990s, the lake started rising, causing it to grow in size. Agricultural land, houses and roads flooded, leading the state to step in to assist with flood mitigation. Devils Lake reached an all-time high of 1,545.3 feet in 2011.

The Devils Lake Basin is a closed basin with no natural outlet until it reaches an extremely high level. However, two state-operated outlets release water from the Devils Lake Basin into the Sheyenne River to help moderate flooding.

But even with the outlets in place, as lake levels rise, fields miles away in the basin are unable to adequately drain. Dan Webster, who farms near Penn, North Dakota, says some of his land has been underwater since flooding started in the 1990s, resulting in lost profits with no state compensation.

"I don't want to hand this off to the next generation," Webster said. "It's been 30 years since I've seen some of my land, and 2011 was really bad — we lost a bunch that year."

At times, the meeting devolved into verbal sparring between petitioners and two state lawmakers in attendance, Rep. Dennis Johnson, R-Devils Lake, and Rep. John Nelson, R-Rugby.

Johnson told the landowners he would go to Bismarck and sit down with Burgum.

"What am I supposed to tell him?" asked Johnson. The question was met with shouting from the crowd of petitioners.

"Tell him what it is, Dennis — it's a disaster out here," Christenson replied. "It's a freaking disaster. It's an emergency. In 20 years, nothing's been done. Isn't that an emergency?"

When the state begins outlet operations each year depends on a number of factors, including overnight temperatures and downstream channel conditions, Chris Korkowski, Investigations Section chief at the North Dakota Department of Water Resources, told the Herald.

"We don't want to release more water than the Sheyenne is able to hold, which is about 800 (cubic feet per second)," Korkowski said. "We also have to wait until snow and those sort of conditions in the West End Outlet canal are free."

When fully operational, the outlet on the east side of Devils Lake can let out 350 CFS, while the outlet on the west side can let out 250 CFS.

The lowest lake level at which the East End Outlet can operate is 1,446 feet; on the West End Outlet, it's 1,445 feet. Korkowski said the Department of Water Resources plans to operate the outlets until the lake gets down to those levels.

"Basically, if the lake is higher than those elevations, we plan on operating the outlets to remove as much water as we can," Korkowski said.

Once pumps are operating, downstream conditions and sulfate conditions in the lake and the Sheyenne are monitored.

"It's a constant balancing act between trying to remove as much water as possible while meeting the sulfate limits, which are set by the Clean Water Act," Korkowski said.

But petitioners feel standards are too high and outlet operation is stopped too often.

"They have all the excuses in the world — can't meet the water quality, got a thunderstorm down south, shut them off for the week to let the water go. All these excuses," Webster said. "In other words, their model is flawed."

The West End and East End outlets started operations in 2005 and 2012, respectively. The overall infrastructure is in good shape, said Korkowski, but last year the West End Outlet sustained some damage to a switch gear at the Round Lake Pump Station. Supply chain issues have delayed repairs.

Until the pump station is repaired, the outlet has a maximum discharge capacity of 175 CFS, Korkowski said. He expects repairs to be completed in July.

Additionally, a capital improvement plan for the West End Outlet is being developed.

"What the plan will do is identify any updates we need for the infrastructure and the time frame to complete those updates so we can continue the long-term operation of the Devils Lake West End Outlet. That's something we've been looking into," Korkowski said.

While constrained by downstream conditions and sulfate levels, Andrea Travnicek, director of the North Dakota Department of Water Resources, told the Herald the state will continue operating the outlets and working with basin stakeholders.

"We remain committed to continuing to operate these outlets, knowing that there is still an emergency situation up there, so it's extremely important for us to continue to make sure that we're maintaining that," Travnicek said. "That's why we've worked really hard toward this capital improvement plan, so we know how we can continue to make sure this equipment is modernized and operating the way that it should."

The landowner plans to submit the petition to state leaders at the Devils Lake Outlets Management Advisory Committee meeting on May 17.