U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Sign Record of Decision
On January 16th, Maj. Gen. Kimberly A. Peeples, Commander of the Mississippi Valley Division of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, officially signed the Record of Decision for the Yazoo Backwater Area Water Management Project, effectively clearing the path for the building of the project since first proposed in 1941.
Peter Nimrod, Chief Engineer of the Mississippi Levee Board headquartered in Greenville—the organization which has worked for years as advocated for the project—is extremely excited about what lies ahead.
“All environmental documentation has been completed as part of the required process and construction has been given the green light on the project,” says Nimrod. “The Corps will need to get money from Congress to start engineering and design work in order to begin construction and also acquire mitigation lands.
“The difference now with this decision is that everybody worked together: the Corps, the Environment Protection Agency, the Fish and Wildlife Services were all in complete agreement on this. It’s huge,” says Nimrod.
Nimrod says the first immediate step will be the acquisition of mitigation land, with Ducks Unlimited assisting in that process, with the development of property to offset the future losses with the project that was in place.
“From this point forward for about the next three years, we’ll be working on engineering design and acquiring the mitigation land,” says Nimrod. “After the land has been acquired, construction on the project can begin so we’re probably, again, about three years from getting the shovels going. It’s a big project. We’re still years away from completion, but we now can see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
Nimrod expects more lawsuits from various environment groups in the country to stop forward progress, as has happened in the past, but now that every federal agency involved is in favor of the project he says it should offset any challenges.
The Water Management Plan includes a 25,000 cfs pumping plant turned on at 90’ during the crop season (March 25th–October 15th) and 93’ during the non-crop season (October 16th–March 24th). The non-structural components of the project include the modification of the Steele Bayou Structure operation to allow free movement of water in and out of the lower Yazoo Basin up to an elevation of 75’ before closing the gate.
This feature will allow for more exchange of water between the riverside and the landside of the Yazoo Backwater Levee mimicking more natural flood pulses and therefore benefiting the environment and promoting fishery species diversification. 34 supplemental low flow groundwater wells will be installed along streams in the northern portion of the Mississippi Delta. These wells will keep water in Mississippi Delta streams during the low-flow season helping to sustain aquatics, fisheries and the environment.
The remaining non-structural features consist of opportunity for willing owners below 93’ to sell their land and improvements, or to sell a flowage easement, or elevating residential structures, or floodproofing non-residential structures. 6,125 acres of Compensatory Mitigation land will be acquired through an in-lieu fee program. All mitigation necessary to fully offset unavoidable impacts to wetlands, as well as fish, wildlife, and their habitats, will be secured prior to initiation of project construction.
This Yazoo Backwater Area Water Management Project was originally developed in a joint federal agency collaboration effort between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the White House Council of Environmental Quality (CEQ). This collaboration began in early 2022.The USACE started working on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Yazoo Backwater Area Water Management Project in July, 2023. The Draft EIS was released on June 28, 2024.
Public review of the Draft EIS included six in-person public meetings and one virtual meeting. On October 16, 2024 the USFWS sent a letter where they concurred with the
Corps Endangered Species determination of “may affect but is not likely to adversely affect” all the federally listed endangered species in the area. On November 8, 2024 the USFWS issued a Biological Opinion that the project is “not likely to jeopardize the continued existence” of the federally endangered Pondberry.
On November 25, the Corps, EPA & USFWS signed three Memorandums of Agreements (MOAs) on governing pump and water control structure operation plans; compensatory mitigation; and adaptive management. On November 29 the USACE released the Final EIS. On December 10, 2024 the USFWS issued a Final Fish & Wildlife Coordination Act Report which found that the recommended plan represents an orderly, balanced, and environmentally sensitive approach to the water and related land resource problems and opportunities of the Yazoo Backwater Area.
On January 8 of this year, the EPA concluded that the Clean Water Act Section 404(c) Final Determination issued in 2008 does not apply to discharges associated with the 2024 recommended plan plus the EPA found that the recommended plan is compliant with the Section 404(b)(1) Guidelines. The EPA anticipates that the recommended plan will provide significant flood risk reduction in the lower Mississippi Delta while avoiding, minimizing and effectively compensating for impacts to the region’s important ecological resources.
With the USACE signing the Record of Decision it is officially announcing that the environmental documentation phase of the project is now complete and they are ready to start on the design and construction of the project.
The next phase of the project is Preconstruction Engineering and Design (PED). During this PED the following will happen: begin working on the engineering design to construct the project;continued coordination and implementation of the features of the MOAs; develop and finalize aReal Estate Plan; purchase credits from the In-Lieu Fee Program; site-specific mitigation plans;environmental justice (EJ) mitigation plan; cultural investigations of construction, well, and mitigation sites; hazardous, toxic, and radioactive waste (HTRW) investigations of construction, well, and mitigation sites; State 401 Water Quality Certification; and update costs and economic information for development of the Civil Works budget.
The Mississippi Levee Board has expressed gratitude to the USACE, EPA and the USFWS for working together to develop this Water Management Plan for the Yazoo Backwater Area.
“The Levee Board is thrilled with the signing of this Record of Decision and we look forward to Preconstruction Engineering and Design and the purchase of the mitigation land required,” says Mississippi Levee Board President, Kenny Rodgers. “This is a monumental day for the Pumps!
The Levee Board is extremely grateful for the strong and steady leadership and support of the entire Mississippi Congressional Delegation including Sen. Roger Wicker, Sen. Cindy Hyde Smith and Cong. Bennie Thompson.”
Mississippi Levee Board Vice-President Nott Wheeler adds, “The Mississippi Levee Board commends all the federal agencies for coming to Mississippi and listening to the people who are impacted by backwater flooding and working together to develop a workable solution. We commend the USACE for producing a sustainable project that will serve our citizens and protect them better than previous designs. We look forward to our entire Mississippi Congressional Delegation helping to provide the funding necessary to get this much needed project finished as quickly as possible.”
In a press release following the announcement, Nimrod said, “This plan will finally provide adequate flood protection to protect our people, homes, infrastructure, crop land, wildlife, trees and the environment. This 25,000 cfs pump will be able to maintain certain water levels and provide real flood protection to the land above these proposed elevations.”
Paul Hollis, Mississippi Levee Commissioner Paul Hollis, comments, “We are all looking forward to the day when construction of this project will begin. The Mississippi South Delta has been patiently waiting for the Pumps since 1941 and now it is finally time to ‘Finish the Pumps!’”