Jul 25, 2006 - 02:10:21 CDT
A low-water crossing on the Little Missouri River north of Medora could be as simple as some box culverts and concrete.But it will be anything but simple, even though it's likely to be some box culverts and concrete anyway.
A listing of the 16 agencies invited to a pre-scoping meeting Thursday to begin an environmental impact statement - the most full-blown environmental process there is - gets to why a Little Missouri River crossing will be about as simple as a third wedding on both sides.
It's been tried and scuttled twice before, with millions invested in engineering and environmental work that led to thick files and no crossing.
A complicating factor is the Elkhorn Ranch, an isolated and sensitive historical site that preserves the ranch location of President Theodore Roosevelt on that stretch of the river.
This time, Billings County has moved to condemn land on the Eberts Ranch, itself a historical piece of property that's in the process of being purchased for $3.5 million by the U.S. Forest Service, on which to improve a road and lay down a crossing.
Right now, there is no way for the public to cross the river anywhere between Medora and the Highway 85 bridge south of Watford City, a distance of about 80 miles.
The county wants to provide an east-west transportation link through that reach of the rugged Badlands for oil and ranch traffic.
The current proposal for a crossing instead of a span bridge could ease some aesthetic and river impact concerns that have been raised in the past.
The Thursday meeting is the official starting whistle on a process that could take up to two years.
An EIS involves several public hearings and a detailed study period. Alternative locations on the river, including the Eberts Ranch, and construction methods will be looked at before a final proposal is issued.
Jeremy Wood, an engineer with Kadrmas, Lee and Jackson, said the engineers and the state Department of Transportation recommended an EIS, rather than a less complex environmental assessment for the crossing project.
He said they made that recommendation based on the project's long and controversial history.
Hoopla aside, it boils down to a grading project and a low-water project that ballooned into an EIS, Wood said.
"But that's a proactive step that we took," he said.
Wood said the costs will be paid for by Billings County.
The historically sensitive Elkhorn Ranch is managed by the Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
The park's chief ranger, Bruce Kaye, said the park is interested to learn what the Federal Highway Administration has to say about the crossing at this point in time.
Other agencies invited to the meeting - scheduled for 2 p.m. at Century Center in Bismarck - are the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, North Dakota Game and Fish Department, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, State Historical Society, State Water Commission, State Health Department, State Parks and Recreation, Environmental Protection Agency, State Oil and Gas Division, State Tourism, Department of Emergency Services, the Federal Highway Administration, Billings County and State Department of Transportation.
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